The Bill
(1984)Streaming Episode Guide
Series 26 | Series 25 | Series 24 | Series 23 | Season 22 | Season 21 | Season 20 | Season 19 | Season 18 | Season 17 | Season 16 | Season 15 | Season 14 | Series 13 | Series 12 | Series 11 | Series 10 | Season 10 | Series 9 | Series 8 | Series 7 | Series 6 | Series 5 | Series 4 | Series 3 | Series 2 | Series 1 | Specials | Top 5 Episodes
Series 26
The 26th and final series of The Bill, a British television drama, was the last series of the programme. Nearly two years after the final episode, Supt. Jack Meadows was featured in an episode of Leipzig Homicide, which involved him investigating a suspected murderer who has been living in London. In the episode it is revealed that at some point during the year and a half following the events of Respect, Meadows had retired.
Series 25
The 25th series of The Bill, a British television drama, was the penultimate series of the programme. This series saw the show transition to a post-watershed time slot of 9pm, dropping from two episodes to one week-by-week as ITV aimed to save up to £65 million. Producers used the post-watershed slot to introduce "darker, more gritty" storylines. DI Samantha Nixon left prior to the transition, after seven years on the show, in a special two-parter storyline that included a cameo appearance by her daughter Abigail , who was a recurring character on the show from 2002 to 2005. A six-part storyline came as part of the end of the twice-weekly episodes, Conviction, that concluded with four cast members leaving, including Superintendent John Heaton DCI Jack Meadows was promoted into the role. The four characters were part of seven who left as part of the revamp, however the axing of PC Tony Stamp after 22 years on the show proved controversial.
Series 24
The 24th series of The Bill, a British television drama, was the antepenultimate series of the programme. This series was the last to feature the killing of an officer, PC Emma Keane. The death on-screen led to the resignation of the longest serving character, PC Reg Hollis, his controversial exit off-screen after actor Jeff Stewart attempted suicide on set, after being axed by producers following 24 years on the show. Another long-term character, Inspector Gina Gold, left the show after six years as part of the aftermath of the storyline, Gold retiring after becoming increasingly terrified at the thought of losing another officer.
Series 23
Series 23 of British television drama The Bill was broadcast from 3 January until 28 December 2007. The series consisted of 92 episodes, and saw the conclusion of two long running-storylines, the disappearance of schoolgirl Amy Tennant and DC Zain Nadir’s undercover drug sting, prior to the return of single-themed episodes, removing much of the serialiased format formally introduced in 2002 under producer Paul Marquess; episode titles also started appearing on screen again from Episode 20 onwards. Several episodes were aired out of production order, most notably the final parts of the six episodes for the Zain storyline.
Season 17
Series 17 of British television drama The Bill consisted of 92 episodes, broadcast between 5 January and 21 December 2001. As well as 85 regular episodes, the series also included a spinoff Beech is Back, following a special 90-minute episode in Australia. The story follows ex-Sun Hill officer Claire Stanton, now a DI, as she goes to Australia to try and extradite ex-DS Don Beech for the murder of his colleague John Boulton. The spinoff that follows concludes the Beech storyline, which began in Series 16. Although the idea of making the series into a serial drama did not fully take effect until April 2002, many of the stories in the latter half of the year were multi-part stories, some containing up to six episodes, such as the "Night Games" saga. The two-part episode "Lifelines" is the last two-parter to feature in the series until the return of episode titles in 2007.
Season 16
Series 16 of British television drama The Bill consisted of 86 episodes, broadcast between 4 January – 26 December 2000. As well as 83 regular episodes, the series also included a two-part recap special, Kiss Off, featuring a condensed broadcast of the Series 15 episodes "Lone Ranger", "Old Flame", "Push It" and "Kiss Off", prior to a special episode, The Trial of Eddie Santini, which provides closure to the Santini storyline from 1999. On 5 June 2013, The Bill Series 16 Part 1 & 2 and The Bill Series 16 Part 3 & 4 DVD sets were released (in Australia).
