Bergerac on the Jersey beat again in reboot with a modern spin

ONE of the most popular television detective shows of the Eighties is to make a comeback.

The reboot of Bergerac will deal with modern policing issues on Jersey, with a new actor in the role once played by John Nettles. “We’ve been trying to bring back Bergerac for some time, and I’m glad that we have the next generation of such an iconic show in development,” said Gub Neal, the executive producer.

“Updated for the present day, it will deal with contemporary stories of the week that run alongside a strong serial spine,” said Neal, whose previous credits include Cracker, Prime Suspect and The Fall. A pilot episode is in the works for the Paramount Network, which has a network of television channels.

The original series ran from 1981 to 1991 on the BBC, and turned the littleknown Nettles into an international heart-throb. The show was sold to 150 countries and regularly drew 16 million viewers in the UK.

Det Sgt Jim Bergerac was a recovering alcoholic with a 1949 Triumph Roadster convertible and a maverick approach to catching criminals, but Jersey was the real star of the show and the “Bergerac effect” lifted tourist numbers. A couple of years ago, Nettles, now 75, recalled fond memories of working on the programme.

“It was a marvellous holiday in many kinds of ways,” he said. “I can’t imagine anything better as a way of life than that given to me during the making of Bergerac. I would wake up, have a dip in the sea then meander off to work.”

The new version of the show will be a co-production between Neal’s Artists Studio and Jersey-based Westward Studios.

Brian Constantine, chief executive of Westward, said: “I’m excited at the prospect that Bergerac may be returning to our screens once again.

“It’s a much-loved drama and a real boost for Jersey, my home.”