The Bill

On 26 March 2010, ITV announced that it would be cancelling the series later that year after 26 years on air.[6][7] ITV said that this decision reflected the "changing tastes" of viewers.[8] The last episode of The Bill was filmed in June 2010 and broadcast on 31 August 2010[9] followed by a documentary titled Farewell The Bill.[10] Fans of the show started a 'Save the Bill' campaign on social networking website Facebook to persuade ITV to reconsider the cancellation,[11] and BBC Radio 1's Chris Moyles promoted the campaign on air.[12]

At the time the series ended in August 2010, The Bill was the United Kingdom's longest-running police drama and was among the longest-running of any British television series.[13] The series finale, entitled "Respect", was aired in two parts and was dedicated to "the men and women of the Metropolitan Police Service past and present".[14] The finale storyline concerned gang member Jasmine Harris being involved in the murder of fellow member Liam Martin who died in the arms of Inspector Smith after being stabbed. Jasmine is then gang raped because she talked to the police, and when Callum Stone found the person responsible he was held at gunpoint. Of the finale's title, executive producer Jonathan Young said "It's called "Respect" and we hope it will respect the heritage of the show". The finale episodes featured all the cast and the final scene was specially written so all cast members would be featured. Following the final episode, ITV aired a documentary entitled Farewell The Bill which featured interviews from past and present cast and crew members.[15] The finale was watched by 4.4 million viewers, with Farewell The Bill averaging 1.661 million viewers.[16]

On 17 April 2021, various media outlets began reporting that the series may be set for a reboot. Writer Simon Sansome was understood to have bought the rights to the original series, and was planning a revival, dubbed Sun Hill (as licensing meant the series could not be named The Bill once more), alongside Holby City creator and former EastEnders writer Tony McHale, who had previously written episodes of The Bill and one of its spin-offs, Beech is Back. Sansome had been in talks with various cast members during a 2020 reunion and discussed possible appearances for show legends Mark Wingett (Jim Carver), Trudie Goodwin (June Ackland) and Graham Cole (Tony Stamp). However, no official date had been set for a return, nor had the mooted Sun Hill project been picked up by any TV network.[17] On 18 April, Mark Wingett confirmed this on his Twitter account, stating they had been "approached" by production companies but the Sun Hill project had not been given the green light.[18]

Exterior of the Merton studio where The Bill was filmed from 1990.

Set of the CID office in the Merton studios (now Wimbledon Studios)

Throughout the series, there have been three filming locations for Sun Hill police station. From the first series, the police station consisted of a set of buildings in Artichoke Hill, Wapping, East London.[19] However, these buildings were next to the News International plant and during the winter of 1985–86 there was much industrial action which resulted in some altercations between the strikers and what they thought were the real police but were actually actors working on The Bill. Working conditions got so dire, that the production team realised they needed to find another base to set Sun Hill police station.[20]

The second location was an old record distribution depot in Barlby Road, North Kensington in North West London.[19] Filming began here in March 1987. In 1989, the owners of the Barlby Road site ordered The Bill out, due to their redevelopment plans for the area. After an extensive search, two sites were selected, the favourite being a disused hospital in Clapham. However, this fell through and the second option was chosen—an old wine distribution warehouse in Merton, South West London. The move was made in March 1990 and was disguised on screen by the 'ongoing' refurbishment of Sun Hill police station and then finally the explosion of a terrorist car-bomb in the station car-park, which ended up killing PC Ken Melvin.[21]

Filming for the series took place all over London, mainly in South London and particularly the London Borough of Merton, where the Sun Hill set was located.[2] Locations used when the show was filmed on a housing estate included:

• Cambridge Estate, in Kingston, south-west London[22]
• High Path Estate, in South Wimbledon, south-west London (approx. 10-minute walk from the Sun Hill set)
• Alton Estate, in Roehampton, south-west London
• Phipps Bridge, Mitcham[23]
• Roundshaw Estate in Wallington, London[24]
• Sutton Estate, which includes Durand Close in Carshalton, where a housing block regularly used by The Bill for filming was demolished in November 2009.[25]

Scenes were often filmed in east London, most notably the London Docklands,[26] with other scenes filmed in Tooting,[27] Greenwich[28] and Croydon[29] among other locations around London.

