Best tv shows like The Professionals
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
The lives of Bodie and Doyle, top agents for Britain's CI5 (Criminal Intelligence 5), and their controller, George Cowley. The mandate of CI5 was to fight terrorism and similar high-profile crimes. Cowley, a hard ex-MI5 operative, hand-picked each of his men. Bodie is a cynical ex-SAS paratrooper and mercenary whose nature ran to controlled violence, while his partner, Doyle, comes to CI5 from the regular police force, and is more of an open minded liberal. Their relationship is often contentious, but they are the top men in their field, and the ones to whom Cowley always assigned to the toughest cases.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Action, Comedy, Crime
Country: UK
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, controversial
Best tv shows and movies like The Professionals (1977):
Similar in 81%
Bugs (1995)
Plot Summary:
Bugs was a British television drama series which ran for four series from April 1995 to August 1999. The programme, a mixture of action/adventure and science-fiction, involved a team of specialist independent crime-fighting technology experts, who faced a variety of threats based around computers and other modern technology. It was originally broadcast on Saturday evenings on BBC One, and was produced for the BBC by the independent production company Carnival Films.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 568
Genere: Action, Crime, Sci-Fi
Country: UK
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: detective
Similar in 88%
The Persuaders! (1971)
Plot Summary:
The Persuaders! is a 1971 action/adventure series, produced by ITC Entertainment for initial broadcast on ITV and ABC. It has been called "the last major entry in the cycle of adventure series that had begun eleven years earlier with Danger Man in 1960", as well as "the most ambitious and most expensive of Sir Lew Grade's international action adventure series". The Persuaders Series was filmed in France, Italy and England between May 1970 and June 1971. Despite its focus on the British and American markets, the show was popular elsewhere. It won its highest awards from Australia and Spain, while Roger Moore and Tony Curtis were decorated in Germany and France for their acting. It persists in the memory of European filmmakers and audiences, having been casually referenced in 21st century productions from Sweden, France, Britain and Germany.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Comedy
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: detective, humorous, realistic, semi serious, surprise ending, buddy comedy, vintage
Similar in 79%
The Border (2008)
Plot Summary:
The Border is a Canadian drama that aired on CBC Television and 20 other TV networks worldwide. It was created by Peter Raymont, Lindalee Tracey, Janet MacLean and Jeremy Hole of White Pine Pictures. The Executive in Charge of Production is Janice Dawe. Episodes in the first season were directed by John Fawcett, Michael DeCarlo, Ken Girotti, Kelly Makin, Brett Sullivan and Philip Earnshaw. The first season had a total budget of 20 million dollars, with about 1.5 million dollars per episode. The series is set in Toronto and follows agents of the fictitious Immigration and Customs Security agency. ICS was created by the Government of Canada to deal with trans-border matters concerning Canadian national security including terrorism and smuggling. The cancellation of The Border was announced by the CBC after three seasons were aired.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 947
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: realistic, tense, captivating, exciting, suspense, detective, rough, bleak, serious, suspenseful
Similar in 81%
In the Line of Duty 4 (1989)
Plot Summary:
Two detectives who are up to their necks in trouble and in each other's face, as they try to shut down a drug-trafficking scheme that could be connected with international ties to organized crime. But in the midst of their investigation, innocent immigrant dock worker Luk Wan-Ting gets caught up in the mix when he witnesses the murder of an intelligence operative and is framed for the crime.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Comedy, Crime
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: perverse, cult classic, detective, exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, stylized, fast
Similar in 79%
It Takes a Thief (1968)
Plot Summary:
It Takes a Thief is an American action-adventure television series that aired on ABC for two and a half seasons between January 9, 1968, and March 24, 1970. It starred veteran movie actor Robert Wagner in his television debut as sophisticated thief Alexander Mundy, who works for the U.S. government in return for his release from prison. For most of the series, Malachi Throne played Noah Bain, Mundy's boss. It was among the last of the 1960s spy television genre, although Mission: Impossible continued for several years. It Takes A Thief was inspired by, though not based upon, the 1955 Cary Grant motion picture To Catch a Thief, directed by Alfred Hitchcock; both of their titles stem from the English proverb "It takes a thief to catch a thief.".
