WPC 56: Series One

In the vein of Call the Midwife, this BBC miniseries is an appealing trifle following the travails of Woman Police Constable Gina Dawson (Jennie Jacques) as she takes up her first assignment in a small West Midlands town in 1956. Sexism is a core theme as she battles the men who think of her as being more suited to serving tea and doing paperwork. Racism rears its head too, as do the serious crimes of a serial rapist and a years-cold child murder case. WPC Dawson is more than up to the task of helping both investigations while simultaneously dealing with family and boyfriend issues. The five episodes collected here move with a lively pace and follow an overall arc, and while clearly a modest production, the show does feature humorous and touching details that nicely enhance the period setting. WPC 56 is not all puff, but certainly also not part of the current vogue for darkly dramatic police procedurals. The supporting cast members are well suited to their pleasantly caricature-ish character types, including Gerard Horan as officious Desk Sergeant Peter Pratt, and Kieran Bew as savvy and dashing Detective Inspector Jack Burns, who is dealing with a wrenching family issue of his own. Although Chief Inspector Roger Nelson (John Light) eventually comes to respect Dawson's value, he starts by laying down the law of his land with the stern warning: “Never forget that your sole responsibility is to support the men so that they can get on with the job of real police.” Yes, we've come a long way. Compiling all five episodes from the 2013 first season, this is a strong optional purchase. [Note: WPC 56: Series Two is also newly available.] (T. Fry)