Television: Crime Drama

Writers

Sherlock (BBC1, 2010–)		Mark Gatiss
		Steven Moffat
Widows (1983), Prime Suspect (1991–2006), Civvies (1992), Bella Mafia (1997 US TV movie, which acquired a cult following), Mind Games (2001), Trial & Retribution (1997–2009), The Commander (2003–8)		Lynda la Plante
Cracker (3 series, 1993–5; two one–off specials, in 1996 and 2006)		Jimmy McGovern
Line of Duty (6 series, 2012–21)		Jed Mercurio
Jonathan Creek (BBC1, 1997–2016) – also wrote One Foot in the Grave		David Renwick
Scott & Bailey (ITV, 2011–16), Happy Valley (BBC1, 2014–23) – also Last Tango in Halifax and Gentleman Jack		Sally Wainwright

Series

Note: where the title of a series includes the name of a character (usually the detective), it's listed under that character's surname.

ITV, from 2010: based on a series of novels by Peter Robinson, starring Stephen Tompkinson in the title role		DCI Banks
BBC1, 1981–91: title character drove a 1949 Triumph Roadster 2000 Convertible – colour burgundy, registration number 1610 J		Bergerac
Started as a one–off drama called Woodentop (1983); started as a series 1984, discontinued 2010		The Bill
ITV series starting 2003, starring Caroline Quentin as DCI Janine Lewis, set in Manchester		Blue Murder
Australian series, 1972–3, starring James Laurenson as a mixed race (Aborigine / European) detective (full name Napoleon Bonaparte)		Boney
ITV, 1986–92: starred Michael Elphick as an ex–fireman (in the title role), joined in Series 2 by Neil Morrissey as motorbike courier Rocky		Boon
Title music was Hi Ho Silver by Jim Diamond – a No. 5 hit when released as a single in 1986
Better Call Saul (2015–) is a prequel to (crime drama series, 2008–13)		Breaking Bad
BBC4 (2012–15) and BBC2 (2018): named after the location where a body is found, resulting in detectives Sofia Helin and Martin Rohde being brought together to solve the crime		The Bridge
CBS, 1996–2001: starred Don Johnson (in the title role) and Cheech Marin (formerly of the Hippie comedy duo Cheech & Chong) as two elite San Francisco police inspectors		Nash Bridges
ITV, 2013–17: starred David Tennant as DI Alec Hardy, and Olivia Colman as DS Ellie Miller (and an "ensemble cast"); Series 1 centred around the murder of 11–year–old Danny Latimer, Series 2 and 3 on its aftermath		Broadchurch
Quirky New Zealand series, broadcast on Prime from 2014: central characters are detectives Mike Shepherd, Kristin Sims and Sam Breen, Shepherd's Maori neighbour Jared Morehu, and medical examiner Dr. Gina Kadinsky; title includes the name of the fitcional town in which the series is set		The Brokenwood Mysteries
ITV, 1967–72: started with a TV play called A Magnum for Schneider. Starred Edward Woodward as a former secret agent		Callan
Spin–off from The Gentle Touch: featured the Covert Activities Thames Section		C.A.T.S Eyes
CBS series, 2003–(2010), starring Kathryn Morris as Detective Lilly Rush, shown on UK Sky One; features crimes that have remained unsolved for some time		Cold Case
Title character drove a 1959 Peugeot 403 Convertible, and owned a bassett hound with no name (sometimes said to be called Dog); arrested (among many others) Johnny Cash, Billy Connolly, Faye Dunaway, Janet Leigh, Leonard Nimoy, Donald Pleasence, William Shatner, and Dick Van Dyke		Columbo
ITV, 2003–5 (and later specials): starred Robbie Coltrane as criminal psychologist Eddie 'Fitz' Fitzgerald		Cracker
