North Square: Trailer, certificate and where to watch
Hit legal drama starring Rupert Penry-Jones and Helen McCrory
Year: 2000
Certificate: 15
This Leeds-set legal drama from 2000 was created by Peter Moffat, and with The Clash on the soundtrack you can tell it's no stuffy courtroom affair straight away. Moffat has form with legal drama series, writing Criminal Justice and Silk, as well as the 2020 US show Your Honor, starring Breaking Bad's Bryan Cranston. All of them are, as with this, gripping character-led dramas, dipped in agile legal manoeuvring and moral dilemmas, with a side order of sex and a sprinkling of humour - episode one introduces us to a thief who steals Y-fronts.
This show was a big hit for Channel 4 when it first aired in 2000, and helped to launch the career of Rupert Penry-Jones (who would later star with Maxine Peake in Silk). With a superb cast that also included Phil Davis as the smart and scheming head clerk and Helen McCrory as the 'barrister with a baby' fighting to get back to the big cases, it's a joy to revisit. (Ten episodes)
