British Comedy Guide
The Thin Blue Line. Image shows from L to R: D.I. Grim (David Haig), P.C. Habib (Mina Anwar), Inspector Fowler (Rowan Atkinson), P.C. Goody (James Dreyfus), D.C. Boyle (Mark Addy), Sergeant Dawkins (Serena Evans), P.C. Gladstone (Rudolph Walker). Copyright: Tiger Aspect Productions
The Thin Blue Line

The Thin Blue Line

  • TV sitcom
  • BBC One
  • 1995 - 1996
  • 14 episodes (2 series)

Police sitcom about fastidious Inspector Raymond Fowler, his array of uniformed officers, and the oafish CID Inspector Grim. Stars Rowan Atkinson, David Haig, Serena Evans, James Dreyfus, Mina Anwar and more.

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Episode menu

Series 1, Episode 3 - Honey Trap

Inspector Fowler is confident that his team can win the local pub quiz as long as he has his star player PC Habib. However, DI Grim wants to use her in a trap to catch Terry the Tank...

Further details

Grim asks Fowler if he can borrow Habib for an illegal entrapment operation. After some convincing Fowler reluctantly agrees, but is distraught when he realises she will have to pull out of the police pub quiz team.

Meanwhile, Patricia is getting suspicious of the amount of time Fowler and Habib are spending together. When Habib arrives for work disguised as a tart and tells Patricia that Inspector Fowler ordered her to dress that way, her blood begins to boil.

However, Fowler is too concerned with the quiz team and upcoming finals to notice. He's already lost Habib, and now Kray seems to be risking his competence. When Patricia refuses to take Maggie's place and Goody and Gladstone turn out to be too thick, he resorts to asking the criminals in the cells.

Back in CID, Grim decides to step up the operation and urges Habib go even further to get information out of the villain. Habib is increasingly uneasy with his methods and Fowler washes his hands with the whole business.

Things come to a head with Patricia over the matter of a new Royal Coat of Arms to be hung over the station's front desk, but the truth comes flowing out and it's Dawkins left looking the fool.

Grim is delighted when Habib and local criminal Terry the Tank arrive, handcuffed together. But the operation, it seems, hasn't concluded quite as he had hoped.

Broadcast details

Date
Monday 27th November 1995
Time
8:30pm
Channel
BBC One
Length
30 minutes

Cast & crew

Cast
Rowan Atkinson Inspector Fowler
David Haig D.I. Grim
Serena Evans Sergeant Dawkins
James Dreyfus P.C. Goody
Mina Anwar P.C. Habib
Rudolph Walker P.C. Gladstone
Kevin Allen D.C. Kray
Joy Brook D.C. Crockett
Guest cast
Stephen Marcus Terry the Tank
Writing team
Ben Elton Writer
Production team
John Birkin Director
Geoffrey Perkins Producer
Ben Elton Producer
Peter Bennett-Jones Executive Producer
Graham Hutchings Editor
James Dillon Production Designer
Howard Goodall Composer

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