Dalgliesh

A Distinctly British Detective Drama Through the Decades

In the grand tradition of British detective fiction, where the brooding intellectual often takes precedence over the bullish enforcer, Dalgliesh has carved a quiet but indelible niche. Based on the critically acclaimed novels of P.D. James, the series charts the investigative work of Adam Dalgliesh, a detective who is as much poet as policeman. Introduced in Cover Her Face in 1962 as a Detective Chief Inspector with the Metropolitan Police, Dalgliesh would rise through the ranks to become a Commander, but he never lost the introspective reserve or sensitivity that set him apart from his peers.

Far removed from the likes of Jack Regan, Dalgliesh belongs more comfortably in the company of Endeavour Morse; erudite, emotionally complex, and reluctant to suffer fools. Living alone in a stylish flat overlooking the Thames at Queenhithe, driving a Jaguar, and writing verse in his spare time, Dalgliesh is a figure of cultivated detachment. His character has long been admired for the depth and realism with which P.D. James imbued him - haunted by past loss, unfailingly polite, but capable of great precision and force when the situation demands it.

The original television adaptations of the Dalgliesh novels began in 1983, with Anglia Television producing a series of feature-length dramas for ITV. Over the course of fifteen years, ten of the books were adapted, though not in chronological order. The role of Dalgliesh was taken on by Roy Marsden, whose commanding height and quiet intensity made him a striking presence on screen. Keen to distance himself from the archetype of the hard-bitten, boozy detective, Marsden approached the character with quiet restraint. Drawing inspiration from senior figures in British policing, most notably Commander William Hucklesby, then head of Scotland Yard’s Anti-Terrorist Squad, Marsden presented Dalgliesh as dignified and urbane, but with an underlying melancholy.

In a 1986 interview, Marsden explained his performance choices: “Most of the matters investigated are domestic and when one is dealing with family structure the degree of hardness is less... The other side of policing is coming up against hardened criminals, and the approach then is obviously different.” His portrayal captured the solitude and sensitivity that P.D. James so often hinted at in the novels — offering a detective whose gentleness did not detract from his authority, but enhanced it.

Following the conclusion of the ITV adaptations in 1998, the BBC revived the series in 2003 with Martin Shaw stepping into the role. Though Shaw brought his own gravitas to the character, his version of Dalgliesh was met with more muted praise. While technically proficient and handsomely produced, the BBC episodes lacked some of the austere charm and atmospheric richness that had defined the earlier adaptations.

Most recently, Channel 5 and Acorn TV reimagined the series in 2021 with Bertie Carvel in the lead. The latest adaptation marked a stylish and faithful return to P.D. James's original vision, with period detail, moody cinematography, and a clear respect for the source material. Carvel’s take on the character is restrained and inward-looking, with the show foregrounding the detective’s poetic sensibility as much as his procedural skill. The slow-burning, literary tone of the newer series won praise for appealing to viewers weary of the louder, more forensic-led crime dramas saturating modern television.

What has remained constant across all adaptations is the strength of P.D. James’s writing and the enduring appeal of her central character. Unlike many of his fictional peers, Dalgliesh is not defined by a single quirk or tragic flaw, but by his quiet consistency, his moral compass, and his thoughtful attention to the human heart behind every crime.

Over four decades, Dalgliesh has remained a refined and thoughtful presence in the detective genre. Whether in the quietly intense performance of Roy Marsden, the steadier hand of Martin Shaw, or the contemporary subtlety of Bertie Carvel, this is a detective who stands apart — not through bombast, but by watching, listening, and thinking. In an age of ever-increasing noise, Dalgliesh continues to make a powerful case for understatement.