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''Bergerac'' is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine ...

television series. Set in

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label=Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependencies, Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west F ...

, it ran from 18 October 1981 to 26 December 1991. Produced by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

in association with the Australian

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...

, and first screened on

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

, it stars

John Nettles John Vivian Drummond Nettles, OBE, (born 11 October 1943) is an English actor and author. He is best known for his starring roles as detectives in the crime drama television series '' Bergerac'' (1981–1991) in the title role, and ''Midsomer M ...

as the title character Jim Bergerac, who is initially a detective sergeant in Le Bureau des Étrangers ("The Foreigners' Office", a fictional department dealing with non-Jersey residents), within the

States of Jersey Police The States of Jersey Police (Jèrriais: ''La Police d's Êtats d'Jèrri''; french: Police des États de Jersey) or States Police are a paid police force in the Bailiwick of Jersey. Alongside the unpaid Honorary Police, the States Police make up th ...

, but later leaves the force and becomes a

private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

. Westward Studios executive producer Brian Constantine said the Bergerac reboot was in the final stages of development, possibly airing 2024.

Background

The series ran from 1981 to 1991. It was created by producer

Robert Banks Stewart Robert Banks Stewart (16 July 1931 – 14 January 2016) was a Scottish screenwriter, television producer and former journalist. He was sometimes credited as Robert Stewart early in his career. Banks Stewart contributed extensively to drama for th ...

after an earlier detective series, '' Shoestring,'' starring

Trevor Eve Trevor John Eve (born 1 July 1951) is an English film and television actor. In 1979 he gained fame as the eponymous lead in the detective series ''Shoestring'' and is also known for his role as Detective Superintendent Peter Boyd in BBC televi ...

, came to an abrupt end. Like ''Shoestring'', the series begins with a man returning to work after a particularly bad period in his life: Eddie Shoestring from a nervous breakdown; Jim Bergerac from

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

and from a crushed and badly-broken leg. ''Bergerac'' sometimes deals with controversial topics; for example, when an old man is unmasked as a Nazi war criminal, his age raised various moral dilemmas. Supernatural elements occasionally appear in the series, and some episodes end with unpleasant twists, as in "Offshore Trades" and "A Hole In The Bucket". The final episode filmed was the 1991 Christmas Special titled "All for Love", set partly in Bath. The final scene provides a strong hint about Bergerac's future, after Charlie Hungerford recommends Bergerac for a new position heading an expanded Bureau des Étrangers covering the whole of the Channel Islands following its success in Jersey. The show is repeated on channels such as

Alibi An alibi (from the Latin, '' alibī'', meaning "somewhere else") is a statement by a person, who is a possible perpetrator of a crime, of where they were at the time a particular offence was committed, which is somewhere other than where the crim ...

and

Drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

. On 24 February 2014, the

...
started a rerun of the series on daytime afternoons on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

. The repeats concluded with series 3 to avoid showing the

Haut de la Garenne The Jersey Accommodation and Activity Centre is a building just north of Gorey in the parish of Saint Martin, Jersey, in the Channel Islands. It was formerly known as the Industrial School, the Jersey Home for Boys, and Haut de la Garenne. It ...

location.

Episodes

Main cast

as Jim Bergerac (Series 1-9) *

Terence Alexander Terence Joseph Alexander (11 March 1923 – 28 May 2009) was an English film and television actor, best known for his role as Charlie Hungerford in the British TV drama ''Bergerac (TV series), Bergerac'', which ran for nine series on BBC One be ...

as Charlie Hungerford (Series 1-9) *

Sean Arnold Sean Arnold (30 January 1941 – 15 April 2020) was an English actor. For his role as Harry Fisher in the BBC soap opera '' Doctors'', he was nominated for Villain of the Year at the 2005 British Soap Awards. Arnold was born in January 1941 ...

as Barney Crozier (Series 1-8) *

Cécile Paoli Cécile Paoli is a French actress who is also well known on British television from the series '' Sharpe'', '' Bergerac'', and ''Holby City''. She starred as Françoise in a four-part television BBC mini-series in 1980 of the H.E. Bates novel, ...

as Francine Leland (Series 1) *

Deborah Grant Deborah Grant (born Deborah Jane Snelling; 22 February 1947) is an English actress. Between 1981 and 1991, she played Deborah Bergerac in the BBC television detective series '' Bergerac''. Since 2007, she has appeared in the sitcom ''Not Going ...

as Deborah Bergerac (Series 1-9) *

Annette Badland Annette Badland (born 26 August 1950) is an English actress known for a wide range of roles on television, radio, stage, and film. She is best known for her roles as Margaret Blaine in the BBC science fiction series ''Doctor Who'', Mrs. Glen ...

