Second Verdict (BBC-1 1976, Stratford Johns, Frank Windsor)

Detectives Charlie Barlow and John Watt had first achieved fame in Z Cars and then spin-off Softly Softly before Barlow branched out into his own self titled series. Despite Barlow’s solo run he re-teamed with Watt for an intriguing 1973 series looking at the infamous Jack The Ripper case.

Second Verdict was a kind of sequel to that series with the detectives looking at six other true-life crimes of the famous kind and seeing if they could shed any fresh light on them.

Like Jack The Ripper the episodes mixed flashbacks to the crimes mixed with Barlow and Watt discussing the cases.

The series was clearly intended by the BBC to be a continuation of the Jack the Ripper format even down to using the same theme tune.

production details
UK / BBC1 / 6×50 minute episodes / Broadcast 27 May – 1 July 1976

Creator: Troy Kennedy Martin / Script Editor: Arnold Yarrow / Music: Bill Southgate / Producer: Leonard Lewis

cast
Stratford Johns as Charlie Barlow
Frank Windsor as John Watt

THE EPISODES
1. THE LINDBURGH KIDNAPPING (27 May 76)
2. WHO KILLED THE PRINCES IN THE TOWER (3 Jun 76)
3. THE FRENCH BLUEBEARD (10 Jun 76)
4. MURDER ON THE 10.27 (17 Jun 76)
5. LIZZIE BORDEN (24 Jun 76)
6. WHO BURNED THE REICHSTAG? (1 Jul 76)