Scott & Bailey

Scott & Bailey

Company type	Television series
Industry	Television production
Founded	May 29, 2011 (2011-05-29)
Founder	Suranne Jones and Sally Lindsay (concept)
Headquarters	Manchester , United Kingdom
Products	Television drama series
Parent	Red Production Company

Scott & Bailey is a British police procedural drama that debuted on ITV on 29 May 2011 and concluded on 27 April 2016. Featuring Suranne Jones, Lesley Sharp, Amelia Bullmore, Nicholas Gleaves, Danny Miller, and Pippa Haywood, the narrative centers on detectives Janet Scott (Sharp) and Rachel Bailey (Jones), members of the Syndicate Nine Major Incident Team (MIT) within the fictional Manchester Metropolitan Police. The series, chiefly penned by Sally Wainwright, intertwines both the detectives' personal lives and their professional challenges.

Although the show enjoyed solid ratings and favorable critiques, it was discontinued after a shortened fifth season in 2016 due to creative choices. In 2018, a Canadian adaptation titled The Detail was produced but was cancelled following its first season.

Main Cast

• Lesley Sharp portrays Detective Constable Janet Scott, a member of Syndicate 9 who temporarily assumes the role of Detective Sergeant during Series 3.
• Suranne Jones plays Acting Detective Inspector Rachel Bailey, who begins as a Detective Constable (Series 1–3), advances to Detective Sergeant and Deputy Senior Investigating Officer in Series 4, and ultimately becomes Acting Detective Inspector and Senior Investigating Officer in Series 5.
• Amelia Bullmore appears as Detective Chief Inspector Gill Murray (Series 1–4), serving as Syndicate 9’s Senior Investigating Officer.
• Nicholas Gleaves takes on the role of Detective Sergeant Andy Roper (Series 1–2), the Deputy Senior Investigating Officer for Syndicate 9.
• Danny Miller features as Detective Sergeant Rob Waddington (Series 3–4), also Deputy Senior Investigating Officer within Syndicate 9.
• Pippa Haywood is cast as Detective Superintendent Julie Dodson (Series 5; supporting role Series 2–4), initially leading Syndicate 3 as Senior Investigating Officer before being promoted to Detective Superintendent overseeing multiple syndicates including Syndicate 9.

Supporting Cast

• David Prosho as Detective Constable Ian "Mitch" Mitchell of Syndicate 9.
• Delroy Brown as Detective Constable Lee Broadhurst in Syndicate 9.
• Tony Mooney portrays Detective Constable Pete Readyough, Syndicate 9.
• Ben Batt plays Detective Constable Kevin Lumb (Series 1–3), part of Syndicate 9.
• Rupert Graves appears as Nick Savage (Series 1), a barrister for the CPS.
• Sean Maguire acts as Police Constable Sean McCartney (Series 2–3), a Manchester Metropolitan Police officer and Rachel Bailey’s partner.
• Steve Toussaint portrays Detective Superintendent Will Pemberton (Series 4), an officer in the Vice Unit and Rachel Bailey’s partner.
• Danny Webb plays Detective Constable Chris Crowley (Series 4), an officer in Syndicate 9 and partner to Janet Scott.
• Jing Lusi features as Detective Constable Anna Ram (Series 5) within Syndicate 9.

Recurring Roles

• Sally Lindsay appears as Alison Bailey, daughter of Sharon Bailey and sibling to Rachel and Dominic Bailey.
• Harriet Waters plays Taisie Scott, daughter of Adrian and Janet Scott.
• Tony Pitts portrays Adrian Scott (Series 1–3), Janet Scott’s husband and father to Taisie and Elise Scott.
• Vincent Regan acts as Detective Chief Superintendent Dave Murray (Series 1–2), head of the Review Unit supervising Syndicate 9 investigations; ex-husband of Gill Murray.
• Kevin Doyle features as Geoff Hastings (Series 1–2), an old school friend of Janet Scott who brings her attention to a cold case.
• Julia Deakin (Series 2) and Judy Holt (Series 3–5) portray "Scary" Mary Jackson, a Home Office pathologist.
• Judith Barker plays Dorothy Parsons (Series 2–5), mother to Janet Scott.
• Shannon Flynn (Series 1) and Olivia Fenton (Series 2–4) appear as Elise Scott, daughter of Adrian and Janet Scott.
• Liam Boyle acts as Dominic Bailey (Series 2), son of Sharon Bailey and brother to Rachel and Alison Bailey.
• Tracie Bennett portrays Sharon Bailey (Series 3-4), mother to Rachel, Alison, and Dominic Bailey.
• Nicola Walker appears as Helen Bartlett (Series 3), a person of interest linked to an investigation involving her parents.
• George Costigan plays Joe Bevan (Series 3), a person of interest following his wife’s death.
• Gabrielle Reidy acts as Assistant Chief Constable Karen Zelinski (Series 3), a senior officer within Manchester Metropolitan Police.
• Ellie Haddington features as Evie Pritchard (Series 4), involved in a missing persons inquiry.
• Gregg Chillin appears as Detective Sergeant Neil Simpson (Series 5), an officer in the Serious Crime Unit.

Production

The series Scott & Bailey came into being after executive producer Nicola Shindler received the initial concept and introduced it to writer Sally Wainwright. The production is handled by Red Production Company, based in Manchester, with filming primarily taking place around the Greater Manchester region.

Concept

The idea for Scott & Bailey was conceived by Suranne Jones and Sally Lindsay, with Jones emphasizing the importance of creating more meaningful female characters beyond conventional stereotypes. Their concept originated from an informal discussion between the two actresses. Drawing inspiration from series such as Cagney & Lacey, Lindsay sought to portray the professional and personal lives of two women. Jones described the show as a "Manchester version of Cagney & Lacey", highlighting its more raw and authentic approach.

