# Sweeney 2
**Sweeney 2** is a 1978 British crime film directed by Tom Clegg, the second theatrical spin-off from the ITV police series *The Sweeney* (1975–1978) and a sequel to the 1977 film *Sweeney!*. It stars John Thaw as Detective Inspector Jack Regan and [Dennis Waterman](https://www.edgepedia.org/dennis-waterman) as Detective Sergeant George Carter, detectives of the [Flying Squad](https://www.edgepedia.org/flying-squad), the branch of London's Metropolitan Police that deals with armed robbery; the squad's nickname "Sweeney" comes from the cockney rhyming slang [Sweeney Todd](https://www.edgepedia.org/sweeney-todd), Flying Squad.[1](https://www.imfdb.org/wiki/Sweeney_2) • [2](https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/Guide/Sweeney.htm)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | United Kingdom, April 1978; Australia classified M on 1 June 1978[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/releaseinfo/) • [4](https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/sweeney-2) |
| Director / writers | Tom Clegg; screenplay by Troy Kennedy Martin, based on *The Sweeney* created by Ian Kennedy Martin[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/fullcredits/) |
| Production | Euston Films; producer Ted Childs; distributor EMI Films[1](https://www.imfdb.org/wiki/Sweeney_2) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sweeney-2) |
| Lead cast | John Thaw (Det. Insp. Jack Regan), Dennis Waterman (Det. Sgt. George Carter), Denholm Elliott (Jupp), Nigel Hawthorne (Dilke), Ken Hutchison (Hill)[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/fullcredits/) |
| Plot | Regan and Carter investigate a series of violent bank robberies carried out by a gang using a gold-plated sawn-off shotgun, leading them to Malta[7](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/sweeney-2/umc.cmc.a12mhogfmh3m7dddm51m4587) |
| Runtime | Reported as 1h 48m by Apple TV and Rotten Tomatoes, and 104 minutes (1h 44min) by JustWatch, HMV, and the Australian classification record[7](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/sweeney-2/umc.cmc.a12mhogfmh3m7dddm51m4587) • [8](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/sweeney-2) • [9](https://hmv.com/store/film-tv/blu-ray/sweeney-2) • [4](https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/sweeney-2) |
| Reception | IMDb rating 6.6/10 from about 1,100 users; Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer 62% from 3 reviews[8](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/sweeney-2) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sweeney-2) |
## Spoilers
### Story
Regan and Carter lead a Flying Squad inquiry into a string of bank robberies carried out by heavily armed crooks who arrive by plane from continental Europe.[8](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/sweeney-2) The gang always uses a gold-plated sawn-off shotgun during its raids, and the detectives follow a trail of dead bodies, wrecked cars, and stolen banknotes to an elite group of crooks based in Malta.[7](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/sweeney-2/umc.cmc.a12mhogfmh3m7dddm51m4587) • [10](https://www.reelstreets.com/films/sweeney-2/) The robbers keep a very specific amount of money from each raid and dump the rest, and they execute their own members who lag behind.[11](https://welleyenever.com/2026/03/29/the-sweeney-50th-anniversary-review/) • [12](https://film-authority.com/2025/03/09/sweeney-2/)
The pursuit has costs on the police side as well: a high-speed chase results in the death of an innocent bystander and the near-fatal injury of Regan's favorite driver, who loses a leg.[9](https://hmv.com/store/film-tv/blu-ray/sweeney-2) • [11](https://welleyenever.com/2026/03/29/the-sweeney-50th-anniversary-review/) Regan's new chief, Detective Chief Inspector Dilke ([Nigel Hawthorne](https://www.edgepedia.org/nigel-hawthorne)), orders the pair to apprehend the criminals by whatever means, and they come to rely on information from their old boss Jupp ([Denholm Elliott](https://www.edgepedia.org/denholm-elliott)), a former Detective Chief Superintendent who has just been imprisoned on corruption charges.[9](https://hmv.com/store/film-tv/blu-ray/sweeney-2) • [8](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/sweeney-2)
## Production
The film was written by [Troy Kennedy Martin](https://www.edgepedia.org/troy-kennedy-martin), whose other screen credits include *Edge of Darkness*, with the series' creator Ian Kennedy Martin credited for the underlying characters.[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/fullcredits/) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sweeney-2) Ted Childs produced, Tony Hatch composed the music, Dusty Miller was the cinematographer, and Chris Burt edited.[13](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/sweeney-2/cast/2030017592/) Filming took place in November and December 1977.[14](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/locations/)
