Comic played a racist cop in Wolcott

A forgotten TV drama in which Rik Mayall played a racist cop is to be released on DVD later this month.

Wolcott aired over three nights in January 1981, breaking new ground for a British cop drama by having a black actor, George Harris, in the lead role. He played a policeman promoted to CID, while Mayall played the bigoted PC Bonham.

Soon after Mayall's death last year at the age of 56, Wolcott co-creator Patrick Carroll said the ITV show had been 'airbrushed from the history of British television'.

Writing in the Guardian, he said: 'My abiding recollection of Rik Mayall is of his straight-acting turn as the virulently racist PC Bonham opposite George Harris.'

The show also featured two fellow alternative comedy pioneers: Alexei Sayle as a Socialist Worker spokesman and Keith Allen as a National Front heckler.

Wolcott is being released by vintage TV specialists Network on Monday, priced £10.25 on DVD or £14 on Blu-Ray. Order

Here is a clip showing Mayall in action:

Published: 11 Aug 2015