The Detectives

The Detectives is a British comedy television series, starring Jasper Carrott, Robert Powell, and George Sewell. It aired on BBC One from 27 January 1993 to 28 December 1997, and was a spoof of police dramas. It was written by Mike Whitehill and Steve Knight. Concept The Detectives originated from a recurring sketch that first appeared on Jasper Carrott's comedy show Canned Carrott. Because of its success, it was turned into a television series. There were a few differences from the sketch to the TV series, such as Dave Briggs being married in the sketch (to Brenda), while in the series, both he and Louis are single and hopeless at romance. Jasper Carrott and Robert Powell play the bumbling detective constables Bob Louis and David Briggs. They were bad at their job, to the despair of their boss, Superintendent Frank Cottam (played by Sewell). However, they usually ended up solving their cases. The BBC compared it to the series Special Branch (1969–74), in which Sewell had also appeared. Mark Lewisohn compared it to The Sweeney (1975–78), describing Sewell's role as "a deadpan spin on that series' Chief Inspector Haskins". Moreover, the original sketches were introduced by a blue-tinted sequence and musical score that parodied The Sweeney's opening titles.