British TV police drama takes place primarily in 1965 Oxford.  Shaun Evans stars as the rookie detective Endeavour Morse, guided by D.I. Thursday (Roger Allum) in this prequel to the Inspector Morse series created by Colin Dexter. 

(2012 -Present) Pilot + 2 Seasons to date. 9 Episodes

Available on PBS, ITV, Netflix, Amazon

Wall Street Journal’s Nancy deWolf Smith‘s review:

The time is 1965, in Oxford, England, and Detective Constable Endeavour Morse has just been detailed to the Oxfordshire police department and an investigation into the disappearance of a teenage girl. Morse (played by Shaun Evans, and fascinating to watch) studied classics at Oxford and reveals erudition on many subjects as the story unfolds. Yet he is the son of a taxi driver, we learn (and a prim teetotaler at this point), who now seems to fit into no particular milieu.

Although Morse is largely brushed off by other officers, he finds a mentor in his boss, Detective Inspector Thursday, who shows him the ropes over a pint of pub ale (there are many such clues to Morse’s future behavior) and has the sense to let his charge dig around on his own. MORE…

bestCrimeTV