Jonathan Creek  Jonathan Creek is a British mystery crime drama series produced by the BBC and written by David Renwick. It stars Alan Davies as the title character, who works as a creative consultant to a stage magician while also solving seemingly supernatural mysteries through his talent for logical deduction and his understanding of illusions. The series ran semi-regularly from 1997 to 2004, broadcasting for four series and two Christmas specials, initially co-starring Caroline Quentin as Creek's collaborator, writer Maddy Magellan. After Quentin's departure in 2001, Julia Sawalha joined the cast as new character Carla Borrego, a theatrical agent turned television presenter. Following a five-year hiatus, the series returned for a one-off special on 1 January 2009, "The Grinning Man", which featured Sheridan Smith as another paranormal investigator with whom Creek joins forces. A further 90-minute special "The Judas Tree", was filmed in October 2009 and broadcast on 4 April 2010; while a third special, "The Clue of the Savant's Thumb", was shown at Easter 2013. Sheridan Smith reprised her role as Joey in both specials. Series 5 comprised three episodes and featured Sarah Alexander as Jonathan's wife Polly. These episodes were shown at 9pm on Friday 28 February, 7 and 14 March 2014 respectively. In 2014, conflicting reports surfaced regarding Alan Davies's view of the show. In one article published online he was said to be 'happy to do Jonathan Creek for another ten years' and praised David Renwick's talent as a writer. On 4 March 2016, it was reported that the series would be returning for another 90-minute one-off special, with filming to begin in summer 2016. This new 90-minute special aired on 28 December 2016. Sarah Alexander returned as Jonathan Creek's wife Polly, alongside guest stars Warwick Davis, Emun Elliott and Rosalind March. The cult success of the series won it the BAFTA for Best Drama Series in 1998. It was notable for featuring comic characters and sub-plots that lent a lot of humour to the series. Unusually, it was produced by the BBC's in-house Entertainment department rather than the Drama department – this was because Renwick preferred working with people he knew rather than the people at Drama who might not share his vision. It has included guest-stars such as Bob Monkhouse, Griff Rhys Jones, Rik Mayall, Jack Dee, Bill Bailey, John Bird and Nigel Planer; who are mainly associated with comedy, but who gave straight performances.