Class episode today! So many great scenes/lines - and for once Drama left them all in! Loved Meadows (and Conway) in the toilet, the scenes with Reg ('hello Tony, hello Vicky'), Boulton and Brownlow's characterisation, some of the interaction between Boyden and Worrell, 'there's 2 Ts in targett...there's always 2 ts in target you...2 at the end so that's 3 ts...mine's with sugar!' I particularly like how subplots are introduced to keep the main storyline going. 9/10

I've got quite a few to catch up on too!

Are they really cutting that much out of them

All this week's episodes are really good if memory serves me correct.

Watching these repeats makes me want the Bill back so badly! Please someone make it happen!

What's everyone's least favourite episode they've shown so far? My vote would go to The Cross - Kerry Holmes' debut episode. It was so dull. And I've not been keen on Kerry really, but I loved the episode where she was undercover in prison (I watched it the other day) she really grows on me in that episode.

Reg was just being typically Reg

The Cross was very poor, as was Bad Chemistry - the one with the shootout at the end. Watched Friday's episode and I enjoyed it, even if it wasn't the strongest Burnside story I've seen. I've always wondered why Burnside didn't stay on beyond 2000...he was effectively a main character in '99, appearing in loads of episodes. Could have been good as DCI had Jack Meadows left in the Don Beech scandal.

Burnside was give his own spin-off series in 2000 with the series simply being titled "Burnside".

The series made its debut on 7 July 2000, running for 6 episodes with the last episode being broadcast on 11 August 2000. I didn't actually get to see any of the episodes but I remember a couple of friends who watched the series saying they didn't rate it that much. The viewing figures for the series started off well at 7.45m but fell week on week with the last episode attracting 5.66m. I don't remember if there was an original intention by ITV to commission a second series but if there had been I'm guessing the disappointing viewing figures may have helped make up ITV's mind to commission just one series.

In the Burnside series, Burnside himself had apparently been transferred away from Regional Crime Squad to the National Crime Squad (effectively a promotion) so there would have been little scope for the character to make regular returns to Sun Hill after that.

I don't think the Burnside spin-off should ever have happened - it was a failure. Viewing figures of 7 million in 2000 is effectively the equivalent of 4.5 million now, so for it to end on just 5.6m is desperately poor. I think a Burnside return with Chandler there could have provided some big fireworks, but it was never feasibly going to happen.

I believe they're making cuts to every episode, and some of my favourite scenes have definitely been cut. I don't remember most of the episodes well enough to say exactly how much is being cut but others who do have complained at times that the storyline has been significantly affected, and judging by what I have seen I'd say it was a few minutes for each ep.

As for Burnside, I believe Chris Ellison joined Eastenders after the Burnside spin-off didn't work out. To be honest I was never especially a great Burnside fan and whilst his return episodes have been ok I think they're happening a little too frequently in the current repeats so his departure didn't bother me too much.

Too much talk in today's episode

Pretty much what I was going to say for yesterday's ep. Fabulous episode. Although I was a bit hacked off (no pun intended) when a bit was cut from the very last scene of the episode. The episode seemed to end a bit abruptly due to the cuts. Apart from that, 9.5/10.

Reasonably interesting ones with Burnside up against Boulton and Kerry, and the various politics of that. I liked the Kipling line! Both episodes were alright although I think we're seeing too much of Burnside recently.

Quite liked the episode yesterday with Quinnan returning and the gradual increase in him having to build up the team's trust again. 7/10

And now I'm up to date with today's episode - interesting to see Ashton placed in a tough position (sort of similar to Boyden a while back) and good to see decent amounts of Conway and Cryer. 7.5/10

I must have started watching when i was 8 years old as I remmeber characters such as Roz and Cryer till his end. Bob Cryer is a great character shame Smithy killed him. I never knew Luke was in it before he came back in the 2002 cast reshuffle with Gina Gold, Kerry etc: I still remmember the promotion for that in Whats on TV

I'd stopped watching by then, but I thought Smithy shot Cryer and he ended up in a wheelchair, but didn't kill him?

Just watched On The Road- it was a very boring episode, the main guy was interesting but other then that it had no substance. It was a big jump from having a very PC foccused episode yesterday to 3 characters today

Best part of today's ep was Deakin's mini rant at Rawton and Lennox for 'misplacing' their suspect!! Plus the reminder of how cheap petrol used to be in 1999........