as Charlotte (Series 1-3) *

Celia Imrie Celia Diana Savile Imrie (born 15 July 1952) is an English actress and author. She was described in 2003 as one of the most successful British actresses of recent decades. She is best known for her film roles, including the '' Bridget Jones'' f ...

as Marianne Bellshade (Series 2) *

Louise Jameson Louise Jameson (born 20 April 1951) is an English actress with a wide variety of television and theatre credits. Her roles on television have included playing Leela in ''Doctor Who'' (1977–1978), Anne Reynolds in ''The Omega Factor'' (1979), ...

as Susan Young (Series 4-8) *

Thérèse Liotard Thérèse Liotard (born 6 May 1949 in Lille, Nord, France) is a French actress best known for her role in the 1990 film '' My Father's Glory (La Gloire de mon père, de Marcel Pagnol)''. She is known on British television for her appearance in th ...

as Danielle Aubry (Series 8-9)

Lead character and casting

Jim Bergerac is a complex character, presented by the series as a somewhat unorthodox police officer. He is recovering from

, partly resulting from an unpleasant

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

. A Jersey native, he returns to the island at the start of the series after recuperating in England from ill health,

dipsomania Dipsomania is a historical term describing a medical condition involving an uncontrollable craving for alcohol or drugs. In the 19th century, the term dipsomania was used to refer to a variety of alcohol-related problems, most of which are known ...

and major surgery on his leg following an accident caused by his drinking heavily prior to an attempted arrest. The accident is shown in episode two as a flashback: Bergerac was swigging brandy during a

surveillance Surveillance is the monitoring of behavior, many activities, or information for the purpose of information gathering, influencing, managing or directing. This can include observation from a distance by means of electronic equipment, such as c ...

when he noticed his suspect and gave chase. He attempted to prevent the man's escape by leaping onto his boat. Under the influence of his drinking, he slipped back and his left leg was crushed against the harbour wall by the boat. As a result of this accident, Bergerac begins episode one deemed unfit to serve, but he seeks to remain on the police force. While his status is being considered, he is key to solving a case with old colleagues in the recently formed "Bureau des Étrangers"; he is then posted to that unit and does well. By the end of the series, Bergerac has become a private detective. As an aspect of his unorthodox behaviour, Bergerac drives a burgundy 1947

Triumph Roadster The Triumph Roadster is a roadster produced by Britain's Standard Motor Company from 1946 until 1949. It was first available as the Triumph 1800 Roadster (18TR) from 1946 to 1948 and then as the Triumph 2000 Roadster (TRA) from 1948 to 1949. Tr ...

instead of an approved police vehicle. According to a 2001 interview with Robert Banks Stewart, John Nettles was cast on his insistence. He said, "A programme like that would never get made today without having a household name, but back then I fought to have John Nettles play Bergerac because he was right for it."

Romance

Bergerac's relationships with women are a frequent theme, often as a

subplot In fiction, a subplot is a secondary strand of the plot that is a supporting side story for any story or for the main plot. Subplots may connect to main plots, in either time and place or thematic significance. Subplots often involve supporting c ...

to the main crime investigation. Bergerac's girlfriends include Francine Leland (

) (who had been the fiancée of a dead colleague), Marianne Bellshade (

), Susan Young (

) and Danielle Aubry (

). He has several encounters with ex-wife Deborah (

), who has custody of their daughter Kim (Lindsay Heath).

Other characters

The main supporting character was Jim Bergerac's former father-in-law Charlie Hungerford (played by

). Charlie was a lovable rogue and would-be tycoon often involved in shady dealings, but paradoxically something of an innocent. Bergerac usually had a good relationship with him, although in the first episode, "Picking It Up", they were not on the best of terms. Charlie was involved in all but two of the 87 episodes. Other regular characters in the series included Bergerac's ex-wife, Deborah (

), and his boss, Superintendent Barney Crozier (

), initially an inspector (promoted from sergeant immediately before the first episode) and later chief inspector. Bergerac had several sidekicks who were generally detective constables. Bergerac had an ongoing flirtatious relationship with glamorous jewel thief Philippa Vale (

Liza Goddard Louise Elizabeth Goddard (born 20 January 1950) professionally known as Liza Goddard, is an English television and stage actress, best known for her work in the 1970s and 1980s. Early life Goddard was born in Smethwick, Staffordshire.Before 1 ...