When they pitched the idea to Nicola Shindler at Red Productions, she brought in Sally Wainwright, who crafted a script that received positive feedback. The project then experienced a delay until ITV showed interest and requested revisions. To further develop the series, Wainwright partnered with Diane Taylor, a former Detective Inspector from Greater Manchester Police, expanding beyond the original vision set by Jones and Lindsay.

Taylor contributed her firsthand policing knowledge to ensure the show's realism, critiquing common police dramas for their inaccuracies in procedure and officer conduct. She stressed that actual police work is far more intricate and compelling than typically depicted, offering dramatic material that viewers might find unexpectedly engaging.

Production team

Scott & Bailey is produced by the Manchester-based company Red Production Company, which became majority-owned by StudioCanal following its £30 million acquisition in December 2013.Nicola Shindler, who founded Red in 1998, holds the role of executive producer alongside writer Sally Wainwright and Tom Sherry. Wainwright has praised Shindler’s leadership for raising the quality of their productions.

Yvonne Francas was the producer for Series 1, with Tom Sherry assuming production duties for Series 2 and 3. A veteran of Red with 15 years’ experience, Sherry described his role as involving collaboration across all departments. For Series 4, he advanced to executive producer alongside Wainwright and Shindler, while Juliet Charlesworth took over as producer. Suranne Jones joined the team as an executive producer for the fifth series filmed in 2015.

Diane Taylor served as consultant producer, contributing to the show's commitment to "rigorous authenticity" through meticulous attention to detail. Wainwright acknowledged Taylor’s substantial impact on script development, especially following their previous collaboration on Unforgiven (2008). While Wainwright wrote most episodes, cast member Amelia Bullmore authored three episodes, marking her first experience writing while acting simultaneously. Bullmore became head writer for Series 4 due to Wainwright’s involvement in other projects such as Last Tango in Halifax and Happy Valley. She was joined by Lee Warburton, who wrote two episodes in Series 4 and returned for Series 5.

The directing process follows a block system whereby each director manages two or three episodes before passing responsibility to another director. Morag Fullerton stands out as the most frequent director, having helmed seven episodes.

Casting

From the outset, Jones had intended to portray the character now known as Rachel Bailey, although the role was originally called Cathy. Lindsay was initially planned to play a leading part, but due to her pregnancy, the role of Janet was assigned to Lesley Sharp, while Lindsay took on the smaller role of Alison, Rachel's sister. Both Jones and Lindsay expressed their support for Sharp’s casting. Separately, Sharp's husband, Nicholas Gleaves, was cast as DS Andy Roper without any influence from their personal connection.

Within the storyline, Rachel and Janet serve as Detective Constables in the Major Incident Team of the fictional Manchester Metropolitan Police Service, which is headed by DCI Gill Murray (Amelia Bullmore). This character draws inspiration from Diane Taylor. Although producers initially sought an older actress for Murray, Bullmore secured the role by showcasing a more compassionate dimension during her audition.

Danny Miller joined the main cast in series 3 as Rob Waddington, while Tracie Bennett appeared portraying DC Bailey’s estranged mother, Sharon. Nicola Walker was introduced in series 3 as Helen Bartlett, a character deeply affected by historical cases investigated by the police; to prepare for this role, Walker engaged with a psychologist to enhance her performance.

Filming

The primary filming phase for the inaugural series spanned twelve weeks starting November 2010, with most scenes shot on location around Greater Manchester. Principal locations included Oldham, where Beal Lane in Shaw featured prominently, alongside Manchester Crown Court. The Major Incident Team’s base was filmed inside a former Barclays branch on Silver Street in Bury, while the fictional Oldham Road police station scenes were captured at the old Greater Manchester Police Grey Mare Lane station in Beswick. Additional shoots took place at a local mortuary and at HM Prison Risley in Cheshire.

Suranne Jones described the filming process as both physically and emotionally taxing, citing a demanding chase sequence filmed on the final day as co-stars prepared for their wrap party.

After the show was renewed, production for series two commenced at the end of October 2011, with plans to air it in 2012. During filming on Hamilton Road in Whitefield, an incident occurred when a crew member became trapped 12 meters above ground on a cherry-picker platform; firefighters intervened and safely rescued him.

Filming for series three began in November 2012 with an anticipated broadcast date set for May 2013. Unlike earlier seasons shot during winter months, series four was filmed over summer due to an extended production hiatus and premiered in September rather than May.

Home media

Series	Episodes	DVD release dates
		Region 2 (United Kingdom)	Region 1 (United States)	Region 4 (Australia)	Discs
1	6	2011-07-04	2014-06-17	2011-11-03	2
2	8	2012-06-04	2014-09-16	2012-11-07	2
3	8	2013-07-01	2015-05-05	2013-12-04	2
4	8	2014-11-10	2016-03-15	2015-02-25	2
5	3	2016-05-02	2016-10-11	2016-09-14	1

Region 1 (U.S. and Canada)

Scott & Bailey: Season 1, 279 minutes total (270 + 9 bonus); released 17 June 2014

Scott & Bailey: Season 2, 370 minutes total (359 + 11 bonus); released 16 September 2014

Scott & Bailey: Season 3, 382 minutes total (364 + 15 bonus); released 6 October 2015

Scott & Bailey: Season 4, 359 minutes total (363 + 17 bonus); released 15 March 2016

Scott & Bailey: Season 5, approximately 130–135 minutes (135 + no bonus); released 11 October 2016

Critical reception

Scott & Bailey has received predominantly favorable critiques. Tom Sutcliffe of The Independent remarked that although ITV took a cautious approach by scheduling a detective drama on Sundays, the show demonstrated "genuine signs of life".