Z-Cars been running for seven years but which some considered 'cosy'. The one character present throughout the entire run (though not in every episode) was Bert Lynch, played by James Ellis (though John Phillips as Det. Chief Supt. Robins would reappear sporadically during the show's run – by the end of the series he had become Chief Constable). Other characters in the early days were Stratford Johns (Inspector Barlow), Frank Windsor (Det. Sgt Watt), Robert Keegan (Sgt Blackitt), Joseph Brady (PC "Jock" Weir) and Brian Blessed ("Fancy" Smith). Also in 1960s episodes as David Graham was Colin Welland, later a screenwriter.
Victor Brooks (actor) Victor Brooks (actor) Victor Brooks (11 November 1918 – 19 January 2000) was a prolific English film and television actor. He specialised in character roles, police inspectors in particular, in British thrillers such as "Cover Girl Killer" (1959), "Witchcraft" (1964), and "Devils of Darkness" (1965). His best known films are probably "Goldfinger" (1964), "The Brides of Dracula" (1960) and "Billy Budd" (1962). On television, he was noted for playing a pipe-smoking authority figure in crime series like "Dixon of Dock Green", "Gideon's Way", "Detective", "Z Cars" and "Crown Court". He also appeared in the television series "Raffles", in the recurring