The Bill's set of "Sun Hill" police station remained until mid 2013 when it was finally dismantled.

• Brockwell Lido, SE24 0PA: "Sun Hill Boulevard" series 15, 31 August 1999
• Former Salvation Army Men's Hostel (now demolished), SE16 3FE: "Lock In" series 15, 9 December 1999
• Crossness Pumping Station, SE2 9AQ: "Haunted" series 15, 23 December 1999
• Centre Court Shopping Centre, SW19 8YA: "All Fall Down, Part 1" series 16, 27 October 2000
• The Gorbals, Glasgow (now demolished): "Demolition Girl", series 24, 21 August 2008 [30]

Metropolitan Police and station coat of arms from the Sun Hill set

The Bill is set in and around Sun Hill police station, in the fictional "Canley Borough Operational Command Unit" in East London. Geoff McQueen, creator of The Bill, claimed that he named Sun Hill after a street name in his home town of Royston, Hertfordshire.[2]

The fictional Sun Hill suburb is located in the fictional London borough of Canley in the East End, north of the River Thames (Canley is a real suburb in Coventry). The Borough of Canley is approximately contiguous to the real-life London Borough of Tower Hamlets,[31] and in the first few years of The Bill, Sun Hill police station was actually stated as being located in Wapping in Tower Hamlets. Sun Hill has a London E1 postcode (the 'address' of Sun Hill police station is given as '2 Sun Hill Road, Sun Hill, Canley E1 4 km'[32]), which corresponds to the real-life areas of Whitechapel and Stepney.

When filming The Bill, some outdoor scenes were re-enacted indoors with microphones surrounding the actors and the extra sounds being "dubbed" on later. Some of the more aggressive scenes were also filmed indoors either for dubbing or safety reasons.[33] The sirens used in the series were added later in the dubbing suite as The Bill did not have permission to use them while on location. However,[34] the police uniforms used in the series were genuine, again making The Bill unique amongst police dramas.[2][35][36] When the series ended, London's Metropolitan Police Service, after talks with the production company, bought 400 kilograms of police-related paraphernalia, including uniforms and body armour, to prevent them falling into the hands of criminals after the programme's production ceased.[37]

The Bill is unique amongst police dramas in that it takes a serial format, focusing on the work and lives of a single shift of police officers, rather than on one particular area of police work. Also unique is that The Bill adapted to this format after several series, whereas comparable series started with the serial format.[38]

During its initial broadcast, The Bill was always shown on ITV. In 2009, STV, ITV's regional franchise in Central and Northern Scotland, opted out of broadcasting the series along with a number of other dramas, a decision that later became the subject of legal proceedings between STV and the main ITV network. The legal dispute was settled on 27 April 2011, with ITV receiving £18 million from STV.[39]

