New Tricks : Complete BBC Series 1 [2003] [DVD]

This series should be shown to all TV cop show directors and producers as an example of how it can be done. Wonderful acting from all the leads. Laugh-out-loud funny in places plus good stories. I would like to have seen some behind the scenes extras but that's the only fault.

I don't watch many detective shows, aside from 'A Touch of Frost'. I was drawn to this one because the casting promised the same sort of great character acting, and I always appreciate a good comedy drama.

New Tricks is not just good, it's fantastic. The scripts are great - sharp dialogue, organic humour, and cases with enough complexity to keep you guessing - and the performances are even better. It's consistently funny without crossing the line and sacrificing realism for laughs.

I came to the show with a pre-existing respect and affection for the three male leads, so Amanda Redman was the real revelation for me. A lesser actress would just sink without trace under such heavyweight co-stars, but she really makes the role her own and holds the show together. Sandra Pullman comes off simultaneously glamorous yet gutsy, competent and down-to-earth, and is utterly believable as a high-level female police officer.

The male leads' roles suit them perfectly, and yet still have plenty of layers: Bolam's widower character seems like the sort of gentle soul he often plays, but has a darker, more aggressive side; Armstrong is note perfect as a mild, unassuming man with a dangerously obsessive streak; and Waterman does what he usually does, plays a rough-edged yet loveable Jack-the-lad so well that you hardly even notice he's acting.

Everything about the show is spot on - even the theme tune (sung by Waterman, natch) is so catchy I have to sit and listen to it all the way through every time it plays over the DVD menu. The only complaint I can find at all is not about the show but the packaging: the DVD case is a nasty flimsy plastic thing that looks cheap and is hard to get the disks out of. But never mind that - this is great TV, and at a reasonable price, too. Very highly recommended.

A heavyweight TV superstar cast bringing the ethos of 'True Grit' (embracing old age disgracefully) to retired members of the police force. With small snapshots of their family life as well (aka Rose in Dr Who), they all come across as being 'real people' and perhaps because they are nice characters and such well known faces you care what happens to them (oh no don't hurt `Terry'). Far more 'real' than many mainstream cop shows (where the departmental in-fighting is often so dramatically over-exaggerated the only surprise is that no colleague gets battered to death with a coffee cup). It's got 'The Sweeney' clever backchat and one-liners with a bit less of it's violence, so it's quite suitable for the kids as well (I would have given it a 12 not 15). My daughter (12) loves the series. The stories reflect real life, some fairly clever people having a bit a laugh while dealing with the pressure of the tough job they have taken on. As they are all retired equals in the cop business they also have free reign to behave as rather non-PC mavericks - after all in the East End anything is legal as long as you don't get caught. It's not unlike time-travelling cop show 'Life on Mars' really, except here you have 1970's policemen working in 2005.

The 'cold case' theme is perhaps a bit old hat, but in this case it fits in perfectly (why else would working police officers ignore the crimes). My daughter's review is 'If you like mysteries then it's really good, you can work it out, as it's a very logical program, then you check it out at the end. Plus you can tell the violence is fake and people just get beaten up and don't die. It's not for young children though, those about 9 and over'. Worth getting just to catch any episodes you missed on TV, or you can rent. My daughter is eagerly awaiting series three on DVD.