POLL: Who were Sun Hill's best 'uniform' Inspectors?

[BobCryer1983]

You may vote for as many... or as few... as you like.

(I haven't included the one from the original pilot episode because he probably doesn't count.)

[Roxanne]

Difficult; most of 'em were utter bastards.

One vote from me for Gina: I was hardly watching it by the time she was in, but I did see a couple of eps, and she impressed me. Never saw the last two.

Also a vote for Monroe, which people might find strange. I hated him mostly; especially for what he did to Ted Roach, but occasionally I had a reluctant admiration for the way he stuck firmly to his principles 

[Matt Newham]

Monroe all the way - the only other one I would really contemplate is Gina Gold.  Monroe remained tough but fair to his relief, and didn't take sides - his attitude to bending the rules was totally at odds with Burnside's, but they weren't beyond conspiring to nail a villain (as long is it was done on Monroe's terms).  To be fair, I think that Monroe may have been the character that came the closest to controlling Burnside - he didn't make demands of him, but Burnside wouldn't risk inflaming Monroe's wrath. 

[BobCryer1983]

I do have to admit, I didn't vote for Smithy in this poll. While I did like him as a Sergeant -- as the surrogate Bob Cryer of the New Bill -- and his personality hasn't changed since his promotion, I just don't think he's made very much of an impact as an Inspector. And, given how long the series has left  to run, he probably won't manage to either. Like Rachel Weston, it sometimes feels like he's occupying a seat, more than anything else. I don't dislike the lad though.


Always adored Gina Gold, even at the height of Marquess' soapy reign on the series. She was like a female Burnside/Galloway, one of those typically 'The Bill' characters who took no nonsense, and wasn't afraid to get in there and call a slag a slag. I do, seriously, feel the series lost something when she left. They should have bumped her up to Chief Inspector instead, and kept her around for occasional appearances.

[Old Bill]

Some people voted for Gold? Really?? Gold's character was emblematic of the show when she was on it - an unsympathetic character and an incompetent officer whose tenure coincided with a total loss of discipline and credibility on the uniform side. The Bill was great before she arrived, and has improved enormously since she left.

[Matt Newham]

Unsympathetic?  Incompetent?  Surely you jest!  She was initially unsympathetic (read her first encounter with June Ackland) and only incompetent at the very end, but in the meantime, she showed sympathy for Emma Keane when her husband tried to have her charged, Neil Manson when a homicide appeared to ruin his chances of seeing his son, and Smithy when he had a shocker as Acting Inspector.  She was far from incompetent, and gained a pile of respect from old hands such as Tony, Roger and Smithy, who wouldn't be where he is today without Gina.

This being said, I am glad to see Monroe on top, because I thought he was slightly more solid and stable than Gina.  Vote 2 Gina.

[Chiidatbe]

I agree with Monroe and Gina. Gina particularly is sorely missed since she left, an excellent character and was one of the best from the entire show in my opinion.

[BobCryer1983]

Yeah, I miss Gina as well. She had a very Burnside-esque streak at times, and the series certainly lost something when she left.

[Matt Newham]

It's a pity that Burnside and Gina never met - I reckon that Burnside would have taken a typically mysoginist attitude, and that Gold would have given him what-for, but deep down there would have been a lot of mutual respect.