Recipients
 |
1950s
| Year | Episode | Series | Writers | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | — | The Web | Franklin Heller | Winner | |
| 1953 | — | Dragnet | Jack Webb | Winner | |
| 1954 | "Crime at Blossoms" | Studio One | Jerome Ross | Winner | [1] |
| 1955 | "Smoke" | Suspense | Gore Vidal | Winner | |
| "The Long Goodbye" | Climax! | E. Jack Neuman , based on the novel by Raymond Chandler | Shortlist | ||
| 1956 | "Sting of Death" | The Elgin Hour | Alvin Sapinsley Jr. , based on the novel A Taste for Honey by H. F. Heard | Winner | |
| "Thin Air" | Climax! | Ben Starr | Shortlist | ||
| 1957 | "The Fine Art of Murder" | Omnibus | Sidney Carroll | Winner | |
| 1958 | "Mechanical Manhunt" | The Alcoa Hour | Harold Swanton | Winner | |
| "The Trial of Lizzie Borden" | Omnibus | Omnibus staff | Shortlist | ||
| 1959 | "The Edge of Truth" | Studio One | Adrian Spies | Winner | |
| "Capital Punishment" | Omnibus | James Lee | Winner |
1960s
1970s
| Year | Episode | Series | Writers | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | "Daughter of the Mind" | ABC Movie of the Week | Luther Davis | Winner | |
| "In This Corner - Sol Albert" | The Mod Squad | Harve Bennett and Rita Lakin | Shortlist | ||
| "The Sound of Darkness" | Mannix | Barry Trivers | Shortlist | ||
| — | Night Gallery | Rod Serling | Shortlist | ||
| 1971 | "Berlin Affair" | NBC Movie of the Week | E. Jack Neuman and Richard Alan Simmons | Winner | |
| The Other Man | NBC Movie of the Week | Eric Bercovici and Michael Blankfort | Shortlist | ||
| The Old Man Who Cried Wolf | ABC Movie of the Week | Luther Davis | Shortlist | ||
| "To Taste of Death But Once" | The Bold Ones: The Senator | Joel Oliansky | Shortlist | ||
| "The Mouse That Died" | Mannix | Chester Krumholtz | Shortlist | ||
| 1972 | "A Step in Time" | Mannix | Mann Rubin | Winner | |
| "Company Town" | Cade's County | Cliff Gould | Shortlist | ||
| "Murder by the Book" | Columbo | Steven Bochco | Shortlist | ||
| "Somebody's Out To Get Jennie" | McCloud | Robert Presnell Jr. | Shortlist | ||
| 1973 | "The New Mexico Connection" | McCloud | Glen A. Larson | Winner | |
| "A Date with Death" | Banyon | Morton Fine, Milton S. Gelman | Shortlist | ||
| "Bait Once, Bait Twice" | Hawaii Five-O | Will Lorin | Shortlist | ||
| "The Crimson Halo" | Mannix | Shimon Wincelberg | Shortlist | ||
| "Victim in Shadow" | Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law | Richard Bluel | Shortlist | ||
| 1974 | "Requiem for an Informer" | Police Story | Sy Salkowitz | Winner | |
| "Here Today, Gone Tonight" | Hawaii Five-O | Jerome Coopersmith | Shortlist | ||
| "One For the Morgue" | Kojak | Jerrold Freedman | Shortlist | ||
| "Requiem for a Falling Star" | Columbo | Jackson Gillis | Shortlist | ||
| "The Cain Connection" | Toma | Stephen J. Cannell | Shortlist | ||
| 1975 | "Requiem For C.Z. Smith" | Police Story | Robert L. Collins | Winner | |
| "Anatomy of Two Rapes" | Police Woman | Richard Bluel, Pat Fielder | Shortlist | ||
| "Gertrude" | Harry O | Howard Rodman | Shortlist | ||
| 1976 | "No Immunity for Murder" | Kojak | Joe Gores | Winner | |
| "Murder Comes in Little Pills" | Kate McShane | Robert Foster, Milt Rosen | Shortlist | ||
| "The Mark of Cain" | Petrocelli | Leonard Katzman | Shortlist | ||
| 1977 | "Requiem for Murder" | The Streets of San Francisco | James Johnson Sweeney | Winner | |
| "Dear Tony" | Baretta | Norman Hudis | Shortlist | ||
| "The Oracle Wore a Cashmere Suit" | The Rockford Files | David Chase | Shortlist | ||