Season 15
The fifteenth series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 87 episodes, broadcast between 7 January and 31 December 1999. The series saw a notable change as female officers were no longer introduced by the W acronym in ranking, with the last mention of this when Liz Rawton was introduced as a WDC in Follow Through. By the following episode, Walking on Water, female characters were simply introduced as PC/DC etc. On 5 June 2013, The Bill Series 15 Part 1 & 2 and The Bill Series 15 Part 3 & 4 DVD sets were released (in Australia).
Season 14
The series began with the appointment of new executive producer Richard Handford, who replaced Michael Chapman after his 9-year reign came to an end in the previous series. The appointment preceded discussions with broadcaster ITV about returning to the format of hour-long episodes, which the show last used on a regular basis in 1987. The request was approved, and hour-long episodes began to air twice weekly beginning in August, a format the series retained until moving to a later time-slot in 2009. Due to the rapid transition, several of the first hour-long episodes were originally written for the half-hour time-slot, and thus, some episodes contain two completely different stories, written by different writers, which jump from one to another.
Series 13
The thirteenth series of the British television drama The Bill was broadcast from 2 January to 30 December 1997. The series consisted of 152 episodes, including three-hour-long specials. There were just two cast departures in the series after four the year before; actor Tom Butcher left the role of PC Steve Loxton after seven years on the show, however he would return in two episodes in 1999 as a guest at Dave Quinnan's wedding. The other departure was that of Alan Westaway, who left his role of PC Nick Slater after two and a half years. Their characters were replaced by PCs Luke Ashton and Sam Harker, with actors Scott Neal and Matthew Crompton appearing as guest actors on a number of times, both of the actor's most recent guest stints coming the previous year.
Series 12
The twelfth series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 156 episodes, broadcast between 2 January and 31 December 1996. On 6 February 2013, The Bill Series 12 Part 1 & 2 and The Bill Series 12 Part 3 & 4 DVD sets were released (in Australia). The show aired the death of PC Cathy Marshall early in the series, actress Lynne Miller departing after seven years in a mysterious plot that saw her drown whilst chasing a suspect, but it was never confirmed if she was pushed or slipped off a riverside barge during the pursuit. The death followed that of DS Jo Morgan in a four-part special towards the end of the previous series, with the first three of the four episodes rebroadcast in the summer as part of a single special episode; Target.
Series 11
The eleventh series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 149 episodes, broadcast between 5 January – 29 December 1995. Cast members Jaye Griffiths (DI Johnson) and Martin Marquez (DS Pearce) both left their roles as series regulars, being replaced by Russell Boulter & Billy Murray (DSs Boulton and Beech), with Beech taking the place of DS Chris Deakin after he was promoted to DI. Griffiths would go on to return eight years later for a storyline in 2003, while Marquez returned a year later to make one final appearance as a guest actor. While not notable at the time, Murray's character Beech would go on to be the show's longest-running full-time villain in the years that followed. Mark Spalding joined the cast as Chief Inspector Paul Stritch, following the exit of Philip Whitchurch as Chief Inspector Philip Cato, however Spalding left the series before its conclusion after just seven months on the show.
Series 9
The ninth series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 155 episodes, broadcast between 5 January – 31 December 1993. The series was released on DVD for the first time on 3 October 2012, in Australia. In 2020, Audio Commentaries were released for the episodes 'Blind Spot' (with writer Roger Davenport) and 'Compliments of the Service' with actor Mike Burnside (D.A.C. Trevor Hicks).
Series 8
The eighth series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 105 episodes, broadcast between 2 January – 31 December 1992. The series was released on DVD for the first time on 6 June 2012, in Australia. It features the above artwork, which features images of PC Steve Loxton and DC Mike Dashwood.
