Peter Cregeen he worked on numerous popular television series, including: "The Troubleshooters" (1965); "King of the River" (1966); "Out of the Unknown" (1969; 1970); "The Onedin Line" (1971; 1976); "The Sandbaggers" (1978); "Colditz" (1972; 1974) and "Wings" (1977–1978). Cregeen has worked on various police dramas, including: "The Gentle Touch" (1980); "The Expert" (1969); "Softly Softly" (1969–1972); "Z-Cars" (1965); "Juliet Bravo" (1983), and the pilot to ITV's successful long-running drama, "The Bill", which was originally named "Woodentop" (1983). As original director, Cregeen was responsible for "The Bill"'s "distinctive and atmospheric feel", which he created by adopting a "fly-on-the-wall documentary style" with a single
Woodentop (The Bill) Thames Television transmitted "Woodentop" as part of its "Storyboard" anthology series of one-off dramas. It was written by Geoff McQueen, a writer who had genre experience after writing episodes of LWT's "The Gentle Touch". "Woodentop" stood out from run of the mill police dramas of the time for a number of reasons including the use of hand-held cameras and natural lighting as well as the use of naturally sounding dialogue. The show created a realistic portrayal of modern-day policing, and there was nothing like it on television at the time, a fact which was actively exploited by the programme's makers.