The Chinese Detective

Created by Ian Kennedy Martin, who had previously devised The Sweeney and Juliet Bravo, The Chinese Detective, a downbeat police series, broke new ground on British television by casting a Chinese actor in the lead role for the first time.

Unlike previous Chinese detectives shown on television, actor David Yip was of East Asian ancestry, being born to a Chinese father and an English mother, whereas the much earlier Charlie Chan, the 'Chinese' detective of films and television, was invariably played by a white actor, as in the cases of J. Carrol Naish, Warner Oland and Peter Ustinov - in 'yellow-face' make-up.

Yip plays DS John Andrew Ho, a detective stationed in the Limehouse area of London (named after the local lime kilns by the river that had served shipping in the London Docks), where there is a large Chinese community. A second-generation immigrant born and brought up in East London, Ho has joined the Metropolitan Police in order to establish an identity outside of his own community and also to identify the former police officer who had framed his father, a theme that runs through the first series. In the course of his work, Ho faces the pressures of the job and having to deal with being racially stereotyped from both the public and his own colleagues in a predominantly white institution (courting criticism from the police force, who claimed that racism did not exist in the modern Met). But even his own immediate superior DI Berwick (Derek Martin) dislikes his Detective Sergeant, although he has to admit to a begrudging respect for the results he gets. It was an attitude that wasn't too unfamiliar to many people of colour at this time. Ho is not just a detective solving crimes; he is also a man grappling with his identity in a society that often marginalizes him. When asked where he is from, Ho simply replies, "I'm Cockney."

"Externally you are one thing. Inside you are a different thing," Yip told Lesley Thornton in a Radio Times interview in the week the programme was launched. He was born and brought up in working-class Liverpool, and when he was a little boy he was never conscious of being different. "Liverpool is a melting-pot. I was a real Scouse - one of the lads. My schoolmates were all colours, all Scouse. Only in my teens I began to notice the odd remark and I realized that there were two me's. A lot of kids of my generation go through this".

In preparation for the series, Yip wandered about the Limehouse area to get a feel for the place. "The dock area reminded me of Liverpool. The people look stunned. It has a dying smell". The drama takes place in the urban decay of London's East End, Ian Kennedy Martin's old hunting ground before Docklands was redeveloped. "In the war, we got bombed out twice," he told the RT. "In Limehouse, in the shelters, I was brought up on Chinese: we'd get a bowl of chop suey".

"The non-violence of the character, not macho - he thinks a bit and doesn't always win –  it strikes me as very real and very true," said Yip of his character.  "There is the passivity, the compliance which I, at least, see in Chinese people. I am very patient, like my father - when they get mad a lot of Chinese don't explode. There's a stillness. The Chinese detective in this series takes many blows - moral and emotional, not physical - if he was more demonstrative and let things out more, it would be better. He does have a wonderful sense of humour - humour is the Chinese outlet."

David Yip's portrayal of John Ho is undoubtedly the heart of the series. Yip brings a quiet intensity to the role, effectively capturing the internal and external conflicts that define his character. His performance is meticulous, offering a rare representation of an Asian lead character in British television. Yip's John Ho is neither a stereotype nor a token figure; he is a fully realized character whose Chinese heritage is central to his identity but not his only defining feature.

The supporting cast also contributes significantly to the show’s appeal. Robert Lee, as John’s father Joe Ho, provides a warm and often humorous counterbalance to the more intense moments of the series. The dynamic between father and son adds depth to the narrative, giving viewers insight into the cultural and generational challenges that immigrant families face. Other recurring characters, such as Ho’s colleagues, serve as foils to his unconventional methods, further highlighting the show's exploration of institutional biases within the police force.

The Chinese Detective may have had a relatively short run (2 seasons), but it was a bold attempt to bring diversity to British television at a time when such efforts were rare. It remains a pioneering series that deserves recognition for its contribution to British television history.