After originally approaching companies to produce the first series, the BBC production team for the subsequent series were overwhelmed by applications from various British businesses and enterprises. This was in part for the quality of consultation that Harvey-Jones gave, but also for the publicity, which often resulted in an immediate revival for the company through increased sales. After selecting a breadth of companies, industries and situations, Harvey-Jones and executive producer Richard Reisz would review the applications to choose the selected applicants. Harvey-Jones would nominally only have access to any published accounts, management provided plans, and any items of press and media that could be found, before engaging the company.
Harvey-Jones style At its peak,
Troubleshooter gained three million viewers per episode. Organisations featured included
Morgan Motor Company,
Copella apple juice and
Tri-ang toys, where Harvey-Jones put his finger on the problems they faced or in some cases had created, and pointed the way to success. Sometimes they followed his advice, such as at Copella, and sometimes, notably at Morgan, he was met with strong resistance.
Businesses and organisations featured Series 1 (1990) •
Tri-ang toys •
Copella Fruit Juices •
Apricot Computers •
Shropshire Health Authority •
Churchill China •
Morgan Motor Company Series 2 (1991) • Troubleshooter–Back in Business • Troubleshooter in Eastern Europe • Troubleshooter in Eastern Europe 2 – Racing for a Closing Door
Series 3 (1992) •
Charles Letts stationery •
South Yorkshire Police • Double Two (Wakefield Shirt Group) •
Bradford Hospitals Trust •
Norton Motorcycles •
Tolly Cobbold Series 4 (1995) • Troubleshooter–In India • Troubleshooter Returns... to School • Troubleshooter Returns... to Sea • Troubleshooter Returns... to Work
Series 5 (2000) • Change or Die • What Now Guru? • The Trouble with Love ==Books==