by record producer Tony Visconti who also composed, with Hayward, the incidental music for every episode. Gridneff hoped that the theme would act as a gentle method of enticing casual viewers into the series. Reaction to the music and Hayward's song in particular, has generally been negative. SFX magazine, in particular, has been highly critical of the theme tune: in one issue it was placed twenty-ninth in a list article titled "The 50 Worst Things About SF Ever!" while in another it was placed sixth in a list article titled "The 10 Worst Things About UK Telefantasy". Writer and critic Kim Newman has described the theme as the "worst single theme tune of any TV show ever". Chris Boucher has said that he "hated the music. The incidental music wasn't appropriate and it didn't have the style and feeling it should have had". Transmission and viewer reaction Star Cops was broadcast on Monday nights at around 8:30pm starting on 6 July 1987 on BBC2. Competition was provided on BBC One by sitcom Terry and June and The Nine O'Clock News. The fifth episode, "This Case to be Opened in a Million Years", was broadcast at the later time of 9:55pm. The BBC listings magazine Radio Times promoted the series, giving it the front cover of the 4–10 July 1987 edition accompanied by a four-page article by Johnny Black inside. Star Cops performed poorly in the ratings with an average audience across the series of only 2.2 million viewers. Chris Boucher has blamed the poor ratings on the timeslot the show was given, stating: "There is nothing that has ever gone out on BBC 2 at half-past eight until twenty-past nine; it's a grotesque period. It doesn't synch with anything on BBC 1; it just doesn't work in relation to anything. You had to badly want to see Star Cops in order to watch it because you had to sacrifice at least two hours of viewing to see it. I can see why people didn't want to have that problem.". He has also commented that the poor timeslot and the decision to air the series in July and August (a time when viewing figures are traditionally lower due to the summer) reflected the fact that Star Cops didn't have the confidence of the BBC management. This view is echoed by star David Calder who has described the timeslot as "an act