UK, 13 April 1980-10 May 1981
2 series, 14 episodes, average 50m
videotape, colour, 4:3
mono, English
A British crime television series with several genre-related episodes. Fourteen episodes were broadcast on ITV over two series between 13 April 1980 and 10 May 1981.
Premise
Victorian policeman Sergeant Cribb investigates a variety of cases, including the death of a spiritualist.
Credits
Crew
Granada Television
Based on the character created by Peter Lovesey
Cast
Alan Dobie (Sergeant Cribb)
William Simons (Constable Thackeray)
David Waller (Inspector Jowett)
Episodes
Pilot
Waxwork (13 April 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Pauline Macaulay
Directed by: June Wyndham-Davies
Guest Cast: Carol Royle, Gerald Sim, Laurence Payne, Bernard Archard, Roy Evans
Cribb investigates the case of a young woman sentenced to hang for murder.
Series One
Swing, Swing Together (20 April 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Brian Thompson
Directed by: June Wyndham-Davies
Guest Cast: Ronald Lacey, Heather James, Albert Welling, Jane How, Sheila Keith, Robert Fyfe, Peter Birrel, Michael Ripper
Cribb and Thackeray are called in when the body of a young woman is found floating in the Thames and they note similarities with the recently published Three Men in a Boat.
Abracadaver (27 April 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Bill MacIlwraith
Directed by: Julian Amyes
Guest Cast: Patsy Rowlands, Julia Chambers, Chubby Oates, Ian Collier, Jerold Wells
Performers in a music hall are suffering strange accidents so Cribb and Thackeray investigate, revealing a late-night club where secret performances are staged for for wealthy members.
The Detective Wore Silk Drawers (20 April 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey
Directed by: Alan Grint
Guest Cast: Barry Andrews, Norma West, David Hargreaves, Mark Eden, Jimmy Gardner, Alf Joint, Derek Ware
Cribb investigates a series of illegal prize fighting bouts.
The Horizontal Witness (4 May 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Jacqueline Lovesey
Directed by: Alan Grint
Guest Cast: John Ringham, Norman Jones, Jennifer Guy, Linda Robson, June Page, John Cannon, Steve Fletcher
Thackeray is sent undercover into a hospital to protect a vital witness.
Wobble to Death (11 May 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Alan Plater
Directed by: Gordon Flemyng
Guest Cast: Andrew Burt, Archie Tew, Michael Elphick, Kenneth Cranham, Jeremy Young, Paul Barber
Rivalry between competitors in the Pedestrian Championship of the World prompt Cribb and Thackeray to investigate.
Something Old, Something New (18 May 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Jacqueline Lovesey
Directed by: Oliver Horsbrugh
Guest Cast: Charlotte Mitchell, Geoffrey Bayldon, Sally Osborne, Ivor Salter, Arthur Hewlett, George Waring
Cribb and Thackeray attend a wedding and come to suspect that the bride and her family are up to no good.
A Case of Spirits (25 May 1980)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Arden Winch
Directed by: Bill Gilmour
Guest Cast: Clive Swift, Judy Cornwell, Thorley Walters, Michael Barrington
Cribb and Thackeray investigate the death of a spiritualist.
Series Two
Mad Hatter's Holiday (29 March 1981)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Bill MacIlwraith
Directed by: June Wyndham-Davies
Guest Cast: Derek Fowlds, Fenella Fielding, Conrad Phillips, George Lee.
The discovery of a severed hand sets Cribb on a trail that leads him to Brighton.
The Last Trumpet (5 April 1981)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Jacqueline Lovesey
Directed by: Brian Mills
Guest Cast: Joyce Carey, Geoffrey Keen, Barry Jackson, Mary Larkin, Garrick Hagon, Tony Steedman
The murder of the leader of a campaign to prevent the sale of Jumbo the elephant, London Zoo's most popular attraction to America, is investigated by Cribb and his colleagues.
The Hand That Rocks (12 April 1981)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Jacqueline Lovesey
Directed by: George Spenton-Foster
Guest Cast: Rosalie Crutchley, Scott Fredericks, Sarah Neville, Aubrey Woods, Jane Sherwin
With Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee celebrations approaching, Cribb is selected by the Royal Household to investigate the background of a new nanny.
The Choir That Wouldn't Sing (19 April 1981)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Jacqueline Lovesey
Directed by: Mary McMurray
Guest Cast: Elizabeth Spriggs, Barry McGinn, Ben Aris, Gilbert Wynne, David Jackson, Enn Reitel.
A retired colonel and member of a village choir apparently commits suicide but Cribb comes to suspect that he was actually murdered.
Murder Old Boy? (3 May 1981)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Jacqueline Lovesey
Directed by: George Spenton-Foster
Guest Cast: John Carson, Terence Edmond, Petra Davies, Eric Dodson, John Bryans
Inspector Jowett attends a reunion at his old school and uncovers a murder.
Invitation to a Dynamite Party (10 May 1981)
Written by: Peter Lovesey, Arden Winch
Directed by: Alan Grint
Guest Cast: Jeananne Crowley, Charles Keating
Cribb goes undercover to investigate terror group the Irish Republican Brotherhood.