| 1978 | "The Thighbone Is Connected To The Knee Bone" | Quincy M.E. | Tony Lawrence and Lou Shaw | Winner | |
| "In the Event of My Death" | The Andros Targets | Jerome Coopersmith | Shortlist | ||
| "The Deadly Maze" | The Rockford Files | Juanita Bartlett | Shortlist | ||
| 1979 | "Murder Under Glass" | Columbo | Robert van Scoyk | Winner | |
| "Murder on the Flip Side" | The Eddie Capra Mysteries | Lee Sheldon | Shortlist | ||
| Vegas | Michael Mann | Shortlist |
1980s
| Year | Episode | Series | Writers | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | "Skin" | Tales of the Unexpected | Robin Chapman and Roald Dahl | Winner | |
| "A Hollywood Whodunit" | Lou Grant | Michelle Gallery | Shortlist | ||
| "Only the Pretty Girls Die" | Eischield | Mark Rodgers | Shortlist | ||
| "Stone" | Stone | Stephen J. Cannell | Shortlist | ||
| 1981 | "China Doll" | Magnum, P.I. | Donald P. Bellisario and Glen A. Larson | Winner | |
| "A Matter of Principle" | Quincy, M.E. | Steven Greenberg, Aubrey Solomon | Shortlist | ||
| "Tenspeed and Brown Shoe" | Tenspeed and Brown Shoe | Stephen J. Cannell | Shortlist | ||
| 1982 | "Hill Street Station" | Hill Street Blues | Steven Bochco and Michael Kozoll | Winner | |
| "Simon Eyes" | Simon & Simon | Philip DeGuere | Shortlist | ||
| "Stain of Guilt" | Quincy, M.E. | Sam Egan | Shortlist | ||
| 1983 | "In the Steele of the Night" | Remington Steele | Joel Steiger | Winner | |
| "Ashes to Ashes, None Too Soon" | Simon & Simon | Bob Shayne | Shortlist | ||
| "Matt Houston" | Matt Houston | Richard Christian Danus, Ken Trevey | Shortlist | ||
| 1984 | "The Pencil" | Philip Marlowe, Private Eye | Jo Eisinger | Winner | |
| "Altered Steele" | Remington Steele | Jeff Melvoin | Shortlist | ||
| "Grand Illusion" | Simon & Simon | E. Jack Kaplan | Shortlist | ||
| 1985 | "Deadly Lady" | Murder, She Wrote | Peter S. Fischer | Winner | |
| "Miami Vice" | Miami Vice | Anthony Yerkovich | Shortlist | ||
| "Seven Dead Eyes" | Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer | Joe Gores | Shortlist | ||
| 1986 | "The Amazing Falsworth" | Amazing Stories | Mick Garris | Winner | |
| "The Dream Sequence Always Rings Twice" | Moonlighting | Debra Frank, Carl Sautter | Shortlist | ||
| "Wake Me When I'm Dead" | Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Buck Henry | Shortlist | ||
| 1987 | "The Cup" | The Equalizer | David Jackson , Andrew Sipes | Winner | |
| "Deirdre" | The New Mike Hammer | Herman Miller | Shortlist | ||
| "Diary of a Perfect Murder" | Matlock | Dean Hargrove | Shortlist | ||
| "Wax Poetic" | Blacke's Magic | Lee Sheldon | Shortlist | ||
| 1988 | "The Musgrave Ritual" | Masterpiece Mystery | Jeremy Paul | Winner | |
| "Blue Movie" | Private Eye | Ron Hansen | Shortlist | ||
| "Nicky the Rose" | Private Eye | John Leekley, Alfonse Ruggiero Jr. | Shortlist | ||
| "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell" | Wiseguy | Eric Blakeney | Shortlist | ||
| "The Right to Remain Silent" | Cagney & Lacey | David Abramowitz | Shortlist | ||
| 1989 | "The Devil's Foot" | Masterpiece Mystery | Gary Hopkins | Winner | |
| "Date with an Angel" | Wiseguy | David J. Burke, Stephen Kronish | Shortlist | ||
| 1989 | "May the Road Rise Up" | Simon & Simon | Richard C. Okie | Shortlist | |
| 1989 | "Rumpole and the Bright Seraphim" | Rumpole of the Bailey | John Mortimer | Shortlist | |
| 1989 | "The Black Tower, Episode 1" | The Black Tower | William Humble | Shortlist |
1990s