Aside from repeats of episodes on ITV3, which occurred on the original week of their broadcast, the show has regularly been repeated on other digital stations. Re-runs of the series began on 1 November 1992, when new digital channel UKTV Gold began broadcasting. The channel broadcast repeats of the series for nearly 16 years, until 6 October 2008, when the channel was given a revamp by the owners of the network. During the 16-year period, re-runs of the series covered every episode broadcast between 16 October 1984, and 8 March 2007.[40] On 7 October 2008, UKTV launched a new British drama channel, Alibi, and from this point on, episodes of the series were broadcast at 8 am. Alibi broadcast episodes until 23 December 2009, when the show was taken from the channel's schedule due to poor viewer feedback. During the 14 months that the show broadcast on Alibi, the channel covered all of the episodes broadcast between 25 August 1998 and 27 February 2002. On 27 January 2010, UKTV relocated The Bill to one of its more recent entertainment channels, Watch, which began by airing the episode "Sweet Revenge", broadcast on 21 March 2007, continuing in broadcast order, carrying on from where UKTV Gold, had finished. Through the course of the year, the channel continued to broadcast episodes from the latter years of the show, concluding in November 2010 with the episode "Conviction: Judgement Day", broadcast on 16 July 2009. Following a short break from the network, the series returned in December 2010, beginning with Episode #001, broadcast on 28 February 2002. This continued on from the broadcast order of episodes repeated on Alibi, carrying on from where the network had finished. As of April 2012, Watch had repeated every single episode from 28 February 2002 to 24 February 2005, and was to begin airing episodes from March 2005. In July 2013 the show started to be broadcast by UKTV channel Drama, starting with episodes from 1998.[41] On 14 August 2017, Drama started showing The Bill from the beginning. As of 6 November, Drama jumped approximately a decade.

The Bill has been broadcast in over 55 countries.[2][42]

• In Australia, The Bill was shown on the ABC. The final episode was shown on 16 October 2010, with Farewell The Bill shown the following week on 23 October.[43] On Wednesday 3 February 2016, ABC commenced repeated the series from the pilot episode until midway through series 7 in an afternoon weekday timeslot, with early-morning repeats. The ABC does not have the rights to show series 8 to the last episode of series 26.
• On pay television services in Australia and New Zealand, older episodes were previously broadcast on UKTV. The Bill was re-aired on ABC TV from series 1 from July 2017 in the 5.00 am time slot.
• In Denmark, the series was retitled "Lov og Uorden" (Law and Disorder). Two episodes of the series were broadcast every afternoon on TV2 Charlie.[44]
• In Ireland, the series was broadcast on RTÉ television,[45] first starting in the early 1990s on RTÉ Two, and in the early 2000s RTÉ began broadcasting it on RTÉ One at 5:30 pm each weekday, splitting hour long episodes into two-part half-hour episodes. RTÉ discontinued this in 2009, moving the show to Monday Nights on RTÉ Two. RTÉ showed episodes from 2005. In 2010, RTÉ moved the show from its prime time slot on RTÉ Two to a midnight slot on RTÉ One on Thursday nights, but the show remained on the RTÉ Player.[46]
• In Sweden, the series was retitled "Sunhills polisstation" (Sun Hill Police Station) by broadcaster TV4. In 2011, it was broadcast daily on Kanal 9 in the early afternoon with a repeat early the following morning.[47]

The Bill broadcast two live episodes. The first was in 2003 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the pilot, Woodentop.[69] The second was in 2005 to celebrate the 50th birthday of ITV.[70]

The live episode in 2003 was episode No. 162, originally broadcast on 30 October 2003 at 8 pm, and produced with a crew of 200 staff including seven camera crews.[3][69] It was reported to be the first live television broadcast of a programme where filming was not largely confined to a studio.[69] Detective Constable Juliet Becker and Constable Cathy Bradford are being held hostage by a man called Mark in a van in the station yard. Bradford raises the custody suite alarm. When the rest of the station arrive outside, Mark makes it known that he intends to kill Becker. The police get permission to break into the carrier, only to find that Juliet has been stabbed. She is rushed to hospital, but attempts to resuscitate her fail. The episode was watched by around 10 million viewers.[70] This special was later released onto DVD in United Kingdom 31 October 2011, as part of Network DVD's "Soap Box: Volume 1".[71]

The live episode in 2005 was episode No. 349, broadcast on 22 September 2005 at 8 pm. In this episode, it was revealed that PC Gabriel Kent had assumed a false identity. It is revealed that he has been operating under his brother's name and is, in fact, David Kent. In this episode the "real" Gabriel Kent arrived in Sun Hill to meet his mother, Sergeant June Ackland. In this episode, Sun Hill police station is hosting a reception party and, as the police arrive, they are taken hostage by a distraught father whose son was killed by a stolen car. A struggle ensues in which a shot is fired, alerting others in the building the incident. After an evacuation of the station, Superintendent Amanda Prosser encourages PC Dan Casper to attempt to overpower the man. As he does so, both Casper and the real Gabriel Kent are shot. The real Gabriel Kent is rushed to hospital where the false Gabriel Kent threatens him to keep the identity switch a secret.

