Thane and Moss BBC Radio Detective Drama

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Bill Knox: the grandfather of tartan noir.

Decades before Inspector Rebus, Karen Pirie and Jack Laidlaw walked Scotland’s mean streets, two detectives solved the nation’s fictional crimes. Chief Inspector Thane was the hot-headed one, Moss was his cool, determined colleague. They first appeared in 1957 in the book Deadline for a Dream. Their creator was Bill Knox, a Scottish author, journalist and broadcaster, who published over 50 crime novels, including several series, but most notably the “Thane and Moss” books.

In the 1960s and 70s, BBC Radio broadcast a number of Thane and Moss plays, many dramatized by Knox himself. Some of these have been lost, but collected here are four surviving full-cast plays Leave it to the Hangman, Draw Batons, Taste of Proof and The Tallyman, supplemented by a reading of Deadline for a Dream.

Leave it to the Hangman – Every family has its secrets – some more than others. Take the Kilburns: from the murky depths of smuggling to the explosive dangers of stolen dynamite, no deed is too daring for this clan. Yet, even in a world where lawlessness reigns, there are lines that are not meant to be crossed. The cold-blooded murder of a policeman shocks the city. Both the police and the Kilburns themselves know that one member of the family was responsible – but which one? The chase leads Detectives Thane and Moss through a maze of deceit and danger. As they draw closer to the truth, they find themselves up against not just the cunning of a criminal family, but the very code that binds them.

Draw Batons – A used-car dealer is found murdered in the middle of a model railway – a community exhibition organised by local police. Before long, the murder becomes linked with the threat of a major crime planned by a gang of men who quickly show themselves ready to kill again. Against the backdrop of a city invaded by football fans arriving for an international match, Thane and Moss struggle to find the truth. Backstreet death and violence punctuate their progress. The football match is just one piece of a jigsaw that climaxes in an art heist of unparalleled magnitude.

Taste of Proof – The safe-raiding at Glen Ault whisky warehouse seems an ordinary enough incident to Detective Chief Inspector Colin Thane and Detective Inspector Phil Moss of Glasgow’s bustling Millside Division. But the case assumes major proportions when the jailed man’s wife is murdered and HM Customs and Excise become involved. The two CID officers soon realise that the real taste of proof would have to come from the whisky – but to find their proof they must travel from the great sprawl of a new housing development in the city to the desolate loneliness of a vast peat-bog.

The Tallyman – Beware the Tallyman, a merciless predator! Somewhere in the Millside district of Glasgow a tallyman – an unlicensed loan shark – is preying on people in desperate financial straits. He loans them cash at rates they cannot hope to pay back – and then demands various services in kind. And these ‘services’ make the Tallyman a one-man crime wave. It’s a tough, depressing case for Inspectors Thane and Moss, especially after one of Thane’s close friends is found dead – a victim of the brutal moneylender. And so it takes all of Thane’s hot-headed drive and Moss’s cool determination to flush out the Tallyman – but neither of them is prepared for the final violent confrontation in the heart of Scotland’s wild, craggy highlands.

Deadline for a Dream – There are two sides to every story – a tense tale of a crime reporter turned criminal. Armed with a gun, driven by desperation, and possessing insider knowledge of a potential big score, he daringly executes a factory payroll hold-up. And that’s when his whole world begins to fall apart. Detectives Thane and Moss embark on a manhunt, and a gripping game of cat and mouse unfolds, leading the detectives towards a pulse-pounding showdown with a criminal who has nothing left to lose.

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Episode List

• 01 – Leave It To The Hangman
• 02 – Draw Batons
• 03 – The Taste of Proof
• 04 – The Tallyman
• 05 – Deadline for a Dream
• 06 – Deadline for a Dream
• 07 – Deadline for a Dream
• 08 – Deadline for a Dream
• 09 – Deadline for a Dream

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