| Year | Episode | Series | Writers | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "White Noise" | Wiseguy | David J. Burke and Alfonse Ruggiero | Winner | |
| "Blues for Buder" | B. L. Stryker | Robert B. Parker, Joan Parker | Shortlist | ||
| "Investment in Death" | Hunter | Nick Gore, Jerry Jacobius | Shortlist | ||
| "Rumpole and the Bubble Reputation" | Rumpole of the Bailey | John Mortimer | Shortlist | ||
| "Urine Trouble Now" | L.A. Law | William M. Finkelstein, Michelle Gallery, David E. Kelley, Judith Parker | Shortlist | ||
| 1991 | "Good Night, Dear Heart" | Quantum Leap | Paul Brown | Winner | |
| "Gabriel's Fire" | Gabriel's Fire | Coleman Luck, Jacqueline Zambrano | Shortlist | ||
| "Happily Ever After" | Law & Order | David Black, Robert Stuart Nathan | Shortlist | ||
| "Justice Swerved" | L.A. Law | David E. Kelley, Bryce Zabel | Shortlist | ||
| 1992 | "Sonata for Solo Organ" | Law & Order | Michael S. Chernuchin, Joe Morgenstern | Shortlist | |
| "Poirot: The Lost Mine" | Agatha Christie's Poirot | Michael Baker, David Renwick | Shortlist | ||
| "Shoscombe Old Place" | Sherlock Holmes | Gary Hopkins | Shortlist | ||
| "The Problem of Thor Bridge" | Sherlock Holmes | Jeremy Paul | Shortlist | ||
| 1993 | "Conspiracy" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer, Michael S. Chernuchin | Winner | |
| "A Killer Book" | Likely Suspects | Paul Bernbaum | Shortlist | ||
| "Point of View" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer, Walon Green | Shortlist | ||
| "Smells Like Teen Spirit" | Likely Suspects | Lee Goldberg, William Rabkin | Shortlist | ||
| "The Dead File" | Murder, She Wrote | Tom B. Sawyer | Shortlist | ||
| 1994 | "4B or Not 4B" | NYPD Blue | David Milch | Winner | |
| "Conduct Unbecoming" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer, Michael S. Chernuchin | Shortlist | ||
| "Promised Land" | Inspector Morse | Julian Mitchell | Shortlist | ||
| "Rising Sun" | The Commish | Stephen Kronish | Shortlist | ||
| "Turpitude" | Picket Fences | David E. Kelley | Shortlist | ||
| 1995 | "Simone Says" | NYPD Blue | Steven Bochco, Walon Green, David Milch | Winner | |
| "Family Values" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer, William N. Fordes | Shortlist | ||
| "Pilot" | Under Suspicion | Jacqueline Zambrano | Shortlist | ||
| "The Erlenmeyer Flask" | The X-Files | Chris Carter | Shortlist | ||
| 1996 | "Torah! Torah! Torah!" | NYPD Blue | Theresa Rebeck | Winner | |
| "Humbug" | The X-Files | Darin Morgan | Shortlist | ||
| "Rumpole and the Family Pride" | Rumpole of the Bailey | John Mortimer | Shortlist | ||
| "The Eligible Bachelor" | Sherlock Holmes | T.R. Bowen | Shortlist | ||
| "The Lost Child | Prime Suspect | Paul Billing | Shortlist | ||
| 1997 | "Deadbeat" | Law & Order | I.C. Rapoport, Ed Zuckerman | Winner | |
| "Causa Mortis" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer | Shortlist | ||
| "Every Picture Tells a Story" | EZ Streets | Paul Haggis | Shortlist | ||
| "I.D." | Law & Order | Ed Zuckerman | Shortlist | ||
| "Slave" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer, Elaine Loeser | Shortlist | ||
| 1998 | "Double Down" | Law & Order | Richard Sweren, Simon Wincelberg, Ed Zuckerman | Winner | |
| "Blood" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer, Craig Tepper | Shortlist | ||
| "Burned" | Law & Order | Siobhan Byrne | Shortlist | ||
| "First Degree" | The Practice | Stephen Gaghan, David E. Kelley, Michael R. Perry | Shortlist | ||