A series of special episodes titled The Bill Uncovered were produced to reflect the stories of select characters and events. The first was The Bill Uncovered : Des and Reg (2004) – The story of the unusual friendship between PC Des Taviner and PC Reg Hollis, traversing their history from Des's first day at Sun Hill to his death in a Sun Hill cell.[72] The second was The Bill Uncovered : Kerry's Story (2004), the story of PC Kerry Young, who met her death outside Sun Hill.[73] The third special was The Bill Uncovered : Jim's Story (2005), the story of DC Jim Carver – from his first day at Sun Hill (in the pilot "Woodentop"). The last was The Bill Uncovered: On The Front Line (2006), in which Superintendent Adam Okaro recounts the extraordinary events that have surrounded Sun Hill over his time in charge.[74] A review of the second of these specials criticised the "increasingly degenerative plotlines" of the series, and characterised the special as a "cheerless outing" covering The Bill's "travesties of plot".[73] All four editions of The Bill Uncovered were released on DVD in Australia as part of The Bill Series 26 DVD boxset, 30 April 2014.[75]

In 2008 a special programme called "The Bill Made Me Famous" in light of the show's 25th anniversary was broadcast, which saw former actors and special guest stars telling their accounts of working on the show and how it changed their lives. It included old favourites such as Billy Murray (DS Don Beech), Chris Ellison (DI Frank Burnside) and popular TV personalities such as Paul O'Grady and Les Dennis.

A two-part crossover episode with the German series Leipzig Homicide, entitled "Proof of Life", was broadcast in November 2008.[76] This included scenes filmed in Germany; other countries in which episodes were filmed included France (Foreign Body, 1999) and Australia (Beech on the Run, 2001).

Following The Bill's final episode, on 31 August 2010, a one-hour special titled Farewell The Bill was broadcast.[77] The special explored the history of the series and gave viewers a behind the scenes look at the filming of the last episode.[77] This special was later released on DVD in Australia on 5 October 2011, along with the last two-part episode "Respect".[78]

The following list contains characters whose roles transformed the series, and in some cases led to spin-offs, as well as characters who hold individual accolades for their time on the series. An expanded version is available at List of characters of The Bill.