BBC, 1997–2016: title character, played by Alan Davies, is creative consultant to a stage magician, who also solves seemingly supernatural mysteries through his talent for logical deduction and understanding of illusions		Jonathan Creek
Theme tune was an arrangement of Saint–Saens's Danse Macabre
ITV, 1960–8: secret agent John Drake, played by Patrick McGoohan, was the title character of		Danger Man
BBC1, 2011–present: British–French comedy crime drama series, set on the fictional Caribbean island of Saint–Marie, filmed on Guadeloupe; stars Ben Miller, Kris Marshall, Ardal O'Hanlon and Ralf Little (in successive series) as British detectives		Death in Paradise
BBC 2001–7, starring Martin Shaw in the title role as a high court judge		Judge John Deed
US courtroom drama, 1961–5: starred E. G. Marshall and Robert Reed as a father–and–son team of defence lawyers specialising in legally complex and socially sensitive cases (civil rights, mercy killing, etc.)		The Defenders
BBC(1), 1955–76: eponymous central character first appeared in the 1950 film The Blue Lamp		Dixon of Dock Green
"Ladies and gentlemen: the story you are about to hear is true. Only the names have been changed, to protect the innocent." Starred Jack Webb as LA police sergeant Joe Friday		Dragnet
Former secret agent Robert McCall (played by Edward Woodward) was the eponymous character in		The Equaliser
ITV, 2001–: created by Anthony Horowitz; set in Hastings (series 1–6) during and shortly after World War II; stars Michael Kitchen as the eponymous detective		Foyle's War
Central character was Doctor Richard Kimble – a physician who is falsely convicted of his wife's murder, and searches for the real killer, a "one–armed man"		The Fugitive
ITV, 1980–4: starred Jill Gascoigne as DI Maggie Forbes		The Gentle Touch
BBC1, 2007–17: based on a series of novels by Alan Hunter; the novels are set in Norfolk, but the TV series is based in the North East of England; stars Martin Shaw in the title role		Inspector George Gently
Italian series (broadcast on Sky Atlantic in the UK, from 2014): set in Naples, features the Savastano gangster 'clan'		Gomorrah
ITV, from 2014: based on a series of short stories by James Runcie; stars James Norton as Anglican vicar Sidney Chambers, and Robson Green as DI Geordie Keating; set in the eponymous Cambridgeshire village		Grantchester
BBC1, from 2014: set in the Calder Valley, in West Yorkshire		Happy Valley
CBS, 1968–80: episodes often ended with the catchphrase "Book 'em, Danno!" (or just "Book 'em!")		Hawaii Five–O
NBC, 1981–7: starred Daniel J. Travanti as Capt. Frank Furillo, and Veronica Hamel as lawyer Joyce Davenport (who also happened to be Furillo's 'love interest')		Hill Street Blues
Catchphrase "Let's be careful out there"
Ed Brown, Mark Sanger and Eve Whitfield were assistants to		Ironside
2018–22 (4 series): produced in the UK for BBC America; based on a series of novellas by Luke Jennings, entitled Codename Villanelle, and developed for television by Phoebe Waller–Bridge – who wrote the first series (three different female writers were engaged for the subsequent series)		Killing Eve
Title character was assisted by detectives (Bobby) Crocker, Stavros, Saperstein and Rizzo		Kojak
BBC1, 2010–19 (six series to date, total 24 episodes): starred Idris Elba in the title role, as an obsessive and sometimes violent DCI, working for the Serious Crime Unit – later renamed the Serious and Serial Crime Unit; also stars Ruth Wilson as Alice Morgan, a research scientist with a genius–level IQ and mental health issues, who murdered her parents and their dog		Luther
