Full of punch-ups and car chases, it was pacy, un-PC and viscerally thrilling.
Oft caricatured but never bettered. When The Sweeney kicked down the doors, it upended an entire genre. Masterminded by Ian Kennedy Martin, brother of Z-Cars co-creator Troy, it made his sibling’s series look staid by comparison. Following the Met’s Flying Squad, it was shot on location with 16mm film for a cinematic look. DI Jack Regan ( John Thaw) and DS George Carter (Dennis Waterman) happily bent the law to bring down hardened criminals. Full of punch-ups and car chases, it was pacy, un-PC and viscerally thrilling.