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 51 min
Plot tags: exciting, humorous, realistic, suspenseful, semi serious, vintage
Similar in 76%
Sledge Hammer! (1986)
Plot Summary:
Sledge Hammer! is an American satirical police sitcom produced by New World Television that ran for two seasons on ABC from 1986 to 1988. The series was created by Alan Spencer and stars David Rasche as Inspector Sledge Hammer, a preposterous caricature of the standard "cop on the edge" character. Al Jean and Mike Reiss, best known for their work on The Simpsons, wrote for the show and worked as story editors.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Action, Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: parody, spoof, detective, sitcom, humorous, not serious, witty, feel good, light, hilarious
Similar in 76%
Starsky & Hutch (1975)
Plot Summary:
Starsky & Hutch is a 1970s American cop thriller television series, which consisted of a 70-minute pilot movie and 92 episodes of 50 minutes each. The show was created by William Blinn, produced by Spelling-Goldberg Productions, and broadcast between April 30, 1975 and May 15, 1979 on the ABC network. It was distributed by Columbia Pictures Television in the United States and, originally, Metromedia Producers Corporation in Canada and some other parts of the world. Sony Pictures Television is now the worldwide distributor for the series. The series also inspired a theatrical film and a video game.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: detective, exciting, rough, realistic, semi serious, tense, retro, fast, vintage, cult film
Similar in 85%
Hawaii (2004)
Plot Summary:
Hawaii is a United States television series produced and distributed by NBC Universal Television for the NBC television network. Originally titled Pearl City, this police drama was produced with the series Hawaii Five-O in mind, and debuted on August 31, 2004. Written by Executive Producer Jeff Eastin, the series revolves around a fictional elite crime unit of the Honolulu Police Department headed by veteran detective and local legend Sean Harrison and John Declan, a former Chicago Police Department detective transferred to the state of Hawaii for his talents. The series was written by Jeff Eastin, Chris Black, Reid Steiner, Wendy West, Eric Haywood, and Travis Romero. The series is considered one of the most ambitious projects in the history of the Hawaii State Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism's Hawaii Film Office, desperate to repeat the economic prosperity once gained and driven by the CBS television series such as Hawaii Five-O and Magnum, P.I. for the state's tourism industry. The series was canceled in October 2004. Although eight episodes were filmed, only seven actually aired.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 137
Genere: Action, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 77%
Fastlane (2002)
Plot Summary:
Fastlane is an American action/crime drama series that was broadcast on Fox from September 18, 2002 to April 25, 2003. On August 14, 2005 G4 began rebroadcasting the complete series. After finishing its initial run on the network, Fastlane stopped airing on G4. Fastlane also aired on TVOne sometime around 2006.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Action, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: exciting, suspenseful, stylized, realistic, detective, sexy, bad ending, neo noir, anime, semi serious
Similar in 90%
Z Cars (1962)
Plot Summary:
Z-Cars or Z Cars is a British television drama series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, Merseyside. Produced by the BBC, it debuted in January 1962 and ran until September 1978.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 370
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: detective, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 85%
This Is England '88 (2011)
Plot Summary:
Set during Christmas 1988, Lol is haunted by the devastating events that took place two and a half years before. She and Woody both find themselves struggling to cope with their lives without each other after he leaves the gang. Lol is carrying the burden of her guilt, whilst Woody is trying to build a domestic life with a new girlfriend and a potential promotion at work. Shaun has started drama college and, although still in a relationship with Smell, he has grown close to a girl performing in his Christmas play.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 70 min
Plot tags: touching, rough, bleak, serious, emotional, realistic, retro, gloomy, period drama, masterpiece
Similar in 85%
The Bill (1984)
Plot Summary:
