The lowdown: 'The Last Detective' is based on a novel by Leslie Thomas that was first published in the 1970s. It features
Peter Davison as Detective Sergeant 'Dangerous' Davies, an honest, hard-working Willesden cop whose old-fashioned policing
methods make him the butt of his colleagues' jokes. Davies is nicknamed 'Dangerous' for the simple reason that he is not in 
the least bit dangerous - he is kind and good-natured, and always treats criminals with a certain amount of respect. In the 
premiere episode, which aired on ITV in February 2003, Davies investigates a 20-year old murder and finds that the killer is
closer than he realises. When he exposes the sordid past of a fellow officer who is about to retire, Davies becomes an object 
of even more contempt among his colleagues, and from now on he can expect to be assigned the worst cases that his boss, 
DI Aspinall, can find. Undeterred, Dangerous proceeds to solve cases with the assistance of his best friend, Mod Lewis
(Sean Hughes), who is not a police officer but seems to do more work for the Met than most of Dangerous's colleagues.

'The Last Detective' is a typical British detective show, in that it is brilliant. While it is more lightweight and humourous than 
shows such as Inspector Morse and A Touch of Frost, it is an excellent series that is well worth watching. Peter Davison is 
superbly cas as 'Dangerous' Davies, and gives one of his best acting performances (very similar in fact to his role in 'At Home
With the Braithwaites'), while Sean Hughes (best known as a comedian) makes a perfect foil for the dour detective. They are 
very much a double act, like Morse and Lewis, Randall and Hopkirk, Laural and Hardy...

Trivia: The Leslie Thomas novel was previously made into a film called 'Dangerous Davies - The Last Detective' in 1981,
starring Bernard Cribbins in the title role. The supporting cast included Colin Baker.
 
Quotes:
  DI Aspinall: "The Last Detective, that's what you are, Dangerous.
  The last detective I'll ever think of - unless it's the crap jobs. Then 
  you'll be the first."		 Video Clips:
'Dangerous' makes an arrest  (4.4mb)
A changed man  (3.4mb)
Davies and DI Aspinall (3.0mb)
Davies and an undertaker  (4.0mb)

  Please note: the video clips were recorded from television rather than video or DVD, so the quality is not very good. Sadly,
  only the first series was released on DVD (in the UK), and it seems there are no plans to release the remaining two seasons.
More pictures from 'The Last Detective'

 
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