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IMDbPro

The Thin Blue Line

  • TV Series
  • 1995–19961995–1996
  • 30m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
7.3K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
4,510
313
The Thin Blue Line (1995)
ComedyCrime
Various mishaps at a police station in an English town. The main character is the anachronistic, yet charming and funny Inspector Fowler. CID foil to Fowler, Inspector Grim is a bumbling, se... Read allVarious mishaps at a police station in an English town. The main character is the anachronistic, yet charming and funny Inspector Fowler. CID foil to Fowler, Inspector Grim is a bumbling, seething idiot.Various mishaps at a police station in an English town. The main character is the anachronistic, yet charming and funny Inspector Fowler. CID foil to Fowler, Inspector Grim is a bumbling, seething idiot.
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
7.3K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
4,510
313
    • Ben Elton
  • Stars
    • Rowan Atkinson
    • Mina Anwar
    • James Dreyfus
    • Ben Elton
  • Stars
    • Rowan Atkinson
    • Mina Anwar
    • James Dreyfus
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 39User reviews
    • 3Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards

    Episodes14

    Browse episodes
    TopTop-rated

    Photos39

    Rowan Atkinson in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Kevin Allen, Mina Anwar, James Dreyfus, Serena Evans, David Haig, and Rudolph Walker in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Kevin Allen, Mina Anwar, James Dreyfus, Serena Evans, David Haig, and Rudolph Walker in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Kevin Allen, Mina Anwar, James Dreyfus, Serena Evans, David Haig, and Rudolph Walker in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Mark Addy, Kevin Allen, Mina Anwar, James Dreyfus, Serena Evans, David Haig, and Rudolph Walker in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Mark Addy, Mina Anwar, James Dreyfus, Serena Evans, David Haig, and Rudolph Walker in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Mina Anwar, and James Dreyfus in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Mina Anwar, and James Dreyfus in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson in The Thin Blue Line (1995)
    Rowan Atkinson, Kevin Allen, Mina Anwar, James Dreyfus, Serena Evans, David Haig, and Rudolph Walker in The Thin Blue Line (1995)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Rowan Atkinson
    Rowan Atkinson
    • Inspector Raymond Fowler
    Mina Anwar
    Mina Anwar
    • W.P.C. Maggie Habib
    James Dreyfus
    James Dreyfus
    • P.C. Kevin Goody
    Serena Evans
    Serena Evans
    • Sergeant Patricia Dawkins
    David Haig
    David Haig
    • D.I. Derek Grim
    Rudolph Walker
    Rudolph Walker
    • P.C. Frank Gladstone
    Kevin Allen
    Kevin Allen
    • D.C. Robert Kray
    Mark Addy
    Mark Addy
    • D.C. Gary Boyle
    Joy Brook
    • D.C. Crockett
    Lucy Robinson
    • Dame Cristabelle Wickham
    Gabrielle Blunt
    Gabrielle Blunt
    • Elderly Lady…
    Walter Sparrow
    Walter Sparrow
    • Elderly Man…
    Stephen Fry
    Stephen Fry
    • Brigadier Blaster Sump
    Owen Teale
    Owen Teale
    • Gary
    Sheila Gish
    Sheila Gish
    • Maeve the Sex Therapist
    Stephen Moore
    Stephen Moore
    • Ron
    Jean Ainslie
    • Elderly Lady
    Jonathan Cake
    Jonathan Cake
    • Stallion
      • Ben Elton
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The "Have You Seen This Man" poster seen on the wall behind Fowler's desk is a picture of Ben Elton the creator of the series.
    • Quotes

      Detective Inspector Derek Grim: 'cause you know what'll happen Raymond, don't you - it'll be your cock up - my arse!

    • Connections
      Featured in Comedy Connections: Not the Nine O'Clock News (2005)

    User reviews39

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Brilliant comedy by Ben Elton
    The Thin Blue Line is a very enjoyable comedy to watch due to the variety of different characters created by Ben Elton whom are extremely different to one another and also very funny in their own ways. The show is based in the fictional town of Gasforth which is suppose to be located around London.

    Inspector Fowler (played by Atkinson) is the well-spoken police officer who is best described by his girlfriend police Sargeant Dawkins as a "man who was born middle aged". Atkinson is superb in the role, and my favourite moments involving Inspector Fowler include his views and attitudes towards current society in which he would rather stay in his office and read a book whilst eating a chocolate frog than queueing up in the bank to renew his standing order. There are also great moments in the show when Fowler has to interact with other members of the police force including Constable Goody and Inspector Grimm.

    Inspector Grimm has to be the highlight of the show, he is played wonderfully by David Haig who unfortunately has not be on TV much after his excellent performance on this show. Grimm gets frustrated easily by Fowler, police work and anything in general. He works in CID in the Gasforth police station and yearns for real police work involving thugs and drug dealers. But in most cases he gets tricked by students who cause pranks during rag week, gets foiled in a honey trap operation which he took accountability for and becomes an undercover football fan where he arrests the football players rather than the fans. Inspector Grimm just cant take "fannying about".

    Another brilliant character is Constable Goody who joined the police force to "strut around in a nice uniform and stop crime". He unintentionally gets under Inspector Fowler's skin who finds him quite annoying. He also fancies the feminist Constable Maggie Habib, who he has no chance in winning over but still tries relentlessly to impress her.

    The show is worth checking out if you are a fan of British comedy and/or Rowan Atkinson and writer Ben Elton. Both seasons one and two are enjoyable with all episodes worth watching. My favourite episode is the finale to season two in which Fowler upsets Sargeant Dawkins after his terrible marriage proposal and he therefore is asked to come out on the pull by the other officers (a term Fowler is not familiar with). Also in the episode Inspector Grimm believes his time has come to be promoted in CID.
    helpful•6
    0
    • kishonadish
    • Jul 26, 2007

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 13, 1995 (United Kingdom)
      • United Kingdom
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Production companies
      • British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
      • Tiger Aspect Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • 30 minutes
      • Color
      • Stereo

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