1960s television series

[fotografics]

There was a series in the 1960 with a articularly haunting theme tune. Basically someone whistling (with a bit of echo added) and the sound of footsteps.

I seem to remember (but it might be my imagination) that the intro was a black and white shot of a man, at night, walking along a rain soaked street, but that might be wrong!

Anyone got any ideas?

[mushroom25]

but for the whistling (which I don't remember) your description pretty much matches "Public Eye" from 1969, concerning private detective Frank Marker. The series depicted the grim reality of private eyes in the UK as opposed to the glamorous fiction shown in the US genre.

[n00dles]

I don't know about a programme fotografics but there was the famous advert for Strand cigarettes depicting a man walking along a deserted street at night, with background music (haunting but pleasant). The blurb went "Your never alone with a Strand". Believe it or not it lost sales in those cigarettes - such was the eerie impact of the ad. Personally I thought it great, but then I was too young to be smoking!!

[fotografics]

Okay, I may be getting a bit mixed up with the visuals but it was definitely a TV series, not the advert.

I could even whistle it for you!

[Ethel]

Go on - give a little whistle.

You coud post it here as a wav. file

[fotografics]

Thanks for the "public eye" suggestion but I don't think that's it. Web pages talk about the theme's trumpets and so on. The tune/theme I'm loking for was just a whistle, with an echo and the sound of footsteps.

Now that I try to whistle it myself I find that I don't remember it as welll as I thought, sorry Ethel! Anyway, think late 1960s maybe early 1970s mystery, possibly on ITV.

[Marky B]

The music for the Strand adverts actually got in the charts with the Cliff Adams Singers (Sing Something Simple) and it was known as The Lonely Man Theme. The man in the advert was played Frank Siantra lookalike Terence Brooks,

Ta Ta

Marky B

[sheffwed39]

remember the first saphire and steel series where there was whistling in it .probably not what you mean though

[Scotman84]

From memory, the title sequence had an empty running roller coaster too. Something like The Outer Limits - but i's bugging me too now !!

[mydogsandme]

you've got me at it now foto! I can actually remember a programme like this in the 60's and can hear the whistling in my head..shall we think of it together and telepathically communicate it? I think it was a series of spooky stories too- it didn't have an empty swing in it did it?

[Holidaylover]

Dixon of Dock Green? Have I done this twice?

[reinganum]

Can't remember the TV series but the tune you are describing sounds like Walking Whistling Blues by Les Paul (which came out in 1951). I don't remember it being used as a sig for a TV series.

The Strand cigarette ad has the man walking down the street (I don't think it was raining though) but the instrumentation was different - harmonica and guitar if I remember correctly.

[willyboy]

Was it Harry Lime?

[fotografics]

Scotman84 yes!!!

Now that you mention it I can see that empty roller coaster ride! It's nice to know that I'm not mad or imagining a non-existant series!

C'mon, all together now. Whistling, echo, footsteps... Someone must be able to put me out of my misery.

[fotografics]

yeah!

It looks like it was a series called "Journey to the unknown"

Now can anyone tell me where I might find the theme tune (to buy or download)?

[willyboy]

Are we still looking at this one? It's definately Journey To The Unknown. The music is by Harry Robinson who seems to have done scores for lots of plays/movies. I don't what this one is called yet as l'm having troble tracking him down.

[fotografics]

Yep, the theme to "Journey to the UInknown".

Can't find it in anything like an MP3 or wav file, and I'm looking hard.

[kempie]

2� months later...

is this what you are after?

[samuel23]

that's bl00dy spooky that is. it's put the willies right up me. I'm going to have to sleep with the light on now.

[JerryDee51]

fotografics, are you still in search of an answer? I think I know exactly which tune it is, though I cannot remember the name of the show. It was a weekly show and started exactly as you described it. I made a recording of the tune on my ipad but not sure how to post it here.