BBC1, 2001–8: title character, created by the American writer Elizabeth George and played by Nathaniel Parker, is the 8th Earl of Asherton, has the first name Thomas or Tommy, is assisted by Sergeant Barbara Havers (played by Sharon Small), and was described by The Guardian as "the poshest copper on the box"		Inspector Lynley
Italian series, first broadcast 1999, based on books by Andrea Camilleri: set in the fictional town of Vigàta, Sicily		Inspector Montalbano
ITV, 1967–8: Richard Bradford plays former CIA agent turned travelling private investigator, 'Mac' McGill (first name never revealed)		Man in a Suitcase
BBC, 1984–92: title character played by Joan Hickson		Miss Marple
CBS, 2008–15, and on Channel 5 in the UK: starred Simon Baker as Patrick Jane, a former "psychic" and con man, who used his skills to help the police solve crimes		The Mentalist
One of the lead characters (Sonny Crockett) had a pet alligator called Elvis		Miami Vice
Central character DI Tom Barnaby, played by John Nettles; successively assisted by (sergeants) Gavin Troy, Dan Scott, Ben Jones		Midsomer Murders
Starred Angela Lansbury as Jessica Fletcher – a retired English teacher, who becomes a successful mystery writer (1984–96; produced by CBS)		Murder, She Wrote
BBC TV series, 2004–: features the Unsolved Crime and Open Case Squad		New Tricks
ITV, 1959–67: starred Raymond Francis as DCS Tom Lockhart of Scotland Yard		No Hiding Place
BBC2, 2013–: stars Cillian Murphy as Tommy Shelby, leader of a criminal gang in the years following World War I, and Sam Neill as the detective tasked with suppressing them; set in Birmingham, and inspired by an urban youth gang that was active there in the late 19th century		Peaky Blinders
BBC1, 1994–7: starred Richard Griffiths as Henry Crabbe, a police inspector who ran a restaurant as a hobby		Pie in the Sky
Spoof TV police series, 1982, starring Leslie Nielsen; cancelled after only six episodes, but spawned the Naked Gun film series		Police Squad!
Set in Wentworth Detention Centre		Prisoner Cell Block H
ITV, 1965–75: starred Alfred Burke as the unglamorous private investigator Frank Marker		Public Eye
ITV, 1976–83: starred Jack Klugman as the eponymous medical examiner		Quincy M.E.
BBC1, 1998–9 (12 episodes): starred Pauline Quirke in the title role, as a police detective who employs unorthodox methods		Maisie Raine
Title character (created by Ian Rankin) played, in two separate series, by John Hannah (2000–1) and Ken Stott (2006–7)		Rebus
NBC, 1982–7: the series that launched the career of Pierce Brosnan: he starred as a former thief and con–man, hired by private investigator Laura Holt (played by Stephanie Zimbalist) to play the title character, whom she has invented to attract business		Remington Steele
Central character, played by James Garner, lived in a caravan (trailer), drove a Pontiac Firebird, registration 853 OKG (a new one each series!), and kept his gun (for which he didn't have a permit) in a biscuit tin (cookie jar)		The Rockford Files
ITV, 1987–2000: set in Kings Markham, starred George Baker as Inspector Wexford		The Ruth Rendell Mysteries
Elementary is the title of the American version of (British series)		Sherlock
BBC1, from 2013: based on the novels by Ann Cleeves; stars Douglas Henshall as DI Jimmy Perez		Shetland
BBC, 1979–80: set in Bristol, starred Trevor Eve as the eponymous private detective		Shoestring
BBC thriller series (from 1996), starred Amanda Burton as pathologist Dr. Sam Ryan; Burton replaced 2004 by Emilia Fox as Dr. Nikki Alexander		Silent Witness
