The Gentle Touch: The Complete Series

Yes , it’s dated . But at times it is dated in the best way . Some will remember the time when we used to say ‘ there’s a play on tonight ‘ .And that’s what these episodes are . Plays , done as if they are on a stage . The result is that sometimes it drags a bit , but other times with the right script. , and the right actors , it is just brilliant . There is very little film shot outdoors , with almost no action sequences , despite what the opening credits might want you to think . Jill Gascoine is excellent , but it’s a truly ensemble performance most of the time . Some of the storylines , on racism , sexism and so on are done surprisingly well for the time , and they stand up to modern day scrutiny . Very enjoyable stuff .If you are under 40 , do give it a go !

Just started watching it very enjoyable a must my dvd

Great to see again, and to watch through the lense of 2020 how the left and liberal was viewed in 1980, or what consituted liberal in 1980

Good

Brilliant love all series

Loved the series. Brought back lovely memories.

This was genuinely different when it originally came out in 1980. First of all it was the very first TV drama to have a female detective (Jill Gascoine as Detective Inspector Maggie Forbes) front and centre as the main character. Other female police shows would follow shortly after this, including ‘Juliet Bravo’ and ‘Cagney and Lacey’, but this was the first.Next, it was a much softer, ‘gentler’, if you will, take on policing. While its infamous predecessor, ‘The Sweeney’, was full of macho violence, “All right, Tinkerbell, you’re nicked” says Jack Regan to one particularly evil villain, ‘The Gentle Touch’ was more concerned with the social issues that police work inevitably uncovers. Even Cagney and Lacey was rumbustiously coarse and more typical of hardcore cop show talk, “Cop Feet weren’t meant for hooker shoes” one of them says to the other at the end of an undercover stint.There were over fifty episodes of ‘The Gentle Touch’ over a five year period, which were notable for their consistency. These are some that I recall as standouts: in ‘Blade’ a young gay man is murdered on the tube and Maggie discovers it was a hate crime. In ‘Gifts’ Maggie’s suspicions are raised when anonymous presents start to arrive in the mail. ‘Doubt’ has Maggie beaten severely which causes her to fear that crime is overwhelming Britain and that the police are not appreciated. In ‘Scapegoat’ a Jewish home is vandalised and Maggie suspects anti-semitism. In ‘Damage’, a vulnerable manic depressive is also the victim of a hate campaign. In ‘Solution’ Maggie must confront how she feels about euthanasia and in ‘Pressures’ Maggie starts to exhibit symptoms of clinical stress when dealing with a horrific murder.Aside from Jill Gascoine’s superb performance across all fifty or so episodes, the key to this show’s runaway success is its willingness to tackle these social ills and human frailties in varying shades of dramatic grey between outright villainy and innocent victim. Frequently in this show, victims and villains are one and the same with a palette of gently nuanced moral values in between. Top stuff. 5 stars.

Excellent television series that starred the beautiful and talented Jill Gascoine as Detective Inspector Maggie Forbes.Jill Gascoine appeared regularly on British television throughout the 1970's, 1980's and 1990's.Jill Gascoine sadly died on the 29th April 2020.Much missed actress and novelist . . . RIP