Series 7
The seventh series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 105 episodes, broadcast between 1 January – 31 December 1991. The series was released on DVD for the first time on 6 June 2012, in Australia. It features the above artwork, which features images of Sgt. Alec Peters and WDC Viv Martella. A number of The Bill Audio Commentaries for Series 7 episodes have been recorded with director Stuart Urban and camera operator Alison Chapman, specifically for the episodes 'Cry Havoc', 'The Negotiator' and 'They Also Serve'. These are available to subscribers of The Bill Podcast Patreon Channel.
Series 6
The sixth series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 104 episodes, broadcast between 2 January – 27 December 1990. The series was first released on DVD as part of the Collection 5 and Collection 6 DVD boxsets in Australia, made available on 9 April – 8 October 2008, respectively. The series was later re-issued as two-half series boxsets in Australia, released on 7 March 2012. The above artwork is taken from the most recent Australian release. It features images of DC Tosh Lines and DI Frank Burnside. The original Collection box-sets contained sole images of PC Reg Hollis and DS Ted Roach. In the UK, the first nine episodes were released on DVD under the title Volume 7, on 2 September 2013.
Series 5
The fifth series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of 104 episodes, broadcast between 3 January – 28 December 1989. The series was first released on DVD as part of the Collection 3 and Collection 4 DVD boxsets in Australia, made available on 8 August – 7 November 2007, respectively. The first four episodes of the series were later issued on DVD in the United Kingdom, under the title Volume 4, on 15 March 2010. The next thirteen episodes of series 5 were released on DVD in the UK, under the title Volume 5, on 11 July 2011, the next 48 episodes of Series five were released on DVD in the UK under the title Volume 6, on 15 October 2012 and the remaining episodes were released on DVD in the UK under the title Volume 7, on 2 September 2013.
Series 4
The fourth series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of forty-eight episodes, broadcast between 19 July – 29 December 1988. This series was the first to adopt a half-hour format, and the theme tune had its first of several updates. The series was first released on DVD on 4 December 2006 in Australia, incorrectly packaged as Seasons 4 & 5, when in fact the set only contained the entire series four. The series was later issued in four separate volumes in the United Kingdom, available on 30 June 2008, 2 March 2009, 11 May 2009 and 15 March 2010. It was later reissued in Australia on 31 August 2011. The above DVD artwork is taken from the most recent Australian release. It features an image of DS Ted Roach. The British volume artwork features a variety of collage images featuring characters from across the season. The original Australian box set features a sole image of DI Frank Burnside.
Series 3
The third series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of twelve episodes, broadcast between 21 September and 7 December 1987. The series was first released on DVD as part of a three-season box set on 10 May 2006 in Australia. It was later made available as a separate season in the United Kingdom on 28 May 2007 and in Australia on 3 August 2011. The above DVD artwork is taken from the most recent Australian release. It features an image of Ch. Supt. Charles Brownlow. The British artwork features a collage image featuring DI Roy Galloway, PCs Nick Shaw and Viv Martella, and DC Mike Dashwood. The image right is the Australian three-season DVD box set features a sole image of chief superintendent Charles Brownlow.
Series 2
The second series of The Bill, a British television drama, consisted of twelve episodes, broadcast between 11 November 1985 and 10 February 1986. Many of the cast and crew shared their memories of making this second series for the book Witness Statements, including stars John Salthouse, Eric Richard, Trudie Goodwin, Mark Wingett, Peter Ellis, Nula Conwell, Jon Iles, Larry Dann, Colin Blumenau, Robert Hudson, Ashley Gunstock and Ralph Brown; along with writers Barry Appleton, Lionel Goldstein, Ginnie Hole and Christopher Russell, producer Peter Cregeen and directors Michael Ferguson and John Woods.
Specials
"Woodentop" is an episode of the Thames Television series Storyboard, which comprises a series of one-off plays on different themes. The episode was originally broadcast on 16 August 1983. Woodentop became the first-ever episode to long-running British police television series The Bill. The name woodentop is a colloquialism for beat policemen who traditionally wear helmets; the nickname is itself an allusion to the Children's TV series The Woodentops.