| "Thrill" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer | Shortlist | ||
| 1999 | "Bad Girl" | Law & Order | Rene Balcer, Richard Sweren | Winner | |
| "Carrier" | Law & Order | David Black | Shortlist | ||
| "Fallen Idol" | Silent Witness | Gwyneth Hughes | Shortlist | ||
| "Fools Russian" | Brooklyn South | Allen Edwards, Matt Olmstead, Scott A. Williams | Shortlist | ||
| "Skel in a Cell" | Brooklyn South | Steven Bochco, William M. Finkelstein, Bill Clark, David Milch (Story), Doug Palau, Nicholas Wootton (Teleplay) | Shortlist |
2000s
2010s
| Year | Episode | Series | Writers | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Place of Execution" | Place of Execution | Patrick Harbinson | Winner | |
| "Grilled" | Breaking Bad | George Mastras | Shortlist | ||
| "Living the Dream" | Dexter | Clyde Phillips | Shortlist | ||
| "Look What He Dug Up This Time" | Damages | Todd A. Kessler, Glenn Kessler, Daniel Zelman | Shortlist | ||
| "Strike Three | The Closer | Steven Kane | Shortlist | ||
| 2011 | "Episode 1" | Luther | Neil Cross | Winner | |
| "Episode 4" | Luther | Neil Cross | Shortlist | ||
| "Full Measure" | Breaking Bad | Vince Gilligan | Shortlist | ||
| "No Mas" | Breaking Bad | Vince Gilligan | Shortlist | ||
| "The Next Ones Gonna Go in Your Throat" | Damages | Todd A. Kessler, Glenn Kessler, and Daniel Zelman | Shortlist | ||
| 2012 | "Pilot" | Homeland | Alex Gansa , Howard Gordon, and Gideon Raff | Winner | [5] |
| "Innocence" | Blue Bloods | Siobhan Byrne O'Connor | Shortlist | [5] | |
| “The Life Inside” | Justified | Benjamin Cavell | Shortlist | [5] | |
| "Part 1" | Whitechapel | Ben Court and Caroline Ip | Shortlist | [5] | |
| "Mask" | Law & Order: SVU | Speed Weed | Shortlist | [5] | |
| 2013 | "A Scandal in Belgravia" | Sherlock | Steven Moffat | Winner | |
| "Child Predator" | Elementary | Peter Blake | Shortlist | ||
| "New Car Smell" | Homeland | Meredith Stiehm | Shortlist | ||
| "Pilot" | Longmire | Hunt Baldwin, John Coveny | Shortlist | ||
| "Slaughterhouse" | Justified | Fred Golan | Shortlist | ||
| 2014 | "Episode 1" | The Fall | Allan Cubitt | Winner | |
| "Episode 3" | Luther | Neil Cross | Shortlist | [6] | |
| "Legitimate Rape" | Law & Order: SVU | Kevin Fox and Peter Blauner | Shortlist | [6] | |
| "Variations Under Domestication" | Orphan Black | Will Pascoe | Shortlist | [6] | |
| "Pilot" | The Following | Kevin Williamson | Shortlist | [6] | |
| 2015 | "Episode 1" | Happy Valley | Sally Wainwright | Winner | [7] [8] [9] |
| “The Empty Hearse” | Sherlock | Mark Gatiss | Shortlist | [9] | |
| "Unfinished Business" | Blue Bloods | Siobhan Byrne O'Connor | Shortlist | [9] | |
| "Dream Baby Dream" | The Killing | Sean Whitesell | Shortlist | [9] | |
| "Episode 6" | The Game | Toby Whithouse | Shortlist | [9] | |
| 2016 | "Gently with the Women" | Inspector George Gently | Peter Flannery | Winner | [10] [11] |
| "Episode 7" | Broadchurch | Chris Chibnall | Shortlist | ||
| "Elise: The Final Mystery" | Foyle's War | Anthony Horowitz | Shortlist | ||
| "Terra Incognita" | Person of Interest | Erik Mountain & Melissa Scrivner Love | Shortlist | ||
| "The Beating of Her Wings" | Ripper Street | Toby Finlay | Shortlist | ||
| 2017 | "A Blade of Grass" | Penny Dreadful | John Logan | Winner | [12] |
| "Episode 1, From the Ashes of Tragedy" | The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story | Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski | Shortlist | ||
| "The Abominable Bride" | Sherlock | Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat | Shortlist | ||