The Bill is a police procedural television series that was broadcast on the ITV network from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, entitled Woodentop, which was broadcast in August 1983. In its final year on air, The Bill was broadcast once a week, usually on Tuesdays or Thursdays, in a one-hour format. The programme focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work. At the time of the series' conclusion, The Bill was the longest-running police procedural television series in the United Kingdom, and was among the longest-running of any British television series. The series was produced by Thames Television. The series name originated from "Old Bill", a slang term for the police. This was also Geoff McQueen's original title idea for the series, before he eventually decided on "The Bill". Although highly acclaimed amongst fans and critics alike, the series attracted controversy on several occasions. An episode broadcast in 2008 was criticised for featuring fictional treatment for multiple sclerosis, and another episode in the same year resulted in litigation, submitted by MP George Galloway for defamation. The series has also faced more general criticism, concerning the levels of violence it portrays, particularly prior to 2009, when it occupied a pre-watershed slot. During its time on air, The Bill won several awards, including BAFTAs, a Writers' Guild of Great Britain award and the title of "best drama" at the Inside Soap Awards in 2009, the latter being the series' fourth consecutive win. Throughout its twenty-seven-year run, the programme was always broadcast on the main ITV network. In later years, episodes of the show were repeated on ITV3 on their week of broadcast. The series has also been repeated on other digital stations, including UKTV Gold, Alibi, Watch and UKTV G2. In March 2010, executives at ITV announced that the network did not intend to recommission The Bill, and that filming on the series would cease on 14 June 2010. The last ever episode of the series was aired on 31 August 2010.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: captivating, serious, sincere, detective, crime drama, realistic
Similar in 80%
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (1964)
Plot Summary:
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is an American television series that was broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1964, to January 15, 1968. It follows the exploits of two secret agents, played by Robert Vaughn and David McCallum, who work for a fictitious secret international espionage and law-enforcement agency called U.N.C.L.E. Originally co-creator Sam Rolfe wanted to leave the meaning of U.N.C.L.E. ambiguous so it could be viewed as either referring to "Uncle Sam" or the United Nations. Concerns by the MGM Legal department about possible New York law violations for using the abbreviation "U.N." for commercial purposes resulted in the producers clarifying that U.N.C.L.E. was an acronym for the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement. Each episode of the television show had an "acknowledgement" credit to the U.N.C.L.E. on the end titles.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: retro, exciting, humorous, suspenseful, semi serious, fast, parody, freeze frame, homoerotic, vintage
Similar in 82%
The Sweeney (1975)
Plot Summary:
The Sweeney is a 1970s British television police drama focusing on two members of the Flying Squad, a branch of the Metropolitan Police specialising in tackling armed robbery and violent crime in London. The programme's title derives from Sweeney Todd, which is Cockney rhyming slang for "Flying Squad". The programme was shot entirely on 16mm film by Thames Television's film division, Euston Films. It originally aired on ITV between 2 January 1975 and 28 December 1978 in the 9-10pm weekday slot with repeated showings at the same time until the early 1980s. It starred John Thaw as Detective Inspector Jack Regan, and Dennis Waterman as his partner Detective Sergeant George Carter. Such was its popularity in the UK that it spawned two theatrically released feature film spin-offs, Sweeney! and Sweeney 2. The series aired during a dark period for the real-life Flying Squad. In the late 1970s, the Flying Squad was publicly censured for being involved in bribery, police corruption and excessively close links with the criminal fraternity. Unlike the unwavering high standards seen in the fictional Sweeney, the actual commander of the Flying Squad, Detective Chief Superintendent Kenneth Drury was convicted of five counts of corruption and jailed for eight years on 7 July 1977. An internal investigation, called Operation Countryman, was then launched to stamp out more corruption. A further 12 officers were convicted and many others resigned.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 51 min
Plot tags: detective, crime drama, exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 84%
The Avengers (1961)
Plot Summary:
The Avengers is a British television series created in the 1960s. The Avengers initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed. Hendry left after the first series and Steed became the main character, partnered with a succession of assistants. Steed's most famous assistants were intelligent, stylish and assertive women: Cathy Gale, Emma Peel, and later Tara King. Later episodes increasingly incorporated elements of science fiction and fantasy, parody and British eccentricity.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Action, Comedy, Crime, Mystery, Romance, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: sitcom, retro, exciting, offbeat, humorous, witty, semi serious, fast, black comedy, vintage
Similar in 83%
S.W.A.T. (1975)
Plot Summary:
S.W.A.T. is an American action/crime drama series about the adventures of a Special Weapons And Tactics team operating in an unidentified California city. A spin-off of The Rookies, the series aired on ABC from February 1975 to April 1976. Like The Rookies, S.W.A.T. was produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: rough, realistic, stylized, serious, detective, exciting, fast
Similar in 75%
The Thin Blue Line (1995)
Plot Summary:
The Thin Blue Line is a British sitcom starring Rowan Atkinson set in a police station that ran for two series on the BBC from 1995 to 1996. It was written by Ben Elton.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Comedy, Crime
Country: UK
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, sitcom, detective, not serious, realistic, witty, hilarious, atmospheric, double entendre, alternative comedy
Similar in 80%
The Streets of San Francisco (1972)
Plot Summary:
The Streets of San Francisco is a 1970s television police drama filmed on location in San Francisco, California, and produced by Quinn Martin Productions, with the first season produced in association with Warner Bros. Television. It starred Karl Malden and Michael Douglas as two detectives in San Francisco. The show ran for five seasons, between September 16, 1972, and June 9, 1977, on ABC, amassing a total of 119 60-minute episodes. The series started with a pilot movie of the same title a week before the series debuted. Edward Hume, who wrote the teleplay for the pilot, was credited as having developed the series based on characters in Weston's novel. The pilot featured guest stars Robert Wagner, Tom Bosley and Kim Darby. Douglas left the series at the start of its final season and was replaced by Richard Hatch.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: detective, realistic, retro, rough, serious, suspenseful, neo noir, vintage
Similar in 83%
L.A. Heat (1996)
Plot Summary:
L.A. Heat is an American action series starring Wolf Larson and Steven Williams as Los Angeles police detectives, in the tradition of films like Lethal Weapon. The series aired on TNT from March 15, 1999.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 455
Genere: Action, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: detective, exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, fast
Similar in 88%
Police Woman (1974)
Plot Summary:
Sergeant “Pepper"” Anderson, an undercover cop for the Criminal Conspiracy Unit of the Los Angeles Police Department, poses undercover from mob girl to prostitute.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: detective, retro, exciting, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 88%
Crossing Lines (2013)
Plot Summary:
Through globalization, many countries have been opened and barriers removed to ensure easy trade, travel and cultural diversity. However, this openness has given opportunities to criminals looking to exploit the system and ultimately threaten our global safety. As Europe has become a "safe house" for criminals eluding law enforcers, a special kind of law enforcement team is needed to handle specific ongoing crimes on a global level. "Crossing Lines" is the story of one such team, made up of five international cops, headed by Captain Daniel. The team - comprised of individuals who have little in common - must learn to live and work under the most dangerous and potentially deadly conditions. Housed in an unused storage section underneath the ICC, this mismatched team faces bureaucratic, jurisdictional and cultural obstacles while traversing continents in pursuit of justice.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: France, Germany, Belgium, USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: detective, serious, suspenseful, realistic, dramatic
Similar in 88%
FX: The Series (1996)
Plot Summary:
Rollie Tyler, a special effects expert, helps his detective friend solve crimes by making criminals see what they want to see. But what is real and what is illusion?.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 787
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: detective, exciting, clever, serious, realistic, suspenseful, cynical, stylized, fast
Similar in 77%
T.J. Hooker (1982)
Plot Summary:
T. J. Hooker is an American police drama television program starring William Shatner in the title role as a 15-year veteran police sergeant. The series premiered as a mid-season replacement on March 13, 1982, on ABC and ran on the network until May 4, 1985. The show was then picked up for a further single season by CBS. The supporting cast includes Adrian Zmed as rookie Officer Vince Romano, Heather Locklear as rookie Officer Stacy Sheridan, and Richard Herd as Captain Dennis Sheridan as personnel in the fictional "LCPD" Police Department Academy Precinct. Towards the end of the show's second season, James Darren became a regular cast member as Officer Jim Corrigan. The series was created by Rick Husky, who later went on to serve as executive producer of Walker Texas Ranger, and produced by Aaron Spelling and Leonard Goldberg.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: detective, exciting, serious, realistic, suspenseful, witty, campy
Similar in 80%
Spooks (2002)
Plot Summary:
Tense drama series about the different challenges faced by the British Security Service as they work against the clock to safeguard the nation. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, and the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a highly secure suite of offices known as The Grid.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, exciting, tense, rough, suspenseful, crime drama, political, bleak, fast
Similar in 77%
The Saint (1962)
Plot Summary:
The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character Simon Templar, played by Roger Moore as a suave and sophisticated Robin Hood-like adventurer. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the initial letters of his name are also an abbreviation for the word saint. When taking on an American persona, he would often use the name Sebastian Tombs. As a result of the strong performance in the US of the first two black-and-white series in first-run syndication, NBC picked up the show as a summer replacement in its evening schedule in 1966. The programme therefore ended its run with both trans-Atlantic prime time scheduling and colour episodes. It also proved popular beyond the UK and US, eventually airing in over 60 countries, and made a profit in excess of £350m for ITC. With almost 120 episodes, the programme is exceeded only by The Avengers as the most productive show of its genre produced in the UK.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: detective, serious, realistic, vintage, cult film
Similar in 88%
Legends (2014)
Plot Summary:
Working for the FBI's Deep Cover Operations division, Martin Odum can transform himself into a different person -- whether it's an assignment as a Serbian extremist, a corrupt Chicago police officer, a British special forces colonel, or a legendary computer hacker. But when he learns that his life, itself, may be a lie, he faces the demands of his job and a desire to solve the mystery of his identity. And given the choice between the two, Odum doesn't always make the right decision. From the producers of "Homeland," "Legends" is based on Robert Littell's award-winning book.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, suspenseful, realistic, detective, action adventure, gloomy
Similar in 86%
The Chicago Code (2011)
Plot Summary:
The series follows officers of the Chicago Police Department as they fight crime on the streets and try to expose political corruption within the city.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, detective, dark drama, fast
Similar in 88%
The Interceptor (2015)
Plot Summary:
A gripping eight-part series about a state-of-the-art law enforcement team whose unswerving mission is to hunt down some of Britain’s most dangerous criminals. The Interceptor delves into the adventures of a dedicated surveillance team known as the UNIT. Keeping their quarries under ultra-tight surveillance, they take us into the real world inhabited by the criminals of today. And it’s easy to recognize because it’s the same world the rest of us inhabit.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: rough, realistic, suspenseful, tense, serious
Similar in 79%
By Any Means (2013)
Plot Summary:
By Any Means follows a clandestine unit living on the edge and playing the criminal elite at their own game, existing in the grey area between the letter of the law and true justice.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, exciting, realistic, historical drama
Similar in 89%
The Equalizer (1985)
Plot Summary:
The Equalizer is an American television series that ran for four seasons, initially on CBS, between 1985 and 1989. It stars Edward Woodward as a middle aged retired intelligence officer with a mysterious past who helps people in trouble. The show mixes ingredients from popular spy films and private investigator shows with violent realism. A film adaptation starring Denzel Washington was released in 2014.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 48 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, captivating, realistic, suspenseful, detective, neo noir