The Bill premiered on television 40 years ago, immersing viewers in the excitements and events of life at Sun Hill police station.
While the original cast was instantly recognizable for their police uniforms, the series also launched the careers of some famous stars who were far from the A-list at the time.
As the popular series celebrates its landmark anniversary on UKTV, all episodes are streaming on the free-to-air U platform. We look back at some actors you might not know who appeared in the series.
Read more: How the bill transformed UK TV
10 actors who had a big break in The Bill
Sean Bean
He may be a big star now, with career highlights including Game of Thrones, the Sharpe series and the Lord of the Rings movies, but Bean actually had his first credited TV role in 1984, in an episode of The Bill.
It seems Bean was eyed from the beginning as a strong, not-to-be-mess-with character, as he played an armed robber named Horace Clark in the crime drama’s first year.
Keira Knightley
If Knightley’s earliest role you can remember is Bend It Like Beckham, then rewatch some classic episodes of The Bill and see if you can spot the Hollywood star at age 10.
In the 1995 episode, he was worlds away from his flamboyant past, playing a belligerent young thief whom Sun Hill officers try to scold.
David Tennant
Rivals, Doctor Who and Good Omens, were a distant dream for young David Tennant, who gained fame as one of the criminals in 1995’s The Bill.
Tennant played a chilling child kidnapper named Steve Clemens as his career spiraled into a disturbing storyline for the series.
Andy Serkis
Serkis’ resume includes some of Hollywood’s biggest films, including The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, Planet of the Apes, Star Wars and Batman.
But who would have thought that his early work included cameos in the 1990 and 1993 episodes of The Bill? His character in 1990 was a driver who gave Viv Martella a ride while chasing a blue Cortina around Sun Hill.
Jack O’Connell
Former BAFTA Rising Star O’Connell’s career is on the rise, with his recent roles in the TV series SAS: Rogue Heroes and as Blake Fielder-Civil in Back to Black and the upcoming 28 Years Later.
It all started in 2005 in Sun Hill, his second role in four episodes, playing a teenager accused of assault.
James McAvoy
X-Men star McAvoy has also carved out an incredibly successful Hollywood career, appearing in Atonement, Filth, The Last King of Scotland and The Chronicles of Narnia.
His film debut, which catapulted him to TV stardom with series such as Shameless, State of Play and His Dark Materials, was his first small screen work, in a 1997 episode of The Bill, in which he played a troubled teenager while studying at drama school.
Robert Carlyle
While his film career took off in the second half of the ’90s with films like Trainspotting and The Full Monty, Carlyle got his big break in television early in the decade in The Bill.
His 1991 part was his second acting job on the list and saw him playing a smug journalist covering the Sun Hill case.
Idris Elba
Film and TV star Elba has also made a name for himself in crime dramas, with two of his most famous roles: Detective John Luther in the chilling series Luther and Stringer Bell in The Wire.
But you might not know that Mandela star Elba’s career began with two episodes of The Bill, one of his early works, in which he played a criminal involved in a drug case and a delivery driver who is later accused of theft.
Lashana Lynch
She was Bob Marley’s wife in One Love, an MI6 agent in No Time To Die, Miss Honey in Matilda the Musical and Maria Rambeau in Captain Marvel, but Lynch found her first acting job in The Bill.
Lynch appeared in 2007 as the girlfriend of a gang member being held hostage, and five years later she starred in her first film, Fast Girls.
Nicholas Hoult
Before becoming the child star of About A Boy and the teenage star of the TV series Skins, Hoult gained valuable experience on The Bill as an 11-year-old boy caught up in a botched bank raid in a 2000 episode.
He has since appeared in X-Men: Apocalypse, The Favorite and True History of the Kelly Gang, as well as the TV series The Great.
The Bill airs on U and airs weekly on U&Drama.