The Singing Detective

The Singing Detective
Genre	Film noir Musical
Created by	Dennis Potter
Written by	Dennis Potter
Directed by	Jon Amiel
Starring	Michael Gambon Jim Carter Lyndon Davies Patrick Malahide Bill Paterson Alison Steadman Janet Suzman Joanne Whalley Imelda Staunton
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	6
Production
Executive producer	Rick McCallum
Producers	Kenith Trodd John Harris
Running time	58–76 minutes
Original release
Network	BBC1
Release	16 November (1986-11-16) – 21 December 1986 (1986-12-21)
Related
Pennies From Heaven (1978) Lipstick on Your Collar (1993)
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The Singing Detective is a six-part BBC television serial drama, written by Dennis Potter, starring Michael Gambon and directed by Jon Amiel. Its six episodes are "Skin", "Heat", "Lovely Days", "Clues", "Pitter Patter" and "Who Done It".

The serial was broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC1 in 1986 on Sunday nights from 16 November to 21 December, with later PBS and cable television showings in the United States. It won a Peabody Award in 1989. It ranks 20th on the British Film Institute's list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes, as voted by industry professionals in 2000. It was included in the 1992 Dennis Potter retrospective at the Museum of Television & Radio and became a permanent addition to the museum's collections in New York and Los Angeles. There was co-production funding from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The series was released on DVD in the US on 15 April 2003 and in the UK on 8 March 2004. It is currently being screened in the UK on BBC iPlayer until November 2024.