In Defence

In Defence is a four-part British television legal drama series, created and partially written by Mike Cullen, that first broadcast on ITV on 26 June 2000.^[1] The series stars Ross Kemp and Sophie Okonedo, and follows Sam Lucas (Kemp), a lawyer and legal detective, who takes it upon himself to investigate cases where the police have failed to uncover enough evidence to secure a conviction. The series was co-written by Maxwell Young and Abigail Fray, and was initially billed as a "star-vehicle" for Kemp, as part of a "golden handcuffs" deal to lure Kemp away from the BBC.^[2] The series broadcast weekly until 17 July 2000.^[3]

The first episode drew in just over seven million viewers, although by the end of this series, figures had dropped to just 4.9 million.^[4] Poor ratings led to the series being axed by ITV, which in turn led to discussions regarding Kemp's contract with the broadcaster. However, following the success of Without Motive, a fellow ITV stablemate which Kemp filmed concurrently alongside In Defence, his contract was renewed, with a second series of Without Motive commissioned.^[2] The series has yet to be released on DVD, and remains unrepeated since its initial broadcast.