Evening all! Jack Warner as George Dixon.
In the fifties and sixties, police series on UK TV were dominated by Dixon Of Dock Green and Z-Cars. Both of these presented cops in a favourable light as hard-working, dedicated and, about all, honest individuals.
I think it’s fair to say that anyone writing a script for a contemporary cutting-edge drama would start from a contrary perspective, highlighting the moral grey areas and corruption that lie at the heart of 21st century policing.
The squeaky clean image of PC George Dixon was the embodiment of the British ‘bobby’ on the beat. One Dock Green episode called ‘The Rotten Apple’ from 1956 was a rare occasion in which the existence of ‘bent coppers’ was addressed. While acknowledging the truth of the adage that ‘one bad apple can spoil the barrel’, PC Dixon’s reassuring message at the end of this episode was that this case was not representative of the countless good cops on the force.
These days , this would rightly be dismissed as implausible propaganda. Now, the trend is towards gritty realism where back-stabbing, double-dealing and spin-doctoring are the norms. BBC’s five-part drama ‘Line of Duty’ scripted by Jed Mercurio is the latest example. Continue reading
