Welcome to the Silent Witness Wiki |
Silent Witness is a BBC crime thriller series focusing on a team of forensic pathology experts and their investigations into various crimes. First broadcast in February 1996, and ongoing as of 2012, the series was created by Nigel McCrery, a former murder squad detective based in Nottingham. He later went on to create the hit series New Tricks with writer Roy Mitchell.
Background and Overview[]
The original series was based on Professor Helen Witwell, a forensic pathologist based in Sheffield, whom McCrery had known while serving as a police officer. The programme originally followed the activities of a female pathologist, Professor Sam Ryan, played by Amanda Burton.
However, Ryan's character departed early in the eighth series in 2004. There had been a succession of regular supporting characters, changing almost every series, but Dr Leo Dalton (William Gaminara) and Dr Harry Cunningham (Tom Ward), who were introduced in the sixth series in 2002, remained in the series and continued as lead characters following Ryan's departure, with Dalton replacing her as professor.
A new character, Dr Nikki Alexander (Emilia Fox), was introduced to the team in the eighth series in 2004. While working as a forensic anthropologist, she appropriates facilities and software in the pathology department to analyse an Iron Age find, with the belated, bemused and begrudging approval of Dalton. Dr Alexander is able to assist in a set of cases being investigated by the team, as it turns out she had "worked in forensic pathology in Johannesburg for six months" and is Home Office certified to practise. She is of such assistance that she overcomes Leo's reluctance and, with Harry's support, is offered and accepts a position on the team.
After the fifteenth series, in 2012, Harry leaves the Lyell Centre to accept a job in America. At the beginning of the sixteenth series, the team is joined by forensic scientist Jack Hodgson (David Caves) and his lab assistant Clarissa Mullery (Liz Carr). Following an unexpected tragedy, Dr Thomas Chamberlain (Richard Lintern) takes over as head of the Lyell Centre from Leo in the seventeenth series.
|
|
|
|
Quick Links[]
Show Page: Silent Witness
Helping out:[]
- To write a new article, just enter the article title in the box below.
<createbox> width=24 break=no buttonlabel=Create new article </createbox>
- Not sure where to start?
- If you are new to wikis, check out the tutorial, and see Help:Contents.
- Check out Help:Starting this wiki if you're setting up the wiki.
- If you have a question, you can ask any of the administrators.
- Adding content
- Every wiki has two list of articles that need help called "Stubs" and "Wanted Articles". Don't be shy, get in there.
- Uploading images is another really easy way to help out - see the Special:Upload page!
- You can find a list of useful templates on Category:Templates.
Being Human • Bodyguard • Casualty • Death in Paradise • Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency • Doctor Who • Eastenders • Gentleman Jack • Gladiators • Ghosts • His Dark Materials • Holby City • Hustle • Line of Duty • Luther • Merlin • Orphan Black • Sherlock • Spooks • Top Gear • Walking With... • Waterloo Road
UK shows by network: BBC Network • CBBC Shows • ITV Network • Channel 4 Network