Kavanagh QC, Set 1
The fact that John Thaw was able to make his eponymous character inKavanagh Q.C.stand out as a unique personality distinct from the superficially similar Inspector Morse says much about his understated skills as an actor. Thaw brought his trademark mixture of curmudgeonly belligerence and gruff sensitivity to Kavanagh, but the barrister--who first appeared on British television screens in 1995 while the Oxford detective was still alive and kicking--is no polished-up Morse. He is far more worldly, is married, and has a family. And although he is often troubled by his cases, he is never afraid to play the system. He knows that there are devious, even superficial lawyers, some of them in his own chambers, whom he  must face across the courtroom, but he acknowledges them as an unavoidable  aspect of the world in which he works. The plots are often convoluted, but Kavanagh's wielding of the trusty sword of  truth is always irresistible, particularly when the case involves some kind of high level government aberration. The four episodes included in Set 1 are "Nothing But the Truth," "Heartland," "A Family Affair," and "The Sweetest Thing."--Piers Ford