Hot Metal
- TV sitcom
- ITV1
- 1986 - 1989
- 12 episodes (2 series)
Biting newspaper satire by Andrew Marshall and David Renwick, set in the offices of the once high-brow, now populist tabloid, Daily Crucible. Stars Robert Hardy, Geoffrey Palmer, Geoffrey Hutchings, Richard Kane, John Gordon Sinclair and more.
Key details
- Genre
- Sitcom
- Broadcast
- 1986 - 1989
- Channel
- ITV
- Episodes
- 12 (2 series), plus 1 Comic Relief special
- Stars
- Robert Hardy, Geoffrey Palmer, Geoffrey Hutchings, Richard Kane, John Gordon Sinclair, Richard Wilson, David Barrass and Caroline Milmoe
- Writers
- Andrew Marshall and David Renwick
- Directors
- David Askey and Nic Phillips
- Producer
- Humphrey Barclay
- Company
The Daily Crucible, a respectable daily newspaper, is facing its final edition; its straight-forward, totally-honest approach to reporting the news has won it much attention, but made it deadly dull and with ever-diminishing sales figures.
Enter Twiggy Rathbone, tycoon owner of Rathouse International who's ready to turn the high-brow paper into a popular, sleazy, high-selling tabloid. He installs editor Russell Spam to do his bidding and 'promotes' the incumbent, Harry Stringer, to the role of 'managing editor' - a largely vanity role but holding what will become an increasingly difficult public face of respectability...
Additional details
- Production
- Studio
- Camera set-up
- Multi-camera
- Picture
- Colour
- Soundtrack
- Theme tune, Papers, written, composed and performed by Alan Price.
Website links
Broadcast details
- First broadcast
- Sunday 16th February 1986 at 10pm on ITV1