| "Dark Road | Vera | Martha Hillier | Shortlist | ||
| "return 0" | Person of Interest | Jonathan Nolan and Denise Thé | Shortlist | ||
| "The Bicameral Mind" | Westworld | Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy | Shortlist | ||
| 2018 | "Somebody to Love" | Fargo | Noah Hawley | Winner | [13] |
| "Episode 1" | The Loch | Stephen Brady | Shortlist | [13] | |
| "Something Happened" | Law & Order: SVU | Michael Chernuchin | Shortlist | [13] | |
| "Gentley and the New Age" | George Gentley | Robert Murphy | Shortlist | [13] | |
| "The Blanket Mire" | Vera | Paul Matthew Thompson and Martha Hillier | Shortlist | [13] | |
| 2019 | "The One That Holds Everything" | The Romanoffs | Matthew Weiner and Donald Joh | Winner | [14] |
| "My Aim is True" | Blue Bloods | Kevin Wade | Shortlist | ||
| "Episode 1" | Mystery Road | Michaeley O'Brien | Shortlist | ||
| "Season 2, Episode 1" | Jack Irish | Andrew Knight | Shortlist | ||
| "The Box" | Brooklyn Nine-Nine | Luke Del Tredici | Shortlist |
2020s
| Year | Episode | Series | Writers | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | "Season 5, Episode 4" | Line of Duty | Jed Mercurio | Winner | [15] [16] |
| "Episode 1" | Dublin Murders | Sarah Phelps | Shortlist | ||
| "Episode 1" | Manhunt | Ed Whitmore | Shortlist | ||
| "Episode 1" | Wisting | Kathrine Valen Zeiner, Trygve Allister Diesen | Shortlist | ||
| 2021 | "Episode 1, Photochemistry" | Dead Still | John Morton | Winner | [17] |
| "Episode 1, The Stranger" | The Stranger | Danny Brocklehurst | Shortlist | [18] | |
| "Episode 1, Open Water" | The Sounds | Sarah-Kate Lynch | Shortlist | [18] | |
| "Episode 1" | Des | Luke Neal | Shortlist | [18] | |
| "What I Know" | The Boys | Rebecca Sonnenshine | Shortlist | [18] | |
| 2022 | "Boots on the Ground" | Narcos: Mexico | Iturri Sosa | Winner | [19] |
| "Happy Families" | Midsomer Murders | Nicholas Hicks-Beach | Shortlist | ||
| "We Men Are Wretched Things" | The North Water | Andrew Haigh | Shortlist | ||
| "Episode 1" | The Beast Must Die | Gaby Chiappe | Shortlist | ||
| "Dog Day Morning" | The Brokenwood Mysteries | Tim Balme & Nic Sampson | Shortlist | ||
| 2023 | "Episode 1" | Magpie Murders | Anthony Horowitz | Winner | [20] |
| "One Mighty and Strong" | Under the Banner of Heaven | Brandon Boyce | Shortlist | ||
| "Episode 1' | Karen Pirie | Emer Kenny | Shortlist | ||
| "When Harry Met Fergus" | Harry Wild | David Logan | Shortlist | ||
| "The Reagan Way" | Blue Bloods | Siobhan Bryne O'Connor | Shortlist | ||
| "Eighteen Wheels A Predator" | Law & Order: SVU | Brianna Yellen, Kathy Dobie & Monet Hurst-Mendoza | Shortlist | ||
| 2024 | "Escape from Shit Mountain" | Poker Face | Nora Zuckerman and Lilla Zuckerman | Winner | [21] |
| "Time of the Monkey" | Poker Face | Wyatt Cain and Charlie Peppers | Shortlist | [21] | |
| "I'm a Pretty Observant Guy" | Will Trent | Liz Heldens | Shortlist | [21] | |
| "Dead Man's Hand" | Poker Face | Rian Johnson | Shortlist | [21] | |
| "Hózhó Náhásdlii (Beauty is Restore)" | Dark Winds | Graham Roland and John Wirth | Shortlist | [21] | |
| 2025 | "Episode One" | Monsieur Spade | Tom Fontana & Scott Frank | Winner | |
| "Episode Five" | Rebus | Gregory Burke | Shortlist | ||
| "Episode One" | Moonflower Murders | Anthony Horowitz | Shortlist | ||
| "Mirror" | Murderesses | Wiktor Piatkowski, Joanna Kozlowska, Katarzyna Kaczmarek | Shortlist | ||
| "Episode Two" | The Marlow Murder Club | Robert Thorogood | Shortlist |