Tue 18 Feb 2025
A British TV Episode Review: CALLAN “Where Else Could I Go?” (1970)
Posted by Steve under Reviews , TV Espionage & Spies[4] Comments
CALLAN “Where Else Could I Go?” Thames TV, UK, 6 April 1970. Edward Woodward (Callan), William Squire, Patrick Mower, Russell Hunter. Creator/teleplay: James Mitchell. Director: Jim Goddard. Streaming on Amazon Prime; also available on YouTube (see below).
I’m not as familiar with this series as I probably should be, so starting from the first episode of season three (the earliest to be found on Amazon), means that’s a lot of back story I need to fill in on my own. But it’s clear from the start of this episode that Callan was shot and seriously wounded as the end of season two.
He’s an assassin for one of those British semi-secret government organizations, or at least he was. While he’s healing physically, his superiors are worried that he’s no longer up to doing the job he used to be number one at. Callan takes to worrying about that, the same as you or I would, am I right?
Complicating matters is that his former comrade in arms, a lonely and rather meek gent w know only as “Lonely” is now in jail. It is up to Callan to get him out, supposing of course that he can. Resolving the situation is all that this episode is comprised of. Note the title of the episode. This is all I am going to tell you, but the title may tell you more.
If I had the opportunity to know what had happened before (and YouTube may have episodes available from the first two seasons), I probably would have found myself a lot less at unease while watching this one, but both the cast and the writing are top notch. Callan is a complicated character, and a very young Edward Woodward plays him well.
With hardly a single additional reservation to add, I’ll just go ahead and recommend this one highly.

February 18th, 2025 at 11:48 pm
Here I did a review of a later episode in the third series:
https://mysteryfile.com/blog/?p=85810
February 19th, 2025 at 5:59 am
I remember seeing Callan in my teens when it first came out!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Callan_(TV_series) for a detailed account.
February 19th, 2025 at 11:34 am
One thing I have been trying to discover is whether or not CALLAN ever had a network showing in the US. So far I have come up with nothing to indicate that it has.
February 21st, 2025 at 10:17 pm
The interesting thing about Callan is that he knows he is good at the dirty business he is in, but is always divided about it, either wanting out entirely or wanting to prove he is still good enough to do his job.
That and his insubordinate relationship with his bosses who he knows could easily retire him in more than one way give the series an uneasy tension,