BBC detective series, 1991–3, based in Newcastle, title role Jimmy Nail; written by Ian La Frenais and Jimmy Nail		Spender
BBC, 2017 to date: based on the books by Robert Galbraith, starring Tom Burke as the title character and Holly Grainger as his assistant, Robin Ellacott		Strike
ITV series, spun off from the 1983 mini–series Killer): Mark McManus, who played the title character, died in 1994, after which Michael Jardine (played by James MacPherson) and later Stuart Fraser (Colin McCredie) took over as the lead character; finally ended in 2010		Taggart
Set in Denton (a fictional town, not the suburb of Manchester!); title character (played by David Jason) was awarded the George Cross after intervening in a shooting incident; sidekick George Toolan played by John Lyons		A Touch of Frost
Created by Lynda La Plante, 1997–(2009), starring David Hayman as DCS Mike Walker		Trial and Retribution
ITV, 2015 to date: stars Nicola Walker as DCI Cassie Stuart, Sanjeev Bhaskar as DI Sunil 'Sunny' Khan, and Peter Egan as Martin Hughes (father of DCI Stuart); Stuart and Khan work together to solve historic disappearances and murders (student Jimmy Sullivan in Series 1, Conservative Party consultant David Walker in Series 2)		Unforgotten
Eye Level (a UK No. 1 hit in 1973 for the Simon Park Orchestra) was the theme to		Van der Valk
BBC1, 1996–8: co–written by David Cook, originally based on his 1986 novel Missing Persons; featured Patricia Routledge in the title role		Hetty Wainthropp Investigates
Wolf to the Slaughter (1987) was the first mini–series to feature		Inspector Wexford
HBO and BBC2, 2002–2008, produced and set in Baltimore: leading characters included detectives Jimmy McNulty, Cedric Daniels, Kima Greggs, Bunk Moreland, Thomas 'Herc' Hauk, and Ellis Carver, drugs baron Avon Barksdale and his second in command Stringer Bell, and Greggs's informant Bubbles		The Wire
ITV, 2002–8: based on a series of novels by Val McDermid; stars Robson Green as Dr. Tony Hill		Wire in the Blood
HTV series, 1993–8, set and filmed in Cornwall: title character (DS Charles W.) created by W. J. Burley, played by Jack Shepherd and assisted by (DIs) Doug Kersey and Lucy Lane		Wycliffe
Theme tune adapted by Fritz Spiegl from the traditional folk tune Johnny Todd		Z–Cars

General

Agatha Christie's Poirot	Title role (Hercule Poirot)			David Suchet
Bad Girls	Name of the prison			Larkhall
Banacek	Title role			George Peppard
	Banacek's occupation			Insurance investigator
Bergerac	Title role			John Nettles
	Charlie Hungerford (Bergerac's dodgy father–in–law)			Terence Alexander
	Set in			Jersey
	Department that Bergerac worked for			Bureau des Etrangers
The Bill	Station			Sun Hill
	DI, later DCI, played by Christopher Ellison (1984–2000)			Frank Burnside
	DS, played by Tony Scannell (1984–2000): resigned after punching Inspector Monroe in the face during an argument at the station; notable for his Irish accent (or was it Welsh?)			Ted Roach
	Sergeant, played by Eric Richard (1984–2001)			Bob Cryer
	DC, later DS, played by Mark Wingett (1984–2005)			Jim Carver
	Played by Trudie Goodwin (1984–2007)			June Ackland
	Played by Jeff Stewart (1984–2008): the last surviving character from the first episode. After being axed, Stewart slashed his wrists on set in a suicide attempt			Reg Hollis
	Played by Graham Cole (1987–2009)			Tony Stamp
	DC, played by Kevin Lloyd (1988–98): Lloyd was sacked after turning up drunk, and died a week later, aged 49, from inhaling his own gastric contents (choking on his vomit) in a detox centre			Alfred (Tosh) Lines