Smithy shot Bob Cryer but he didn't die, he was in a wheelchair for a while and then retired.

Cryer did return once or twice, he was definitely in the episode where it was Ted Roach's funeral, he met up with Jack Meadows and Alec Peters in the village where Ted was killed.

watched Monday to Wednesdays episodes - I still find Uniform stories more interesting. Occasionally you get a cracker CID episode but they do seem to be padded out too much in the hour format.

Good to see Dave back on the job and Luke get a storyline.

I'm still a bit behind but my thoughts on the episodes I've just watched...

No Love Lost - fantastic episode, focusing on Boyden and the underage girl he took home. This was a very emotional, well written episode, dealing with a very difficult subject in a sensitive way. I liked seeing Boyden in a tricky position, and how the case emotionally affected him. 10/10 episode for sure.

Pond Life - Another strong episode, centering on the child rapist who was released back into the community. It was quite a predictable plot - I had a feeling the man would take his own life at the end, after he said to Meadows that he can't settle, he'll just have to keep running. But it was a really good storyline, with lots of dramatic impact. Did anyone think Meadows knew at the back of his mind that he was going to commit suicide when he visited him in his cell? They had ran out of options for places for him to stay, no one wanted him in their community. At the back of his mind, Meadows knew there was no hope for him and the man saying to Meadows 'I need to gather my thoughts together' was a really big hint over the actions he was going to take. Meadows left him in that cell with his bag. I think he knew he was allowing him to take his own life. How irritating is George Garfield? I really disliked the way he treated Dave in this episode. It just seemed to come out of nowhere the attitude he started having towards him. Dave was just doing his job!...

And then comes along the next episode 'Murder, what Murder' which focuses heavily on George Garfield. I wasn't a fan of this episode at all, because I'm not keen on George. And the storyline failed to engage me. The journalist was irritating too.

I quite liked On The Road. When you've got 90 episodes per year I think sometimes you need something a bit different and I preferred it to The Wrong Horse with Hagan and Garfield. A few interesting scenes and some things that got you thinking! 7/10

Today's episode was interesting to see two different approaches - and of course Alex Cullen with a different accent! Interesting to see Boulton, Quinnan and Garfield were all in the credits but don't think we actually saw them in the episode? 6.5/10

I'm well behind on episodes but I thought Out and About, although not big on action, gave us an insight into how much the attack had changed Quinnan - at times he seemed absent-minded. This would serve as the catalyst for an almost 3-year long storyline with Polly. 7.5/10.

Also saw Kiss Chase, which I thought was a strong episode. Like a few have said, it was nice to see Luke, like Boyden a few weeks back, in a difficult position. 8/10 for that.

Didn't watch On the Road but saw Pressure Point, which I thought had a decent crime story but enjoyed the contrast in style between Lennox and Proctor. Decent little episode. 7/10.

Need to catch up on Look Away Now and A Question of Trust.

Really liked today's one with Boulton placed in a difficult position, looking forward to seeing it rounded off tomorrow. Lots of nice dynamics and interactions with CID and they obviously worked Shaun Scott's absence into the storyline by having additional conflict with Boulton and Daly. 9/10

Yesterday's was pretty good too, interesting to see Beech working his magic again! 7/10

From the 7th of October looks like The Bill will move to a slightly later slot (around 11 in the morning I think.) Not sure if this is good news or bad for the show?

Probably just moving the schedule around

It's a bit weird with Boulton after this - I think he's appeared in at least 20 or so episodes over the 8 month period (as they aired on ITV) between the Drama repeats starting and A Question of trust part 2. Yet he's only in 20ish episodes over his final 18 months in the show - and only about 6 more out of the 60 remaining in 1999, 2 of which are the last 2 of the year!!

Anyway enjoyed A Question of Trust Part 2, what with the 'water under the bridge' line and the 'I don't think it's a local bunch...it's spelt correctly for a start'. 8/10

Interesting ambiguous note to end it on too - was Boulton winding Rod up or was he actually involved?!

Also enjoyed yesterday's one. There was nothing too spectacular, just 2 solid uniform storylines which were interesting enough to watch - it was nice to see Harker and Ashton get something decent to do too. 8/10