I'm speaking purely of the Nick Berry and Jason Durr years as Nick Rowan and Mike Bradley respectively, police constables with fictional Aidensfield in the Yorkshire Moors as their patch. The show, so named, because Rowan's first wife was a doctor - "Heart" - and he was a cop "Beat".
With the perpetually grumpy Sergeant Oscar Blaketon in command and odd couple officers the chain-smoking veteran Alf Ventress and younger Phil Bellamy as support and quirky folks like Claude Jeremiah Greengrass - both comedic relief and a wonderful foil for Blaketon, brilliantly portrayed by Bill Maynard, plus, occasionally, definitely on the shady side of things - in the village and some pretty decent mysteries in each episode, plus a tremendous soundtrack of 1960's rock and the spectacular Moors as a backdrop to all the action, Heartbeat's early seasons were brilliant television, dealing with some pretty serious issues before like drugs, misogyny and the medical treatments of the time, before, as I understand it, it all became a little more folksy and harmless.
Heartbeat was a staple of Saturday night TV as a kid growing up in Australia, watching Heartbeat then The Bill with my parents. And one thing is for sure: the episode where Nick loses his first wife is an hour of television that will stick with me for a long time. The Christmas episodes were always good, too.
With the perpetually grumpy Sergeant Oscar Blaketon in command and odd couple officers the chain-smoking veteran Alf Ventress and younger Phil Bellamy as support and quirky folks like Claude Jeremiah Greengrass - both comedic relief and a wonderful foil for Blaketon, brilliantly portrayed by Bill Maynard, plus, occasionally, definitely on the shady side of things - in the village and some pretty decent mysteries in each episode, plus a tremendous soundtrack of 1960's rock and the spectacular Moors as a backdrop to all the action, Heartbeat's early seasons were brilliant television, dealing with some pretty serious issues before like drugs, misogyny and the medical treatments of the time, before, as I understand it, it all became a little more folksy and harmless.
Heartbeat was a staple of Saturday night TV as a kid growing up in Australia, watching Heartbeat then The Bill with my parents. And one thing is for sure: the episode where Nick loses his first wife is an hour of television that will stick with me for a long time. The Christmas episodes were always good, too.