Law & Order is a British television crime drama series, comprising four connected plays written by G. F. Newman and directed by Les Blair, which was first broadcast on 6 April 1978 on BBC Two. Each of the four stories within the series is told from a different perspective, including that of the Detective, the Villain, the Brief and the Prisoner. The series was highly controversial upon its release due to its depiction of a corrupt British law enforcement and legal system.
Tony Jordan is a British television writer. For many years, he was lead writer and series consultant for BBC One soap opera EastEnders. He has written over 250 episodes for the programme since 1989, including the 2008 single-hander "Pretty Baby....". He created the series Hustle, HolbyBlue, City Central, Moving Wallpaper, Echo Beach, The Nativity, The Passing Bells and Dickensian, and co-created Life on Mars and By Any Means.
Merseybeat is a British television police procedural drama series, created and principally written by Chris Murray, first broadcast on BBC One on 16 July 2001. The series follows the personal and professional lives of one shift of police officers from the fictional Newton Park police station in Merseyside, England. A total of four series were broadcast, with the final episode airing on 19 January 2004. The series had an ensemble cast, initially led by Haydn Gwynne as Superintendent Susan Blake. However, only three actors remained with the programme through all four series: John McArdle, Chris Walker and David Hargreaves. In 2001, prior to the programme's official launch, the first episode attracted controversy due to alleged similarities between its plot and the murder of James Bulger. However, BBC bosses defended the series, stating "there are no associations with the tragic case of James Bulger".
Dangerfield is a British television medical drama series, first broadcast on BBC One, which described the activities of small-town doctor and police surgeon Paul Dangerfield, played by Nigel Le Vaillant. The series places particular emphasis on Dangerfield's constant struggle to manage the conflicting demands of his two jobs, to come to terms with the death of his wife Celia in a car accident a few years earlier, and to bring up his two initially teenaged, but later grown up, children, Alison and Marty. Six series of the programme were produced, broadcasting from 27 January 1995 until 19 November 1999. After Le Vaillant left the role in 1997, Dr. Jonathan Paige, played by Nigel Havers, became the new central character, after previously appearing in the final two episodes of Le Vaillant's tenure. The BBC decided to end the series in November 1999 when Havers announced his decision to quit. The BBC felt viewers would not find the series credible if the main character was changed for a second time.
Down to Earth was a BBC One television drama series first broadcast in 2000 about a couple who start a new life on a Devon farm. The early episodes of the series were based on a series of books written by Faith Addis about their real-life move from London to Devon.
Spender is a British television police procedural drama, created by Ian La Frenais and Jimmy Nail, that first broadcast on 8 January 1991 on BBC1. The series, which also starred Nail as the titular character, ran for three series between 1991 and 1993, finishing with a feature-length special, The French Collection, broadcast on 29 December 1993. A total of twenty-one episodes were produced. The first and second series were produced by Martin McKeand, while the third and final series was produced by Paul Raphaël and Peter McAleese.
The Cops is a British television police procedural drama series created by Jimmy Gardner, Robert Jones, and Anita J. Pandolfo, first broadcast on BBC Two on 19 October 1998. Produced by World Productions, the series follows the lives of one shift of uniform officers based at Christie Road Police Station in the fictional town of Stanton, Greater Manchester. Billed as another attempt by the BBC to rival The Bill, the series was notable for its documentary-style camerawork and uncompromising portrayal of the police force. Although the series featured a number of notable actors across three series, Katy Cavanagh, Rob Dixon, and John Henshaw remained as the principal cast throughout.
The Saturday Night Armistice is a British satirical television comedy programme presented by Armando Iannucci with Peter Baynham and David Schneider that ran from 1995 to 1999.
From the ITV police drama's first screening in 1983, the history of The Bill includes a variety of major plotlines and changes to the programme's format.
Backup is a British television police procedural crime drama series, devised by Nigel McCrery and Roy Mitchell, that ran for a total of fourteen episodes across two series on BBC One between September 7, 1995, and July 2, 1997. Focusing on the work of a police Operational Support Unit, similar to the Territorial Support Group, the series follows the operations of the nine officers of Charlie Van, an OSU of the West Midlands Police.
The Bill is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, Woodentop, broadcast on 16 August 1983. ITV were so impressed with the drama that a full series was commissioned. The title originates from "Old Bill", a slang term for the police and show creator Geoff McQueen's original title for the series.
Red Cap is a British television drama series, produced by Stormy Pictures for the BBC and broadcast on BBC One. A total of thirteen episodes were broadcast over the course of two series, beginning with a feature-length pilot on 28 December 2001. The series follows the investigations and personal relationships of a British Army Special Investigation Branch unit of the Royal Military Police based in Germany.