	Chief Inspector, played by Ben Roberts (1988–2002): killed in a car bomb attack during the riots leading up to the Sun Hill fire			Derek Conway
	Played by Andrew Paul (1989–2002)			Dave Quinnan
	DCI, later Supt., played by Simon Rouse (1989–2010): notable for his Bradford accent			Jack Meadows
	Inspector, played by Colin Tarrant (1990–2002): died in the Sun Hill fire			Andrew Monroe
	Sergeant, played by Tony O'Callaghan (1991–2003): shot dead by his daughter's boyfriend, to claim insurance money to fund her drug habit			Matt Boyden
	DS, played by Billy Murray (1995–2004): went on the run after murdering DS John Boulton			Don Beech
	DC, played by Chris Simmons (2000–10)			Mickey Webb
	Played psychotic PC Gabriel Kent (2003–5)			Todd Carty
Breaking Bad	Filmed and set in			Albuquerque, New Mexico
	Walter White			Bryan Cranston
	Walter White's occupation, when he is diagnosed with lung cancer			Chemistry teacher
	Walter White's alias			Heisenberg
	First name of Walter White's wife (played by Anna Gunn)			Skyler
	Walt's former student, and right–hand man, played by Aaron Paul			Jesse Pinkman
Cagney & Lacey	Christine Cagney			Sharon Gless
	Mary Beth Lacey			Tyne Daly
	Played Cagney in the first 6 episodes			Meg Foster
	Played Cagney in the original TV movie			Loretta Swit
Campion (BBC, 1989–90)	Title role (created by Margery Allingham, originally as a parody of Dorothy L. Sayers's Lord Peter Wimsey)			Peter Davison
Callan	Title role			Edward Woodward
	Callan's unlovely petty criminal "snout", played by Russell Hunter			Lonely
	Callan's boss			Hunter
Cannon	Title role			William Conrad
	Cannon's first name			Frank
Colonel March of Scotland Yard (ITV, 1956–7)	Title role			Boris Karloff
Columbo	Title role			Peter Falk
Cracker	Set in			Manchester
Crown Court	Set in			Fulchester
Dalziel & Pascoe	Supt. Andy Dalziel			Warren Clarke
	DI Peter Pascoe			Colin Buchanan
Danger Man	Title character			John Drake
	Played by			Patrick McGoohan
Dixon of Dock Green	George Dixon			Jack Warner
	Dixon's son–in–law (played by Peter Byrne)			Andy Crawford
Endeavour	Title role (the future Inspector Morse)			Shaun Evans
Father Brown (BBC1, 2013–)	Title role			Mark Williams
Hamish Macbeth	Set in			Lochdubh
	Filmed in (picturesque Scottish seaside village)			Plockton
	Title role			Robert Carlyle
Happy Valley (BBC1: 3 series – 2014, 2016, 2023)	The main protagonist: a divorced police sergeant, still trying to recover from the suicide of her daughter eight years ago			Catherine Cawood
	... played by			Sarah Lancashire
	Her sister Clare Cartwright – a recovering drug addict			Siobhan Finneran
	The main antagonist: a psychopath who raped Catherine's daughter, her grandson Ryan being conceived as a result			Tommy Lee Royce
	... played by			James Norton
	Theme song			Trouble Town
	Written and performed by			Jake Bugg
Hart to Hart	Jonathan Hart, millionaire			Robert Wagner
	Mrs. Jennifer Hart			Stefanie Powers
	Their dog			Freeway
	Name of the butler / chauffeur			Max
Hawaii Five–O	Significance of the Five–O			Hawaii is the 50th state
	Steve McGarrett was played by			Jack Lord
Hazell	Writers: Gordon Williams and			Terry Venables
	Hazell was played by			Nicholas Ball
Heartbeat	Set in (fictional village)			Adensfield
	Filmed in (North Yorkshire village)			Goathland
	Nick Berry's character			PC Nick Rowan
	Claude Greengrass			Bill Maynard
	Character played by Derek Fowlds			Sgt. Oscar Blaketon