**Locations.** Shooting combined London locations with Malta. Documented sites include the Hotel Ta' Cenc at Sannat on the island of Gozo, used for the robbers' house in Malta; Lower Richmond Road in Putney, where the squad stops at a cafe; Danebury Avenue shops in Roehampton for the opening scenes; and a footbridge over the railway at Ripley Gardens.[14](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/locations/) The murder-suicide ending was filmed at a house at 44 Longridge Road, Earls Court.[10](https://www.reelstreets.com/films/sweeney-2/) In one scene Thaw and Waterman cross the footbridge over the line between Barnes and Mortlake stations as two Class 421 4 CIG slam-door trains pass beneath, and Anna Nygh's character enters Oxford Circus Underground station late in the film.[15](https://railwaymoviedatabase.com/sweeney-2/)
## Release and censorship
The film opened in the United Kingdom in April 1978, followed by Norway in June 1979, Italy in July 1979, Portugal in February 1981, and Germany in October 2000.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/releaseinfo/) In Australia it was classified M on 1 June 1978 for a 104-minute 35mm print.[4](https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/sweeney-2) In the United Kingdom it received an original cinema certificate of AA, later reclassified 18 for video.[16](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/parentalguide) A reviewer writing in 2025 estimated that about 10 million viewers saw the film when ITV scheduled it in its 1981 Christmas programming.[12](https://film-authority.com/2025/03/09/sweeney-2/)
## Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a Tomatometer of 62% from three reviews and more than 250 audience ratings; on IMDb it scores 6.6/10 from about 1,100 users.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sweeney-2) • [8](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/sweeney-2) Matt Brunson of Film Frenzy called it "an improvement on its predecessor, with this Regan behaving more like the one seen on the telly," and James Evans of *Starburst* wrote that stripping things back to the series' core made it feel truer to the show's appeal.[6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sweeney-2) Time Out took the opposite view, judging that the film-makers brought little pictorial or thematic depth to the big screen and opted for easy laughs, slick action, and filler sections that develop neither plot nor character.[17](https://www.timeout.com/movies/sweeney-2) The British Railway Movie Database records that, while enjoyable, the sequel was not deemed as successful as the first film.[15](https://railwaymoviedatabase.com/sweeney-2/)
## Place in the series
*Sweeney 2* was the second of two cinema spin-offs from *The Sweeney*, after *Sweeney!* (1977); the series itself ran for 53 episodes plus the pilot television film *Regan* from 1975 to 1978, and a later remake film, *The Sweeney*, followed in 2012 starring [Ray Winstone](https://www.edgepedia.org/ray-winstone) and Ben Drew.[2](https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/Guide/Sweeney.htm) • [11](https://welleyenever.com/2026/03/29/the-sweeney-50th-anniversary-review/) The film has since been released on Blu-ray in a high-definition transfer from original film elements.[18](https://www.zavvi.com/p/blu-ray/sweeney-2/12003553/)
## References
1. [Sweeney 2 – Internet Movie Firearms Database](https://www.imfdb.org/wiki/Sweeney_2)
2. [The Sweeney – The History Files](https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/Guide/Sweeney.htm)
3. [Sweeney 2 (1978) – Release info, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/releaseinfo/)
4. [SWEENEY 2 – Australian Classification](https://www.classification.gov.au/titles/sweeney-2)
5. [Sweeney 2 (1978) – Full cast & crew, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/fullcredits/)
6. [Sweeney 2 – Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/sweeney-2)
7. [Sweeney 2 – Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/sweeney-2/umc.cmc.a12mhogfmh3m7dddm51m4587)
8. [Sweeney 2 streaming – JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/sweeney-2)
9. [Sweeney 2 – HMV Store (Blu-ray)](https://hmv.com/store/film-tv/blu-ray/sweeney-2)
10. [Sweeney 2 – Reelstreets](https://www.reelstreets.com/films/sweeney-2/)
11. [The Sweeney – 50th Anniversary Review – Well Eye Never](https://welleyenever.com/2026/03/29/the-sweeney-50th-anniversary-review/)
12. [Sweeney 2 – film-authority.com](https://film-authority.com/2025/03/09/sweeney-2/)
13. [Sweeney 2 – Full Cast & Crew, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/movies/sweeney-2/cast/2030017592/)
14. [Sweeney 2 (1978) – Filming & production, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/locations/)
15. [SWEENEY 2 – British Railway Movie Database](https://railwaymoviedatabase.com/sweeney-2/)
16. [Sweeney 2 (1978) – Parents guide, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078351/parentalguide)
17. [Sweeney 2 – Film review, Time Out](https://www.timeout.com/movies/sweeney-2)
18. [Sweeney 2 – Zavvi UK (Blu-ray)](https://www.zavvi.com/p/blu-ray/sweeney-2/12003553/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Action, thriller, and crime series film entries › Entries released 1960s and 1970s*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license