Glynis Scrivens remembers the popular TV detective series
Chief Inspector William ‘Jack’ Frost is down-to-earth, irreverent, unconventional, disorganised – and an excellent detective. An act of drunken heroism earned him a George Cross medal. He hates paperwork, lives a basically lonely life and is committed to his job despite the fact he and his superior officer Superintendent Norman ‘Horn-rimmed Harry’ Mullet share what is known as “a lack of understanding”, in Jack’s words.
The sight of his trademark coat and trilby frequently causes a shudder in his boss.
‘A Touch of Frost’ was produced by Yorkshire Television and proved hugely successful, running for 15 series and 42 episodes, screened between the years 1992 and 2010.
Our image of Inspector Frost is essentially created by Sir David Jason, and it’s impossible to imagine a different actor playing this role. He made the character his own.
At the completion of The Darling Buds of May, David Jason was asked what he’d like to do next. “I’d love to play a detective,” he said, being an avid fan of series such as Poirot, Inspector Morse and Prime Suspect. “People like to unravel a mystery, don’t they? That’s what I like to do– try and beat the detective to it.”