), who went by the nickname of the Ice Maiden (Series 3: "Ice Maiden", Series 4: "Return of the Ice Maiden", Series 5: "SPARTA", and Series 7: "Old Acquaintance"). Many well-known actors had guest roles in ''Bergerac'', either before or after rising to fame. These include

Philip Glenister Philip Haywood Glenister (born 10 February 1963) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in the BBC series ''Life on Mars'' (2006–2007) and its sequel '' Ashes to Ashes'' (2008–2010). He also played DCI William ...

Julian Glover Julian Wyatt Glover (born 27 March 1935) is an English classical actor with many stage, television, and film roles since commencing his career in the 1950s. He is a recipient of the Laurence Olivier Award and has performed many times for th ...

Connie Booth Connie Booth (born 2 December 1940) is an American-born actress and writer. She has appeared in several British television programmes and films, including her role as Polly Sherman on BBC Two's ''Fawlty Towers'', which she co-wrote with her t ...

Ray Winstone Raymond Andrew Winstone (; born 19 February 1957) is an English television, stage and film actor with a career spanning five decades. Having worked with many prominent directors, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, Winstone is perha ...

Prunella Scales Prunella Margaret Rumney West Scales (''née'' Illingworth; born 22 June 1932) is an English former actress, best known for playing Sybil Fawlty, wife of Basil Fawlty (John Cleese), in the BBC comedy '' Fawlty Towers'', her nomination for a ...

Louise Lombard Louise Lombard (born Louise Marie Perkins; 13 September 1970) is an English actress. She is known for her roles as Evangeline Eliott in the BBC drama series '' The House of Eliott'' (1991–94) and Sofia Curtis in the CBS drama series ''CSI: ...

Ronald Pickup Ronald Alfred Pickup (7 June 1940 – 24 February 2021) was an English actor. He was active in television, film, and theatre, beginning with a 1964 appearance in ''Doctor Who''. Theatre critic Michael Billington described him as "a terrific sta ...

Norman Wisdom Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, (4 February 1915 – 4 October 2010) was an English actor, comedian, musician and singer best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring a hapless onscreen character often called Norman ...

, Charles Gray,

John Forgeham John Henry George Forgeham (14 May 1941 – 10 March 2017) was an English actor known for his television work, notably the role of businessman Frank Laslett in the ITV series ''Footballers' Wives''. Born in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, For ...

Bernard Hepton Francis Bernard Heptonstall (19 October 1925 – 27 July 2018) better known by the stage name Bernard Hepton, was an English theatre director and actor. Best known for his stage work and television roles in teleplays and series, he also appeare ...

, Bill Nighy, and Steve McFadden.

Locations

The series played heavily on its Jersey location. The early storylines were usually in and around Jersey with short scenes shot in England and France. In later episodes the action strayed further away from Jersey and was increasingly based in France. As Jersey is a small island, most of the filming locations there can be tracked down with ease. Jim Bergerac and Susan Young's flat was located just above St Aubin, a few doors along from the Somerville Hotel; part of the interior was shot within another flat at

Gorey Gorey () is a market town in north County Wexford, Ireland. It is beside the main M11 Dublin to Wexford road. The town is also connected to the railway network along the same route. Local newspapers include the ''Gorey Guardian''. As a growi ...

, six miles away. Jim's original home in the first few series was submerged when the States of Jersey flooded the valley to create the Queen's Valley reservoir in 1991. Plans for this reservoir were referred to at the start of series four, when Bergerac was forced to seek new accommodation because of them, in the process meeting an estate agent who became his lover. Haut de la Garenne Saint Martin Jersey 4

Haut de la Garenne Saint Martin Jersey 4

One of the main locations of the series achieved later notoriety. The Bureau des Étrangers from the third season onwards was located at

, a former

children's home Residential child care communities or children's homes are a type of residential care, which refers to long-term care given to children who cannot stay in their birth family home. There are two different approaches towards residential care: The fam ...

which in February 2008 became the focus of the

Jersey child abuse investigation 2008 An investigation into historic child abuse in Jersey started in the spring of 2007. Before that, social worker Simon Bellwood had made a complaint about a Dickensian' system" where children as young as 11 were routinely locked up for 24 hours or ...

. The building, on Mont de la Garenne overlooking

Mont Orgueil Mont Orgueil (French for 'Mount Pride') is a castle in Jersey that overlooks the harbour of Gorey. It is also called Gorey Castle by English-speakers, and ''lé Vièr Châté'' (the Old Castle) by Jèrriais-speakers.The castle is first called 'M ...

and the Royal Bay of

Grouville Grouville is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey in the Channel Islands. The parish is around east of St Helier. The parish covers a surface area of 4,354 vergées (7.8 km²). The parish includes the south-east portion of the main island o ...

