The Complete BBC Radio crime series

Daunt & Dervish

All four series of the jaunty crime series featuring two ex-spies who set up a private detective agency

All four series of the jaunty crime drama featuring two ex-spies who set up a private detective agency 
 
London, 1953. Josephine Daunt and Susan Dervish both worked for the Ministry of Defence during the Second World War, doing top-secret, highly dangerous espionage work. But in peacetime, they find themselves without a job and feeling useless. Determined to put their talents to good use, they decide to set up a detective agency, with the help of former private eye Bill Mackie. 
 
From their Covent Garden office, they handle a steady flow of business. But the ladies' lives really become exciting when they rescue a woman from drowning - only to discover that she's not what she seems. Soon, the daring duo are caught up in all manner of challenging cases, including a sporting assignment involving a priest and an Olympic boxing hopeful; a request to bid on a Monet that takes them on a trail across the Channel; a commission to investigate film actress Belinda Lane; and a theft at a fashion designer's workshop that leads them into a world of Teddy boys, political machinations and murder... 
 
Guy Meredith's light-hearted crime series stars Anna Massey as Josephine Daunt, while Imelda Staunton, Frances Barber and Sylvestra Le Touzel play Susan Dervish. Bill Paterson and Sean Scanlan co-star as Bill Mackie. 
 
Written by Guy Meredith 
Format by Imelda Staunton and Anna Massey 
Series 1 produced by Cherry Cookson and directed by Janet Whitaker 
Series 2-4 produced and directed by Colin Guthrie 
Clarinet played by Julian Stringle (Series 3, Episode 1) 
 
©2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2020 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Guy Meredith

Norman Rodway

James Grout

Carole Boyd

Full Cast

Two Full-Cast BBC Comedy Crime Dramas

Forgery, theft, death and notoriety amidst the inflated valuations of the art worldEnjoy this perfect pair of quirky crime dramas featuring art theft, forgery, murder and double-dealing. Craft, tells the story of failed artist, Adam Bax. He is amazed when one of his paintings sells for a large sum, unexpectedly giving him overnight fame. Though still deeply disillusioned with the world of art, he embarks on a little nefarious money-making scheme, aided and abetted by his estranged wife, Tessa. Cashing-in in a way you wouldn’t quite imagine this comedy drama follows the twists and turns of the over-inflated underworld of the British art scene.The story continues in The Tokyo Correction, plunging the listener back into the world of organised crime, deception and the art world. It’s ten years on and disreputable painter Adam Bax is back in London. He’s been on the run in Spain but the big city is calling him home. Penniless and jobless, he's taken under the wing of an old student. He soon finds himself tangled up in a major art deception – and then discovers one of his collaborators has been murdered…These two thrilling and funny dramas are perfect for fans of classic comedy capers and quality drama. Norman Rodway stars as the artist Bax and James Grout as the animated policeman investigating his activities. Ex-wife Tessa is played by Carole Boyd, best known for her iconic role as Lynda Snell in The Archers. Writer Guy Meredith is the talent behind many original radio plays and dramatisations, including Prix Italia-nominated The Surprise Symphony. He was also at the heart of a powerful dramatisation of Albert Camus’s novel La Peste and wrote Mad, Bad, the BBC’s entry for the Prix Futura, starring Bill Nighy.Cast and creditsWritten by Guy Meredith 
Directed by Cherry CooksonAdam Bax - Norman Rodway 
Robert - Geoffrey Collins 
Quatermain - James Grout 
Tessa - Carole Boyd 
Constantine - Neville Jason 
Fenwick - John Rye 
His Manservant/Sergeant - John Webb 
Susan - Helena Breck 
Nutley/Sergeant - Colin Starkey 
Colonel Dalby - Garard Green 
Rivetti - Michael Percival 
Beth - Ellen McIntosh 
Nicholas Bonalack - David Ashton 
Terry Harman - Steve Hodson 
Herman Dorff - Jonathan Adams 
Judith - Sandra James-Young 
Principal - John Baddeley 
Customer - Melinda WalkerFirst Broadcast BBC Radio 4, 4th Mar 1984 & 4th Feb 1993©2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2025 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

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