'The Bill' cast hold lockdown reunion 10 years on from show end

Amy Johnson
·Contributor
Updated ·2 min read

It’s been 10 years since The Bill fans last saw goings-on at Sun Hill police station, but there’s good news for those feeling nostalgic as some of the show’s most famous faces have reunited in lockdown.

Stars including WPC June Ackland player Trudie Goodwin and PC Jim Carver actor Mark Wingett got together via video-call to celebrate the programme arriving to on-demand video service UKTV Play.

They were joined by DI Frank Burnside star Chris Ellison as well as Sgt Bob Cryer actor Eric Richard and Graham Cole, who played PC Tony Stamp.

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The former colleagues shared memories from their time on set and also answered questions from fans during the chat.

Cast of ITV television show The Bill on December 22, 1988. Back: Mark Powley, Larry Dann, Colin Blumenau, Jon Iles, Mark Wingett, Christopher Ellison and Tony Scannell. Front: Roger Leach, Jeff Stewart, Kelly Lawrence, Eric Richard, Kevin Lloyd, Barbara Thorn and Trudie Goodwin. (Photo by Douglas Doig/Express/Getty Images)
The cast of ITV television show The Bill on December 22, 1988. Back: Mark Powley, Larry Dann, Colin Blumenau, Jon Iles, Mark Wingett, Christopher Ellison and Tony Scannell. Front: Roger Leach, Jeff Stewart, Kelly Lawrence, Eric Richard, Kevin Lloyd, Barbara Thorn and Trudie Goodwin. (Douglas Doig/Express/Getty Images)

Speaking about life behind the scenes on the show, which ran from 1983 to 2010, Ellison shared: "There were no stars of The Bill, there were no egos. It was happy, happy family people. It was a happy time for us all."

Meanwhile, Cole remarked that he "loved" filming the car shots, although Ellison disagreed.

"I hated car shots, especially in the summer. We used to take our trousers off," he commented. "Not because we were too hot, we were just bored."

The Bill stars reunited online for a lockdown chat. (UKTV)
The Bill stars reunited online for a lockdown chat. (UKTV)

The cast were in agreement that the laughs shared on the show was one of the highlights – Wingett said they'd "be in fits of giggles" everyday.

The police procedural series featured many people who went on to make it big, including Russell Brand, Emma Bunton and Martin Freeman.

Cole joked that Pirates Of The Caribbean star Keira Knightley had never been in touch again after featuring in an 1995 episode at the age of 10.

The Bill: The Early Years series 1-5 will be available to stream from 1 May at 10am on UKTV Play, with a further four series to be made available every month from June.