Confessions of a Copper, Channel 4

CONFESSIONS OF A COPPER, CHANNEL 4 Ask a policeman?

Ask a policeman?

This will have brought a nostalgic tear to the eye of fans of The Sweeney (the TV show, not the Ray Winstone movie) or GF Newman's still-shocking 1978 series Law and Order. The producers had rounded up seven retired policepersons and got them to spill some of the beans about what policing was like in the Sixties and Seventies.

24 Hours in Police Custody, Channel 4

24 HOURS IN POLICE CUSTODY, CHANNEL 4 Gripping documentary series outstrips crime drama

Gripping documentary series outstrips crime drama

“Your law is too soft. Make it more strict.” An Albanian illegal immigrant suspected of handling stolen goods was unimpressed by the courtesy extended to him by Bedfordshire Police. Too many pleases and thank yous, he complained. In Tirana the rozzers probably don’t ask you if you have any food allergies.

Scott & Bailey, Series 4, ITV

Manchester's detective duo are as disaster-prone as ever

When Rachel Bailey (Suranne Jones) told the promotion board at the beginning of this series: “I’m not a liability, I’m a safe pair of hands”, we knew it would be a matter of sitting back and waiting to see in what manner she would heap disgrace upon herself.

22 Jump Street

22 JUMP STREET Hill and Tatum return for a sequel that has fun embracing its derivativeness

Hill and Tatum return for a sequel that has fun embracing its derivativeness

"We're too old for this shit," quips Jenko (Channing Tatum), quoting one of the greats of weary screen policing - Lethal Weapon's Murtaugh - in response to his latest nonsensically spectacular brush with death. "We started off too old for this shit," shoots back his partner Schmidt (Jonah Hill). Welcome to 22 Jump Street: a film that wears a lack of originality not just on its sleeve but as its whole outfit. Its predecessor 21 Jump Street was the big screen remake that promised little but delivered in belly laughs.

Fruitvale Station

FRUITVALE STATION Star turn from Michael B. Jordan at the heart of affecting directorial debut

A star turn from Michael B. Jordan is at the heart of this affecting directorial debut

In the very first hours of 2009, Oscar Grant III, a 22-year-old African-American, was traveling back to the East Bay suburbs with a group of friends after celebrating New Year’s in San Francisco when they were herded off their BART train (the Bay Area’s version of the Tube) by the transport police onto a platform at Fruitvale Station following an altercation. After an escalation of anxiety and machismo on both sides, one of the BART police shot the unarmed, handcuffed Grant in the back (he later claimed he thought he was firing his Taser) as the train waited in the station.

Meet the Police Commissioner, Channel 4

MEET THE POLICE COMMISSIONER, CHANNEL 4 David Cameron's big idea in action mercilessly scrutinised by docusoap

David Cameron's big idea in action mercilessly scrutinised by docusoap

The Big Society. Not to be confused with other Bigs: the Big Bang, Chill, Sleep, Easy, Lebowski, Fat Greek Wedding, Trouble in Little China etc. History records that David Cameron’s sizeable brainwave vaporised on impact with reality around the time of the last election. Its only visible remnant is the office of Police and Crime Commissioner. This is the new post that anyone – even former deputy PM John Prescott - can stand for without previous knowledge of policing. Voter turnout in 2012 was on the low side.

Microcosm, Soho Theatre

MICROCOSM, SOHO THEATRE Prize-winning playwright puts paranoia centre-stage

Prize-winning playwright puts paranoia centre-stage

As glad as I am that you've chosen to read this review, I can't help thinking you'd get more kicks out of the Daily Mail's take on Microcosm at the Soho Theatre, if indeed there is one. Written by Matt Hartley, whose Sixty Five Miles won a Bruntwood prize for playwriting in 2005, Microcosm is, as its title suggests, an attempt to home in on the paranoia and anxiety expressed across the country by right-leaning suburbanites.

Prey, ITV

PREY, ITV Super Simm shines as wronged cop on the run

Super Simm shines as wronged cop on the run

"Policeman wrongly accused of murder" is possibly not history's most original story idea, but in Prey, writer (and TV debutant) Chris Lunt has turned it into a platform for a skilfully-controlled thriller that keeps your brow sweaty and your breath coming in short panicky gasps. It's greatly assisted by having John Simm playing the lead role of Manchester-based DS Marcus Farrow, since there's nobody better when you want a bit of earthy-but-sincere, with added soulfulness.

Vera, Series 4, ITV

VERA, SERIES 4, ITV Can the canny Geordie sleuth join the pantheon of Great British Detectives?

Can the canny Geordie sleuth join the pantheon of Great British Detectives?

She drinks beer, drives a Land Rover and can never remember the names of her sidekick’s wife and daughter: welcome to the offbeat world of Vera Stanhope, deliciously imagined by writer Ann Cleeves and actor Brenda Blethyn. ITV’s Sunday night cop show-by-the sea, Vera, is back with a fourth series which will be welcome news for a loyal few million viewers and for the people who like to sell Northumberland as a tourist attraction.

Line of Duty, Series 2 Finale, BBC Two

LINE OF DUTY, SERIES 2 FINALE, BBC TWO Gruelling police corruption thriller keeps spines tingling to the end

Gruelling police corruption thriller keeps spines tingling to the end

If nothing else, this second series of Jed Mercurio's brutalist police thriller has done wonders for Keeley Hawes. Not that she was in much need of a career pick-me-up, but the way her haunted portrayal of the much-abused DI Lindsay Denton has brooded over the story like a funeral shroud deserves to land her a few gongs and is doubtless already bringing in heaps of job offers.