Witness Statements: Making The Bill 1988

by Oliver Crocker

Read how the first 48 half-hour episodes of “The Bill” were brought to life, through a series of in-depth interviews with 60 cast and crew, including some of the programme’s most legendary actors, prolific writers and visionary creatives.

Every episode is accompanied by detailed Observation Notes, revealing filming locations, production dates, viewing figures, character notes, unmade storylines and much more.

Featuring 40 previously unpublished behind-the-scenes photographs, Oliver Crocker’s second unofficial guidebook is the most thorough investigation ever undertaken of how the bi-weekly format of The Bill was created.

Featuring an introduction by Peter Cregeen (Executive Producer 1988-89)

"TRULY ASTONISHING RESEARCH! FANS WILL LOVE EVERY TINY DETAIL!" - Jon Iles (D.C. Mike Dashwood)

342 pages, Paperback

Published November 12, 2022

About the author

Oliver Crocker is a ghostwriter and TV historian. He is the author of the bestselling All Memories Great & Small, endorsed by the James Herriot estate, and two Witness Statements: Making The Bill guidebooks, featuring memories from 100 cast and crew. In 2023, Oliver ghostwrote actor Larry Dann’s acclaimed autobiography Oh, What A Lovely Memoir. As a television researcher, his credits include ITV’s This Morning and BBC’s Something for the Weekend. Since 2017, he has interviewed hundreds of special guests as producer of The Bill Podcast, played over 500,000 times in 50 countries. He also writes articles for Best of British magazine. Oliver lives near Cambridge with his wife Tessa and their ginger cat Fawkes.

Reviews

[Ben Peyton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oliver Crocker’s second The Bill book is another fascinating, insightful read and a must have for fans of the show.

This time it’s 1988 and this remarkable book features a wealth of information and exclusive interviews from actors and those behind the camera, (testament to the charm and likability of the author). Each episode is broken down and made accessible, successfully expanding this wonderful encyclopaedic tribute to one of television’s most loved shows.

Keep up the great work, Oliver! You’re making lots of people very very happy.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Witness Statements is an outstanding time piece, jam packed full of statements from the very people who made The Bill in 1988. First-hand accounts from directors, script editors, writers, floor managers, camera men, actors and more, all who describe not only how The Bill was made, but also how their own careers progressed both before and after the drama. The sheer detail this book goes into is outstanding, from locations, types of car used in filming to guidance given by the police advisor and storylines that didn't make it to screen. There are so many gems that give the reader a glimpse into life behind the camera, such as how filming was held up due to a teaspoon and how the chickens received their unkempt look. In fact there is so much information shared within the book I feel I will need a re-read to ensure it has all sunk in! Witness Statements moves far beyond a niche genre of The Bill, anyone interested in British television in this era would find Witness Statements a fascinating read. I would highly recommend to fellow readers and I will be raving about this book for quite some time!

[Michael Seely · Rating 5 out of 5]

We are in a golden age of archival TV research. And here is another gem, one which is more than just a dry making of...

Covering all the episodes made in 1988, when The Bill followed its ancestral predecessor Z Cars into the twice weekly format - except unlike Z Cars between 1967 and 1972, each episode of The Bill was its own self contained story. A phenomenal amount of writing and planning allowed this to happen.

This volume of Witness Statement is about as comprehensive as you could hope to get. As with the previous volume which covered the first three series, it is told mainly from the point of view by the people who made the programme, a trait and strength from the author Oliver Crocker, and you will find anecdotes and observations from other television programmes being made at the time. But this time round Crocker has secured location and production details making this a delightfully chunky book indeed, much larger than its predecessor, and one you will forever be referencing should you get the chance to watch the episodes documented herein, and yes, I've dug out some of the episodes and watched them myself.

This was a time when The Bill was about to become a colossus of TV viewing, although I would argue it began to steer away from the realism displayed in those early series where you wondered whether if they just stuck a camera inside a nick and let them get on with it, and now veering into more accepted TV drama tropes, except, thank god, no tedious Softly Softly/Z Cars/any other police procedural featuring kitchen table scenes where the villains talk about what petty crime they've just committed, how the Superhero nick are going to bang 'em up to rights, and some sister/daughter figure trying to calm them all down with a cup of tea. That's more a personal observation, but The Bill was from early on from the point of view of the police, warts and all.

[Alex Zippel · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely amazing book, to hear those who have been part of the bill on their statements was absolutely incredible