Taggart

Over the years, I've grown weary for the depressing drudge that British television companies churn out and have turned to American imports for entertainment. However, never once have I tired of watching a 'Taggart' episode as it's a show that's never been less that great.

Set in Glasgow, the shows sees Maryhill CID investigating the various homicide cases that cross their desks. The team was initially headed by DCI Jim Taggart (played by Mark McManus) with Mike Jardine and Jackie Reid as his underlings but, after McManus' death in 1994, Jardine took command which, in turn, passed onto DCI Matt Burke whose character is much like an incarnate of Taggart.

'Taggart' excels because the story lines are intriguing, continually leaving viewers guessing over the murderer's identity right to the end of the episode, and the characters are solid and engaging without unnecessarily delving deep into their personal lives (many detective and medical shows have been ruined by focusing too much on the characters' love lives and their sad, pathetic childhoods). There is also the dry Glasgow wit that provides an injection of humour to the show as, after all, there can't be many programmes out there where people are referred to as 'tinkies', 'baldie' or 'deid'! It's no surprise this is Britain's longest-running detective show and it's the strength of 'Taggart' that saw it survive after Mark McManus' death and, subsequently, the death of the title character. Long may it continue!

Yes, it's still called Taggart even though the man has been dead for more than 11 years. Jim Taggart was a grumpy old fashioned detective who got the job done but not until the mortuary was full !. His successors have fared no better. I loved the fact that his boss Detective Chief Superintendent McVitie was know as ' The Biscuit' Taggart was replaced by his protégé Michael Jardine who was nothing like a Detective I have ever seen. The present incumbent, Matt Burke is more in the Jim Taggart mode. For the past 15 years the female lead has been Blythe Duff. More recent additions have been DI Robbie Ross and DC Stuart Fraser. This makes one officer for each rank, more sheriffs than cowboys really. None the less, a great Police drama.

Taggart is total murder fantasy land.Lord knows what the body count is for all the series but it must be substantial.It is usually written to a formula of a whodunnit with one grisly murder following another before the killer is revealed(usually predictable). Mark McManus, who played the part of Jim Taggart up until his untimely death,was quite remarkable. He must have been one of the stiffest actors ever, more wooden than a Californian Redwood. Ironically though, he was perfect for the part of the gruff detective with no time for small talk. The show and its formula became such a brand that it kept the name even after McManus and the character of Taggart both passed away.Every possible angle in the twilight world of homicide seems to have been covered but still they manage to come up with different stories though these are appearing more laboured in recent years despite being superb entertainment. So Taggart continues. Who could imagine Kojak without Kojak or Columbo without Columbo ? As long as there are murders in Maryhill Taggart's old colleagues will have a place.

Probably the best detective-show in the world, it is even better than "Rejseholdet". The very best thing about Taggart is probably that you never know who the criminal is until 5 minutes before the credits, so it is intensely thrilling to the very last minute. Another remarkable feature is the constant focus on the personality of the men and women of the Maryhill police, they never end up as boring detective-robots, the show even allows their personal troubles to play a part in the plot. Another thing I like about Taggart is the way that twice (in the parts, I've watched) they borrow the outlines of another story - ex. Treasure Island by R.L. Stevenson. It adds a unique taste to the plot and makes you wonder, whether the Taggart-plot will end similar to the plot in the other story, but it never does. Finally I just have to emphasize the unique dialect spoken in the show. It is FANTASTIC!!

Taggart is definitely the best of these British murder mystery police shows. Inspector Morse is good, but Taggart takes the cake due to its huge body count and fantastic Scottish accents. The body count is the major thing lacking in series like Morse and the woeful Inspector Wexford. With Taggart, we are barely given a chance to come up with a suspect for one murder and suddenly someone else has copped it and throws a spanner in the works. Excellent show.