Top 5 Highest Rated Episodes
9.5/10
9.3/10 9.3/10 9.3/10 9.2/10
Cry Havoc
Episode 33 - 4-23-1991
25m
Quinnan and Stamp go to Whitegate Estate to arrest a man involved in a glassing the night before. When Peters tries to apprehend the assailant, he is stabbed and rushed to hospital.
9.5/10There are no streaming sources for this episode in your country. Sources available in: Great Britain
Haven't Seen
Don't Like Mondays
Episode 59 - 7-25-1989
24m
PC Edwards and PC Smith are called to a disturbance at a local bank, where they are surprised to find Tosh Lines' wife and children causing a commotion as there is no money left in their account. Edwards makes a discrete call to Sgt. Peters, who suggests to Tosh that he head down to the bank and sort things out. As PC Ramsey and WPC Ackland also arrive, the bank is raided by an armed gang. Tosh Lines arrives and charges towards the bank, but as PC Ramsey runs to stop him, he is shot in the chest by one of the robbers. Ch. Insp. Conway negotiates with the gang as armed PT17 officers surround the building. Sgt. Cryer offers to drive the getaway car, but disconnects the ignition when he leaves it at the bank entrance. PC Smith and the other hostages are released, but PC Edwards is taken hostage. He manages to makes a run for it and the PT17 officers open fire on the car.
9.3/10There are no streaming sources for this episode in your country. Sources available in: Great Britain
Haven't Seen
Trojan Horse
Episode 41 - 5-22-1990
P.C. Ken Melvin and P.C. Reg Hollis stop a young man for erratic driving, and a PNC check reveals the expensive car is stolen. Stamp and Quinnan arrive to transport the prisoner to Barton Street, and Melvin and Hollis volunteer to drive the car back to Sun Hill. As Melvin moves some of the building materials from the station renovations so he can park, the car explodes in a huge fireball. Hollis, Conway and Melvin are rushed to hospital - but Ken Melvin soon dies from his injuries. SO13 arrive at Barton Street to interview the car thief, who it turns out stole the car from an army major who was a likely terrorist target. Sgt. Cryer is outraged that the disaster could have been prevented as SO13 had the major under surveillance and could have stopped the car being stolen.
9.3/10There are no streaming sources for this episode in your country. Sources available in: Great Britain
Haven't Seen
What Kind of Man
Episode 55 - 7-10-1990
25m
P.C. Quinnan investigates a burglary at a school. He thinks a man with a dog talking to the children might be talking to in connection with the Canley Fields murders. Sgt. Penny is after him to serve warrants. The suspect opens up to Sgt Penny who looks shell-shocked after the interview.
9.3/10There are no streaming sources for this episode in your country. Sources available in: Great Britain
Haven't Seen
The Short Straw
Episode 36 - 3-26-1993
24m
When her car breaks down on the way to the station, DC Viv Martella misses an important CID briefing about an obbo on a suspected armed robbery, and is furious when she is taken off the case by DI Frank Burnside. As CID and SO19 wait outside the target, Martella and PC Tony Stamp follow up a simple case to arrest a suspected bag snatcher. As they wait outside the suspect's house, a van pulls up, obscuring their view. Having missed the briefing, Martella fails to recognise the van's occupants as the armed robbers, and when she approaches their van she is shot and killed. Stamp is wounded, but manages to give a description of the van which is spotted by a traffic police motorcycle. As the India 99 police helicopter and SO19 cars pursue Martella's killers across London, PC Loxton and WPC Ackland disobey Ch. Insp. Cato's orders and pursue the suspect vehicle in the Area Car. The vehicle hits a bulldozer and explodes, killing all inside.
9.2/10There are no streaming sources for this episode in your country. Sources available in: Great Britain
Haven't Seen
