page_title: Heartbeat (British TV series)
section_title: Premise
hierarchical_section_title: Heartbeat (British TV series) / Premise
context_page_description: Heartbeat is a British police drama series set in 1960s North Riding of Yorkshire based on the "Constable" series of novels written by ex-policeman Peter N Walker, under the pseudonym Nicholas Rhea, and broadcast on ITV in 18 series between 1992 and 2010. It was made by ITV Studios at the Leeds Studios and on location. Heartbeat first aired on Friday 10 April 1992. The 372nd and final episode aired on Sunday 12 September 2010.
  Heartbeat proved popular from the beginning, when early series consistently drew over 10 million viewers. In 2001, Heartbeat came sixth in the UK TV ratings list with a peak audience of 13.82 million, and it was sixth again in 2003, with 12.8 million viewers. In autumn 2008, typical viewing figures were around 6 million per episode.
  Originally conceived as a vehicle for Nick Berry, on whom early series centred, the show saw many characters come and go over the years. Derek Fowlds and William Simons were the only main-cast actors who remained with the show over its entire 18-series run.
context_section_description: Heartbeat is set in the 1960s. Although the specific timeframe is vague, various episodes appear to correspond to events between 1964 and 1969. For the series transmitted between 1992 and 1999, the setting corresponded roughly with the date 30 years before. After 1999 the series was frozen in 1969. The series initially revolves around the work of a group of police officers in the fictional town of Ashfordly and the village of Aidensfield in the North Riding of Yorkshire.
  The series was originally based on the '"Constable"' books written by former policeman Peter Walker, under the pen-name Nicholas Rhea. The title Heartbeat was chosen to represent "the bobby's beat and the medical connotations of the word 'heart'" ("bobby" being British slang for a police officer (from Robert Peel), and "medical connotations" referring to the medical themes that have featured regularly in the show since its inception). The show was originally a starring vehicle for ex-EastEnders actor Nick Berry, cast as PC Nick Rowan, the Aidensfield policeman newly arrived from London with his wife Kate, a doctor. Berry also sings Heartbeat's theme song – the Buddy Holly song of the same name. Berry's recording reached number 2 on the UK singles chart in 1992.
  In later series, the role of the village policeman continued to be central to the storyline but the main cast were listed in alphabetical order in the opening credits, reflecting the show's evolution into an ensemble drama. In the 2005 series no fewer than twelve regular actors had their names and faces included in the opening credits— at the time a record for any British series. In series 18 (2008–10) this had increased to thirteen. The record has since been broken by Holby City, which during the later stages of its 2009–10 series had sixteen regular actors appearing and listed in the opening credits.
  The show rarely features political storylines, though occasional references to the counterculture movement are made during some episodes. Sixties pop music is prominent, forming the soundtrack to the show, as well as some 1950s records. Some 1970s records appear anachronistically, such as the Hollies' 1974 song "The Air That I Breathe", Led Zeppelin's "Black Dog" (1971) or Pink Floyd's 1971 instrumental "One of These Days." The series 17 finale "You Never Can Tell" is accompanied by the Flying Pickets' 1983 song "Only You", an episode which featured a guest appearance by the band's lead singer Brian Hibbard.
  Although its storylines regularly involved serious crime and human tragedy, later series of Heartbeat dealt with these themes in a relatively cosy and comfortable manner compared to more modern TV police dramas, and much of the grittiness and social realism of the early series disappeared, though "Another Little Piece of My Heart" (series 16) was preceded by a viewer discretion warning for "containing scenes of domestic violence".
caption: Location of the North Riding of Yorkshire (red) in England