| Genre: | Crime drama |
| Creator: | Jeffrey Caine |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
| Num Series: | 5 |
| Num Episodes: | 35 |
| List Episodes: |
|
| Cinematography: | Philip S. Burne |
| Runtime: | 50 minutes |
| Company: | Anglia Television |
| Network: | ITV |
The Chief is a British television crime drama series that aired on ITV from 20 April 1990 until 16 June 1995. A total of five series and thirty-five episodes were produced.
The series followed the work of the fictitious "Eastland Constabulary", particularly focusing on Chief Constable John Stafford (Tim Pigott-Smith), and his efforts to restore order within his volatile team. Later, focus shifted towards Stafford's replacement, Alan Cade (Martin Shaw). The series was produced by Anglia Television and was mostly filmed and set in East Anglia. The series was notable for a lot of political content, in particular for Stafford's battles with the Home Office and local politicians.[1] John Alderson (police officer), a former Chief Constable of the Devon and Cornwall Police, was an adviser on the show, allowing it to be portrayed as reflecting real life.[2]
| Series | Episodes | First airdate | Last airdate | DVD release | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | 20 April 1990 | 25 May 1990 | 1 February 2010[3] | |
| 2 | 6 | 5 April 1991 | 10 May 1991 | 12 April 2010[4] | |
| 3 | 6 | 16 April 1993 | 21 May 1993 | 18 April 2011[5] | |
| 4 | 10 | 7 January 1994 | 11 March 1994 | 18 July 2011[6] | |
| 5 | 7 | 5 May 1995 | 16 June 1995 | 9 April 2012[7] | |
There series has been released in Australia (Region 4).Series 1 & Series 2 on 5 March 2014.[8] [9] Series 3 & Series 4 on 7 May 2014.[10] [11] Series 5 on 9 July 2014.[12] The Chief Collection on 7 March 2018.[13]
A behind-the-scenes book, entitled On Duty with The Chief, written by Peter Haining, was published on 31 January 1995 to tie in with the broadcast of the fifth and final series.[2] In 2010, Network began realising The Chief on Region 2 DVD, with a "12" certificate. The content has not been modified from the original broadcasts, and every episode contains the title cards for the commercial breaks. There are no special features.