Inspired by the real-life memoirs of a Victorian Inspector in Scotland, James McLevy prowls the dark streets of 1860s Edinburgh bringing criminals to justice in these two BBC Radio dramatisations starring Brian Cox...

In Servant of the Crown, the Queen is visiting Edinburgh, and McLevy must join Her Majesty's protection squad in a desperate hunt for a deadly assassin.

In The Picture of Innocence, a high court judge is found dead, and suspicion falls on his wife. She protests her innocence, and turns to McLevy for help.

While both of these full cast recordings are incredibly well produced and acted, I personally found Servant of the Crown to be slightly more enjoyable. There's a particular scene with the death of a young police officer which was incredibly well handled - very moving.

With so many crime dramas created for radio, the faultless execution of this series puts it head and shoulders above most of the competition.

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Nick Smithson