From Prime Suspect to Inspector Morse, Cracker to Lewis to the more recent Scott & Bailey and DCI Banks, British police procedurals are flat out brilliant telly. Never has this been more evident than when you look back at the ‘Inspector Morse’ progression from the original series starring John Thaw to Lewis to the most recent incarnation, Endeavour, starring Shaun Evans.
 

Another element that British producers excel at are the behind-the-scenes bits and bobs that American television viewers usually know as the ‘DVD extras’. Getting to go behind the scenes and hear the back story as to how a series was put together from not only the actors perspective but to also hear the producer, director or costume designer speak to the level of detail to which they go to to put the best product on the small screen is great telly that shouldn’t be relegated to an obscure menu item on a DVD boxed set.

In the case of Endeavour which returns to PBS beginning Sunday, June 29 for 4 new episodes, the ITV series Crime Connections took a look at the monumental task before those involved in the creation the ‘prequel’ which was to initially get past the obvious comparisons to John Thaw in the original Inspector Morse series.
 

 
Get ready for series 2 of Endeavour coming to PBS beginning Sunday, June 29 at 9pET/8pCT, bookended by the premiere of series 2 of Last Tango in Halifax at 8pET/7pCT and the series premiere of Vicious with Derek Jacobi and Ian McKellen following at 10:30pET/9:30pCT. Going to be a great summer of telly!