Inspector George Gently (BBC1, 2007–17)	Title role			Martin Shaw
Inspector Morse	Morse drives a			Jaguar
	Morse's first name – and the title of a 'prequel' series featuring a young Morse			Endeavour
	The young Morse is played, in the 'prequel' series, by			Shaun Evans
	Morse's assistant (Detective Sergeant) – featuring in his own series following the end of Morse			Lewis
	... played by			Kevin Whateley
	Lewis's first name			Robert (Robbie)
	Theme and incidental music composed by			Barrington Pheloung
Inspector Wexford	Title role			George Baker
Ironside	Title role: played in a wheelchair by			Raymond Burr
Jonathan Creek	Title role			Alan Davies
	His collaborator (1997–2000), Maddy Magellan			Caroline Quentin
	His collaborator from 2001 – Carla Borrego			Julia Sawalha
Juliet Bravo	Set in (fictional Lancashire town)			Hartley
	Central character (series 1–3)			Inspector Kate Longton
	Played by			Anna Carteret
	Inspector Jean Darblay (Longton's replacement in series 4–6)			Stephanie Turner
Kavanagh QC (ITV, 1995–2001)	Title role			John Thaw
The Killing	Detective Inspector played by Sofie Grabol			Sarah Lund
	Setting (European city)			Copenhagen
Killing Eve	Eve Polastri (the title character)			Sandra Oh
	Villanelle (birth name Oxana Vorontsova)			Jodie Comer
Kojak	Title role			Telly Savalas
	Kojak's first name			Theodore (Theo)
	Kojak's trusted partner – played by Kevin Dobson			(Bobby) Crocker
	Detective played by Savalas's brother George			Stavros
LA Law	British actress, won a Golden Globe in 1992 for her role as the bisexual lawyer C. J. Lamb			Amanda Donohoe
Lewis	Lewis's intellectual sidekick (played by Lawrence Fox)			DS James Hathaway
	Played by			Lawrence Fox
Line of Duty (BBC2 2012–16, BBC1 2017 to date)	DS Steve Arnott			Martin Compston
	DS Kate Fleming			Vicky McClure
	Superintendent Ted Hastings			Adrian Dunbar
	The unit they work in			AC–12
	DS John Corbett (Series 5)			Stephen Graham
McMillan and Wife	Stuart McMillan			Rock Hudson
	His wife, Sally			Susan Saint James
Maigret	Played by	BBC, 1960–3		Rupert Davies
		ITV, 1992–3		Michael Gambon
		ITV, 2016–7		Rowan Atkinson
Perry Mason (CBS, 1957–66)	Title character played by			Raymond Burr
	His secretary (played by Barbara Hale)			Della Street
	The District Attorney, and the principal antagonist			Hamilton Burger
Miami Vice	James 'Sonny' Crockett			Don Johnson
	Ricardo 'Rico' Tubbs			Philip Michael Thomas
	Crockett's pet alligator			Elvis
	Appeared as a sleazy con artist in Phil the Shill (season 2 episode 11)			Phil Collins
Midsomer Murders	Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby (series 1 to 13 – retired in 2011)			John Nettles
	Chief Inspector John Barnaby (Tom's younger cousin – since the retirement of the above)			Neil Dudgeon
	County Town of Midsomer, where the Barnabys live and are based			Causton
Moonlighting	Bruce Willis's co–star			Cybill Shepherd
	Name of the detective agency they worked for			Blue Moon
Murder, She Wrote	Central character			Jessica Fletcher
	Played by			Angela Lansbury
	Setting (small coastal town in Maine)			Cabot Cove
NCIS	'CIS' stands for Criminal Investigative Service; 'N' stands for			Naval
New Tricks	DCS Sandra Pullman			Amanda Redman
	Jack Halford			James Bolam
	Gerry Standing			Dennis Waterman
	Brian Lane			Alun Armstrong
	The three principal male characters are named after a stand at the ground of (football club supported by one of the original writers)			West Bromwich Albion
The People v. O. J. Simpson (2016)	O. J. Simpson			Cuba Gooding Jr.
