The Thin Blue Line

Perhaps because it is in the shadow of it's other Elton - Atkinson collaboration, Blackadder, The Thin Blue Line has remained on of the most under-rated BBC programs of the mid 1990s.

Set in a small town, Gasforth, police station, this is the story of a stodgy old inspector as he tries to run the station in an ever changing world. His character is mild mannered and old fashioned, as opposed to the in-house CID, headed by boisterous detective inspector Grim.

The antics within the station and the conflict of opposing characters juxtapositioned are the basis of the laughs. Although it has a reputation of being wholesome, it is not completely founded, and is perhaps more based on the wholesome nature of Atkinson's character, as opposed to the cast in general. Well and cleverly scripted, it's, at least in part, reminiscent of Elton's previous work.