Waking the Dead is a British television crime drama series produced by the BBC featuring a team of CID police officers, a psychological profiler and a forensic scientist. A pilot episode was transmitted in September 2000 and there have been a total of six series, with the latest concluding in February 2007. Each story is split into two hour-long episodes, shown on consecutive nights on BBC One. A third series episode won an International Emmy Award in 2004. The programme is also shown on BBC America in the United States as well as the Nine Network in Australia, though the BBC America showings are edited to allow for more commercials. Older series are occasionally shown on public television stations in the United States. A seventh series concluded filming in November for Spring 2008 broadcast.[1]
The programme follows the work of a special police team who investigate "cold cases", usually murders that took place a number of years ago and were never solved. The team uses evidence which has just come to light, as well as modern technology to examine previous evidence. Trevor Eve portrays the workaholic and often eccentric Peter Boyd around whom plotlines are often centered. As the series has progressed, storylines have focused on the personal lives of the characters as well as the criminal investigations (for example, Boyd's temper control in "Anger Management").
Characters
Main characters
Detective Superintendent Peter Boyd (Trevor Eve) — The head of the Cold Case Unit, Boyd has a unique style of policing (not least shouting at and physically assaulting suspects in the interview room). His involvement in the CCU stems from the unexplained disappearance of his young son in the 1990s.[2] Though sometimes appearing detached, Boyd is close to his team, particularly Mel Silver, whose death still haunts him two years later. He mentioned in series 1 he was married but no explanation to what happened. Another aspect of Boyd's character which has occasionally compromised his impartiality is his weakness for attractive women, at least one of whom turned out to be implicated in a murder investigated by the team.
Psychological profiler Dr. Grace Foley (Sue Johnston) — Grace has nearly 30 years experience in her field, originally entering the force as forensic profiler. Her presence on the Unit provides a rational counter to Boyd's dogmatic and somewhat unorthodox methods but she enjoys a close working relationship with him, often engaging in witty banter with him. In the pilot she says that "she has kids to go home to", but in the resulting series it's clear that she never married and does not have children. In series 5 it is revealed that she fell in love with the married officer in charge of her first case and fell pregnant. He later died in a car crash, with the result that Grace had an abortion.
Detective Inspector Spencer Jordan (Wil Johnson) — Spencer works closely alongside Boyd in many cases, often joining him in "good-cop-bad-cop" routines in the interview room. Before joining the CCU, Spencer worked for the Atomic Energy Constabulary. His partner from that job shot him in "Cold Fusion". After he had returned to work and his wound had healed, he got a tattoo around the scar, which Grace suggested was a way of coping with the ordeal.
Detective Sergeant Stella Goodman (Félicité du Jeu, 2005 – present) — Stella joined the CCU as the permanent replacement for Mel in "Black Run" and became good friends with Spencer. Boyd was initially hostile towards her but eventually came to accept her. This trust was betrayed in "Cold Fusion" when it was revealed she had been (unwittingly) sending information on the Unit to her godfather. By the beginning of "Wren Boys", the team's confidence in her seemed to be fully restored.
Forensic Pathologist Eve Lockhart (Tara Fitzgerald, 2007) — Eve took over the lab from Felix and was already firmly entrenched in her work at the beginning of "Wren Boys", her first episode. Eve's career has allowed her to accumulate a body farm bringing a unique approach to her work.
Former characters
Detective Sergeant Amelia "Mel" Silver[3] (Claire Goose, 2000 – 2004) — Much like Grace, Mel freely questions Boyd if she believes he is looking in the wrong direction in a case. She was close to everyone on the team, especially Frankie. She was killed in "Shadowplay" and appeared in archive footage in "Towers of Silence". In the sixth series, her death came back to haunt the Cold Case Unit with a mysterious pendant being sent to the office, with the sender claiming it belonged to Mel. It subsequently emerged that she was secretly working on a case with an American 'war' expert, this is explained in 'Yahrzeit'.
Forensic pathologist and scientist Frankie Wharton (Holly Aird, 2000 – 2004) — Frankie took a conscientious approach to her job and was good friends with Mel. After Mel's death, Frankie left the CCU to return to research. Actress Holly Aird left the programme due to her pregnancy.
Forensic pathologist and scientist Felix Gibson (Esther Hall, 2005) — Felix took over the lab after Frankie's departure and, like her predecessor, would leave the office to join her colleagues in the field. She was an employee of the Home Office, and would not hesitate to stand up to Boyd. Esther Hall played the role for one series before leaving. It is currently unknown why the character left.
Detective Sergeant Andrea Stephenson (Georgia Mackenzie, 2005) — Appeared in "Towers of Silence". She was drafted into the unit from Kent CID because she had previously investigated a case linked to the one the team reopened in that story.
The first series secured strong ratings, with "Burn Out, part 1" receiving 8.4m viewers and a 38% share.[4] Persistently high ratings meant the programme was recommissioned each year for either the summer or winter schedule. The 2007 series began with strong ratings, with "Wren Boys, part 1" achieving 9.2m viewers and a 35.2% share.[5] The second part dropped to 8.6m but still gained a 33% share.[6] Following the successful transmission of the third series and an International Emmy Award nomination, a further two series were commissioned with the episode numbers expanded from four to six.[7]Waking the Dead won an International Emmy Award the following year for "Multistorey" written by Ed Whitmore and directed by Bob Bierman.[8]
DVD releases
The first five series have been released on region 2 by 2 entertain Ltd under the BBC DVD banner. Region 1 is distributed by BBC Video and region 4 by Roadshow.