Police Woman	Police woman's name			Pepper Anderson
	Played by			Angie Dickinson
Prime Suspect	Central character			DCI Jane Tennison
	Played by			Helen Mirren
The Professionals	Bodie			Lewis Collins
	Doyle			Martin Shaw
	Their boss			George Cowley
	Cowley played by			Gordon Jackson
Remington Steele (NBC, 1982–7)	Title role			Pierce Brosnan
The Return of Sherlock Holmes (ITV, 1984)	Sherlock Holmes			Jeremy Brett
The Rockford Files	Jim Rockford			James Garner
	Rocky (his father)			Noah Beery
	Jim's customary charge			200 dollars
Rumpole of the Bailey (ITV, 1978–92)	Title role			Leo McKern
Sherlock (BBC1, 2010–)	Title role			Benedict Cumberbatch
	Watson			Martin Freeman
	Mrs. Hudson			Una Stubbs
	Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock's older brother (co–creator of the series)			Mark Gatiss
Shoestring (BBC1, 1979–80)	Eddie Shoestring			Trevor Eve
	Set in (English city)			Bristol
	Radio station that the title character worked for			Radio West
Softly, Softly (BBC1, 1966–9)	Set in (fictional English region – in reality, based on Bristol)			Wyvern
	DS played by Norman Bowler			Harry Hawkins
	Word added to the title for the follow–up series, following the BBC's change to colour – based in the fictional south–east town of Thamesford			Taskforce
The Sopranos (HBO, 1999–2007)	Principally set in (US state)			New Jersey
	Central character, Tony Soprano: played by			James Gandolfini
	Tony's wife – played by Edie Falco			Carmela
	Their daughter – played by Jamie–Lynn Sigler			Meadow
	Their son – played by Robert Iler			Anthony John (AJ)
	Tony's mother – played by Nancy Marchand			Olivia (Livia)
	Tony's elder sister – played by Aida Turturro			Janice
	Tony's volatile, narcissistic and impulsive protégé – played by Michael Imperioli; referred to by Tony as his nephew, but in fact a cousin of Tony's wife, and distantly related to Tony himself			Christopher Moltisanti
	Name by which Tony's 'surrogate father', Corrado Soprano, played by Dominic Chianese, is known to all characters			(Uncle) Junior
Starsky & Hutch	Set in (real–life US city)			Los Angeles
	Starsky			Paul Michael Glaser
	Hutch			David Soul
	Hutch's full name			Ken Hutchinson
	Starsky's first name			David (Dave)
	Their jive–talking informant (played by Antonio Fargas)			Huggy Bear
	Their gruff, no–nonsense–but–fair boss (played by Bernie Hamilton)			Captain Harold C. Dobey
	(Starsky's) car – nicknamed "the striped tomato"			Ford Torino
The Streets of San Francisco	Veteran cop Lt. Mike Stone			Karl Malden
	Steve Keller, his college–educated assistant			Michael Douglas
The Sweeney	John Thaw's character			Jack Regan
	Dennis Waterman's character			George Carter
	Regan's boss, played by Norman Dagley			DCI (Frank) Haskins
Taggart	Set in			Glasgow
	Title role (1983–94)			Mark McManus
	Central character after McManus's death in 1994 (killed off 2002)			Mike Jardine
	Played by			James MacPherson
	Jardine's replacement, played by Alex Norton			Matt Burke
The Untouchables	Eliot Ness			Robert Stack
Van der Valk	Title role			Barry Foster
	Set in			Amsterdam
Vera (ITV, 2011–)	Vera's surname			Stanhope
	Vera is played by			Brenda Blethyn
Wanted: Dead or Alive (CBS, 1958–61)	Starred as Confederate civil war veteran and bounty hunter Josh Randall			Steve McQueen
The Wire (HBO and BBC2, 2002–8)	Set in (American city)			Baltimore
	Central character (an Irish–American detective)			Jimmy McNulty
	Played by (English actor)			Dominic West
Z–Cars (BBC, 1962–78)	DCI Charlie Barlow			Stratford Johns
	DS John Watt			Frank Windsor
	Sgt. Bert Lynch			James Ellis
	Station sergeant played by Robert Keegan			Sgt. Blackitt
	PC 'Fancy' Smith			Brian Blessed
	PC David Graham			Colin Welland
	PC played by Joseph Brady			'Jock' Weir
	PC played by Jeremy Kemp			Bob Steele
	Set in (fictional town)			Newtown
	Newtown was said to be based on			Skelmersdale
	Spin–offs featuring Johns as Barlow			Softly, Softly
				Barlow at Large

© Haydn Thompson 2017–24