The seventeenth series of the British medical drama television series Casualty commenced airing in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 14 September 2002 and finished on 21 June 2003.
HolbyBlue was a British police procedural drama series that ran for two series from 2007 to 2008. The show revolves around the daily lives of a number of police officers working at Holby South police station. The cast for series one included Jimmy Akingbola as PC Neil Parker, Joe Jacobs as PC William "Billy" Jackson, David Sterne as Sergeant Edward 'Mac' McFadden, Cal Macaninch as DI John Keenan, James Hillier as Sergeant Christian Young, Kacey Ainsworth as Inspector Jenny Black, Richard Harrington as DS Luke French, Zöe Lucker as Kate Keenan, Chloe Howman as PC Kelly Cooper, Kieran O'Brien as PC Robert Clifton, Tim Pigott-Smith as DCI Harry Hutchinson, Sara Powell as Rachel Barker and Elaine Glover as PC Lucy Slater. Velibor Topić and Julie Cox joined the cast in a recurring capacity as drug baron Neculai Stenga and Mandy French, Luke French's wife. By the end of series one, Pigott-Smith and Topic both departed the show. Series two saw the introductions of Oliver Milburn as DCI Scott Vaughan and James Thornton as Constable Jake Loughton. Stephanie Langton took over from Julie Cox in series two to continue playing the role of Mandy.
The twenty-sixth series of the British medical drama television series Casualty commenced airing in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 13 August 2011, one week after the end of the previous series. It is the first series in the history of the show to begin without a break from the previous series and the first to begin in August rather than the traditional September launch. This series featured forty-two episodes, which was five episodes less than the previous series. Series twenty-six was the first series to broadcast in high definition, with the first high definition episode broadcast from episode 17. The episode also saw the first episode to be filmed at the new set in Cardiff. The show saw its twenty-fifth anniversary in September 2011 and in March 2012, the show aired their first ever three-part story which centred on gang violence. The series concluded with a two-part riot storyline, entitled '#HolbyRiot', which aired on 21 and 22 July 2012. The series was originally planned to finish on 21 July, but due to a postponed episode on 30 June, the finale was moved to the following day.
Public Enemies is a three-part British television drama series, written by playwright Tony Marchant, that is based upon the professional and private lives of Paula Radnor, a probation officer working within the British Probation Service, who is working with convicted murderer Eddie Mottram, who has served 10 years in prison for the murder of his 17-year-old girlfriend, and is struggling to adapt to life outside of prison. First broadcast on BBC One from 4 to 6 January 2012, the series stars Anna Friel as Radnor and Daniel Mays as Mottram, and encompasses a cast including Georgina Rich, Aisling Loftus, Peter Wight, Barbara Marten, Nicholas Gleaves, Joe Armstrong and Barnaby Kay. The series was directed by Dearbhla Walsh, with Will Gould acting as executive producer.
Shetland is a Scottish crime drama television series produced by ITV Studios for BBC Scotland. First broadcast on BBC One on 10 March 2013, it is originally based upon the novels of Ann Cleeves and adapted by David Kane. The first seven series starred Douglas Henshall as DI Jimmy Pérez, whilst Ashley Jensen stars as DI Ruth Calder from the eighth series. The cast also includes Alison O'Donnell as DS Alison "Tosh" McIntosh and Steven Robertson as DC Sandy Wilson, as well as Lewis Howden and Anne Kidd. Henshall won the 2016 BAFTA Scotland award for Best Actor and the series received the award for Best TV Drama.
Unforgotten is a British crime drama television series, which initially aired on ITV on 8 October 2015. It was created and written by Chris Lang and directed by Andy Wilson. The programme follows a team of London detectives led by DCI Cassie Stuart, DCI Jessie James and DI Sunny Khan as they solve cold cases of disappearance and murder.
Waterfront Beat is a BBC television police procedural drama series, broadcast between 6 January 1990 and 20 February 1991. The series follows the work of a group of police detectives stationed in the Liverpool docks. The series was created by writer Phil Redmond, famed for his work on Channel 4 soap Brookside. The series was highly regarded as the BBC's first attempt to rival The Bill, following a similar weekly format to the ITV counterpart. A total of sixteen episodes were broadcast over the course of two series. The programme featured a large ensemble cast, with John Ashton, Rupert Frazer, Geoffrey Leesley, Denis Lill and Brian McCardie leading the cast throughout both series.
The first series of the British police procedural television programme Line of Duty was broadcast on BBC Two between 26 June and 24 July 2012.
