The Professionals

Boss of the fictional Criminal Intelligence 5 was whisky-drinking George Cowley, played by Gordon Jackson. He’d made his name as the butler in Upstairs, Downstairs, but switched silver tea-tray service to ‘fight fire with fire’ in the criminal underworld for 57 episodes. Lewis Collins (William Bodie) and Martin Shaw (Ray Doyle) played the Capri-driving leads, whose improvised, on-set banter became part of the show. Perhaps the real star, though, was Shaw’s permed hair, as much a 70s icon as plat...