• Billy Murray played Don Beech from 1995 to 2004. The character was a corrupt detective sergeant from 1995 to 2000 whose notoriety in the role led to its own scandal, with the defining moment being his killing of fellow DS John Boulton. Beech later featured in a 90-minute special Beech on the Run, filmed in Australia, and led to the six-part Beech is Back spin-off, both of which aired in 2001. His final stint on the series came in 2004 when he made six appearances as a prisoner turned informant as part of an elaborate scheme that saw him escape from prison
• Tony O'Callaghan played Sergeant Matt Boyden from 1991 to 2003. Boyden's murder at the hands of his daughter's boyfriend formed the basis for the pilot of spin-off M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team.
• Diane Parish as DC Eva Sharpe was the only character to appear as a regular on both The Bill (2002-2004) and the MIT spin-off (2005). A handful of the cast from spring 2003, when the MIT pilot aired, appeared in the spin-off - but only for that one episode.
• Christopher Ellison played Frank Burnside from 1984 to 2000. Burnside was a recurring character as a DS in the early years before becoming Sun Hill's DI in 1988, a role he held for five years. After a five-year absence, Burnside returned as a DCI with the National Crime Squad before being written out in 2000 to star in his own spin-off, Burnside, however it lasted for just one series before being axed. Burnside made many enemies both at Sun Hill and with the villains, indeed Chief Superintendent Pearson tried to frame Burnside in a corruption inquiry.[80]
• Mark Wingett played Jim Carver from 1983 to 2005. Jim was the central protagonist in the pilot Woodentop, the episode centred around his first day at Sun Hill as a probationary PC. A promotion to DC in 1988 saw him in CID until 1999, when he was transferred back to uniform so the series could highlight the real-life Metropolitan Police's controversial tenure system that saw officers moved back to uniform if they hadn't been considered for promotion after ten years in the same role. Addiction to alcohol and a marriage that saw him domestically abused came before his return to DC in 2004, with a gambling addiction and marriage to long-term friend June Ackland coming before his exit in 2005. He came back as a DS in 2007 for June's final three episodes, revealing he moved to Manchester after leaving Sun Hill.
• Trudie Goodwin portrayed June Ackland from 1983 to 2007. She initially appeared as a WPC in the pilot who puppywalked Jim Carver on his first day on the job. She was promoted to Sergeant in 1996 and held that rank until her exit in 2007. Her time in the role broke a world record for the longest time an actor had portrayed a police officer.[81][82][83]
• Eric Richard played Sergeant Bob Cryer from 1984 to 2001, making him the longest serving sergeant on the series. The character was axed in a plot that saw him accidentally shot by then PC Dale Smith. The character later made brief re-appearances in the series between 2002 and 2004, and Moya Brady was cast to portray his niece Roberta from 2002 to 2003.
• Kevin Lloyd played DC Tosh Lines from 1988 to 1998. The character was written out as having accepted a position in the Coroner's Office after Lloyd was sacked for turning up for work drunk. Lloyd died a week after his dismissal, meaning he appeared on screen for over a month after his death.[84]
• Jeff Stewart played PC Reg Hollis from 1984 to 2008, which made him the character with the longest run on the series. The character was seen as the station "odd-ball" and took part in several major plots, including being injured in the 1990 station fire and forming an unlikely friendship with brute PC turned cop-killer Des Taviner. Reg was written out after resigning following the death of a colleague in a bomb blast, his scripted exit never airing after a devastated Stewart attempted suicide on set by slashing his wrists after learning of his dismissal after 24 years.[85]
• Graham Cole played PC Tony Stamp from 1987 to 2009, and was also an uncredited extra from 1984 to 1987. The character was key to several major plots throughout the series including killing a pedestrian on duty and being accused of sexual assault on a minor. When the series revamped in 2009 he was written out after 1204 credited appearances, more than any other character in the series history. The character took up a driving instructor's post at Hendon after being the show's primary advanced driver since his debut.[86][87]
• Alex Walkinshaw played Dale "Smithy" Smith from 1999 to 2010. He joined as a PC in 1999 before being written out in 2001, his exit coming due to a clash with new station Superintendent Tom Chandler. He returned as a sergeant in 2003 before a promotion to inspector in 2009, making him the only character on the series to play a regular role in all three ranks below the top brass positions.
• Simon Rouse played Jack Meadows from 1990 to 2010. He joined as a recurring cast member in 1990 when he was a Detective Superintendent with AMIP (Area Major Investigation Pool), later renamed MIT (Murder Investigation Team). His demotion to DCI in 1992 saw him take over the post at Sun Hill, holding the rank until 2009 when he was promoted back to superintendent. He was the longest serving character by the series finale and appeared in 884 episodes, recording more appearances than any other top brass officer.[88] He also made an appearance on Leipzig Homicide in 2012, where it was revealed the character had retired since the series finale.
• Colin Tarrant played Inspector Andrew Monroe from 1990 to 2002 when he was axed as part of a series overhaul. Appearing in 704 episodes meant no other Inspector or DI made more appearances than him.

The constant need for minor characters, normally appearing in only a single episode, inevitably led to numerous guest roles in The Bill being played by actors and actresses who later achieved a high profile, some of whom appeared as child actors. The following actors appeared in the show at least once.

Some guest parts were also played by guest actors who were already well known when they appeared, including: