BBC fans find ‘greatest TV show of all time’ and it’s been ‘hidden’ by broadcaster

BBC fans don’t want to miss an “incredible” period drama miniseries that has been “hidden” by the broadcaster. Stowed away in the depths of the iPlayer archive, the six-episode series stars a huge number of big names, including Michael Gambon, Imelda Staunton, Jim Carter and Alison Steadman.

Written by Dennis Potter, the show you won’t want to miss is The Singing Detective, released in 1986. It follows mystery writer Philip E. Marlow, who is suffering from writer’s block while hospitalised due to psoriatic arthropathy - with sores and lesions littering his body. Soon the fever caused by his disease sends him into a fantasy noir world based on his eponymous novel.

While dreaming about his novel, the story is interspersed with Marlow’s flashbacks to his childhood in rural England, plus his mother’s life in WW2 London. With Allies and Soviets at war in the novel, the three worlds often converge into real-life conflicts.

Fans are loving the eclectic mix in the series, with one reviewer writing: “It’s hard for me to sum up in a few words why I love this miniseries so much. Perhaps because I’m a fan of film noir and there were shades of parody to the show. If you haven’t seen this one, I highly recommend it.”

Someone else called it the “best British TV series ever made”, writing: “It is undeniable that the wider viewing public were also lucky that an actor and writer of such calibre ended up working together; the results are still one of the great pieces of British dramatic art seen in the last century.”

The Guardian said the show is “brilliantly acted and scripted”, adding: “The Singing Detective is, in short, nothing less than a six-hour investigation into the wellsprings of art. Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that its like hasn't been attempted again.”