Callan Uncovered

by James Mitchell

A 'must read' for all fans of the iconic television series Callan. The first-ever compilation of the Callan short stories written by creator James Mitchell between 1967 and 1976, never published in book form before. Callan Uncovered also includes a Mitchell Outline Treatment for a Callan episode and a previously unseen full-length script - Goodbye Mary Lee - which was never filmed. Edited by Mike Ripley, with a special introduction by James Mitchell's son and literary executor, Peter.

Genres: Espionage, Thriller

284 pages, Paperback

First published October 9, 2014

About the author

James William Mitchell (12 March 1926, South Shields - 15 September 2002, Newcastle-upon-Tyne) was a British writer of crime fiction and spy thrillers. Mr. Mitchell also wrote under the pseudonyms James Munro and Patrick O. McGuire. He received bachelor's and master's degrees from Oxford.


Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collects a number of short stories James Mitchell wrote about his world-weary secret operative Callan, a man fully able to kill as needed despite his conscience often causing him problems — his bursts of humanity often cause his bosses a degree of frustration (over the course of the series “Hunter” changed several times.)

The short stories are somewhat different than the TV series — Hunter is pretty much the same man from story to story, while there’s more often a violent solution where the episodes often skipped the violent closure and instead twisted back and forth to a conclusion.

To round out the volume there’s an unused treatment and an unrecorded script — probably meant for the first series, before Callan rejoined the Section.

[Loyola L. Garcia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super stories

The stories are well written and fast moving. After watching the Callan shows these provide more information and depth
about the characters.

[James Donald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay... this is not a novel, it is an anthology.

In this book you'll find a selection of tales that have never been collected before. Short stories, adaptations and serial tales.

The quality is a little bit variable but it is oddly addictive.

These tiny bite sized tales are fast paced and throw you straight into the action. No complexity, no depth but if you know the characters you can crack straight on with some quite brilliant tales.

[Barry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Staid, stolid, down to earth British Gentleman. Callan is instead an Assassin for the British Government. No gee gaws, no fancy toys, just a gun and a man and a job finished

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blast from the past

Fascinating material from the creator of Callan. Terse thrillerettes with all the atmosphere of the primal programmes. A great memory of the past.