| The Paras | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Created by | Glyn Worsnip |
| Written by | Frank Hilton |
| Presented by | Glyn Worsnip |
| Theme music composer | Conn Bernard |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 7 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Bill Jones |
| Editor | Graham Dean |
| Camera setup | Dave Gray |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC1 |
| Release | March 1983 (1983-03) |
The Paras is a 1983 BBC TV documentary series about British Parachute Regiment recruits of 480 (Training) Platoon undertaking their basic training at the Depot of the Parachute Regiment (Depot Para) at Aldershot Garrison between January and June 1982. The series was broadcast on BBC1 in March and April 1983. It was later repeated in 1984, with an update on the platoon members' lives in the last episode.
Narrated by Glyn Worsnip,[1] it was shot in the fly-on-the-wall style, giving the viewing public a unique insight to military life. Production of the programme started just prior to the Falklands War.
The series was accompanied by a book of the same name written by the principal researcher Frank Hilton [2]
The series was accompanied by a score of military music written and arranged by Conn Bernard.
Some of those recruits passing out in 1982 went on to have long and distinguished careers including Dean Ward and Rod Stoner. In addition one of the platoon staff corporals, Al Slater was later killed in Northern Ireland whilst a member of the SAS. This incident and some of this involvement in the SAS were described in two of Andy McNab's books Immediate Action and Seven Troop.
| Episode | Title | Produced by | Written by | Original air date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "480 Platoon" | Bill Jones | Frank Hilton | March 1983 (1983-03) | |
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The recruits of 480 (Training) Platoon form up at Browning Barracks, Aldershot and are introduced to army life.
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| 2 | "The Maroon Machine" | Bill Jones | Frank Hilton | March 1983 (1983-03) | |
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Basic tactics and fitness training in the Aldershot area
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| 3 | "Basic Wales" | Bill Jones | Frank Hilton | March 1983 (1983-03) | |
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Battle Camp at Sennybridge Training Area, Wales.
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| 4 | "'P' Company" | Bill Jones | Frank Hilton | March 1983 (1983-03) | |
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Pre-Parachute (P company) selection in Aldershot.
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| 5 | "Wings" | Bill Jones | Frank Hilton | April 1983 (1983-04) | |
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Basic Parachute Training at RAF Brize Norton.
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| 6 | "Ready For Anything" | Bill Jones | Frank Hilton | April 1983 (1983-04) | |
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Advanced Tactics training.
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| 7 | "Down To Earth" | Bill Jones | Frank Hilton | April 1983 (1983-04) | |
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The recruits are posted to Northern Ireland on operations. (The 1984 repeat included an extra 10 minutes update on the original recruits 2 years later)
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