The TV detective : voices of dissent in contemporary television

2016 Winner - BAFTSS (British Association of Film, Television and Screen Studies) Best BookWhat makes British television crime drama so perennially popular, both in the UK and internationally? What are the attractions and pleasures of these shows? How are detectives positioned in relation to viewers' national and collective experience of the 'everyday'? This book addresses these questions, examining the trends evident in a range of series - including A Touch of Frost, Lewis, Cracker, Life on Mars and the more recent Luther - in the context of their broader social meaning. Helen Piper develops a compelling argument regarding the cultural relevance of some of the more popular and powerful television detectives, claiming that theirs is a privileged role as the licensed "voices" of dissent. The discontented TV detective, she suggests, may serve to express a broader sense of cultural malaise. "Helen Piper develops a compelling argument regarding the cultural relevance of television detectives, claiming that they have privileged roles as the 'voices' of dissent within society. Many of the programmes studied here chart sentiments of social loss or change and accommodate contemporary concerns. The discontented TV detective, Piper suggests, may serve to express a broader sense of cultural malaise."-- Provided by publisher "Helen Piper develops a compelling argument regarding the cultural relevance of television detectives, claiming that they have privileged roles as the 'voices' of dissent within society. Many of the programmes studied here chart sentiments of social loss or change and accommodate contemporary concerns. The discontented TV detective, Piper suggests, may serve to express a broader sense of cultural malaise." -- Back cover