Lynda La Plante buoyed by the success of Prime Suspect turns to a gritty procedural that owes a little to Law & Order.
The first episode sees the police searching for missing five year old Julie Harris. She is later found dead and the main suspect turns out to be Michael Dunn (Rhys Ifans) who is regarded as a bit of weirdo.
The case is led by a gruff veteran Det. Supt. Michael Walker (David Hayman) assisted by Det. Insp. Pat North (Kate Buffery.)
Walker thinks that Dunn is the killer but he needs forensic evidence.
However before the police closed in on Dunn. Julie's stepfather was in the frame and Julie's brother is also acting erratically.
At two hours in length it was too long. The set up being a typical grimy council house underclass. It has an early role for actress Helen McCrory who plays Julie's mother.
Ifans plays Dunn in an eccentric manner. It emerges that Dunn was a victim of childhood abuse, on booze and maybe childlike himself with some form of mental illness.
There was nothing groundbreaking in the way Prime Suspect was. The second episode would be more courtroom based as the police find out if there evidence stacks up.