, ceased being a children's home in 1983 (before the series started filming there) and was re-opened as Jersey's first and only

youth hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ba ...

. The original Bureau in the TV series was located in St Helier's Royal Square, but filming there became difficult after the first series as the pretence of filming a documentary series was spoilt by public recognition of Bergerac's Triumph. Windward House Jersey

Windward House, Le Mont Sohier, St Brelade (built in 1924, since demolished c.2010) with lush grounds overlooking Ouaisné and St Brelade's Bay, was a stunning location used internally and externally throughout all nine series and the Christmas specials. This pink-and-grey building with white pillared entrance first appeared in series 1, episode 6, "Portrait of Yesterday", as the home and wedding venue of the incidental characters. Windward House then reappeared from series 2, episode 1, as Charlie Hungerford's main residence, where he hosted a large garden fête, and then in almost every episode of the show—used either as part of the central plot or as a backdrop for family gatherings, drinks parties, business meetings, barbecues, marquee events, etc. The entire house was used over time, particularly the living room with French windows, dining room, conservatory and long gallery hallways. External filming regularly included the gardens, paddock, driveways, fruit gardens, greenhouse, cider press and rockery. Noirmont Manor, Noirmont, was Charlie Hungerford's home throughout series one. As the series ran for a decade, directors found it increasingly difficult to find locations which had not been overused. While promoting his film ''

White Noise In signal processing, white noise is a random signal having equal intensity at different frequencies, giving it a constant power spectral density. The term is used, with this or similar meanings, in many scientific and technical disciplines, ...

'' in an interview with '' Xpose'' magazine, director

Geoffrey Sax Geoffrey Sax (sometimes credited as Geoff Sax) is a British film and television director, who has worked on a variety of drama productions in both the United Kingdom and the United States. Life and career He began his directing career in the lat ...

described how he made an effort to find new locations, only to return for the actual shoot to find camera tripod marks in the ground, another director having shot there in the meantime. They became tourist attractions, with signs advertising "Visit Bergerac's Location" or "See Bergerac's Car". Plot lines occasionally took the action onto the British mainland, particularly London, and Richmond Riverside figured prominently.

Home media

''Bergerac'' was made available on DVD by 2 Entertain / Cinema Club. The first series was released on 8 May 2006, including audio commentaries on three episodes. Mistakes occurred in the supply of the source material for the DVD releases, which meant the episodes of Series 1 and 6 were edited versions broadcast originally on UK daytime television. This was amended for ''Bergerac: The Complete Collection'', a 27-DVD box set released in 2009 which includes all episodes in their full length. In June 2021, the first two series became available on

BritBox BritBox is an online digital video subscription service, founded by BBC Studios and ITV plc, operating in nine countries across North America, Europe, Australia and South Africa.

and series 3 to series 9 with all the Christmas special episodes became available in October 2021. As of September 2021, seasons 1,2,3,5,6,7,8,9 were available to stream in the United States via Amazon Prime with a

BritBox BritBox is an online digital video subscription service, founded by BBC Studios and ITV plc, operating in nine countries across North America, Europe, Australia and South Africa.

subscription.

Theme music

The ''Bergerac'' theme music, composed by

George Fenton George Richard Ian Howe (born 19 October 1949), known professionally as George Fenton, is an English composer. Best known for his work writing film scores and music for television, he has received five Academy Award nominations, several Ivor No ...

, featured a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

and

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German ''Akkordeon'', from ''Akkord''—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed ...

refrain. In 1982, he won a BAFTA 'Best Original Television Music' award for the music. In 2018 a DJ known as

Youngr Youngr (Dario Younger Brigham-Bowes, also known as Dario Darnell) is a British singer, songwriter, producer and musician. The son of August Darnell (alias Kid Creole of Kid Creole and the Coconuts), he was born in Urmston, near Manchester, Engl ...

re-recorded the track, entitled ''Bergerac Remastered'', with a

video Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) syste ...

shot in locations around Jersey.

References

External links

''Bergerac'' on the BBC
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bergerac (Tv Series) 1981 British television series debuts 1991 British television series endings 1980s British crime drama television series 1980s British mystery television series 1980s British police procedural television series 1980s British workplace drama television series 1990s British crime drama television series 1990s British mystery television series BBC crime drama television shows BBC mystery television shows British detective television series Jersey in fiction English-language television shows Fictional British police detectives Television series by BBC Studios Television shows set in the British Isles