And if anyone disagrees, you can just fuck off.

Life on Mars is simply the best thing the BBC have ever put on the small screen - no argument. I can safely say that Tuesday nights are now sacrosanct. Kids in bed by 9pm and me in front of telly.

The characterisations are spot on.

Sam Tyler - what's going on there? I can't wait to find out the explanation for how he landed in 1973. Is it a figment of his coma induced imagination or some sort of psychological experiment, or even a Dr Who-esque time travel thing.

Gene Hunt - the obvious homage to The Sweeney apart, he makes this series. Hard as nails, does things his own way but still maintains the overriding principal of keeping the villains off the streets. Oh, and he's a Manchester City season ticket holder as well.

The writers and producers have got it right in terms of only making two series of eight episodes each. Any more than that and the story lines would start to thin out, characters would become tired and cliched. The main danger would be to follow the American model of just being a ratings chaser. Like Lost - what the fuck is that about? I lost (no pun intended) interest after about 5 episodes of the first series. The characters weren't even worth caring about. If the whole lot had perished in the plane crash I don't think I could have cared any less. The lead actress was about the only thing the series had going for it and then it turns out she's shagging the Hobbit bloke in real life. And the fat guy - stranded on an island for months on end and he never loses any weight! Perhaps that's why people kept disappearing - Fatty was eating them. That's the problem with Yankee TV programmes - they never know when enough is enough. They'll drag programmes out interminably with increasingly implausible plot lines and introduce new characters that add nothing to the series at all. It's the same with the comedy series - they only get shit-canned once the ratings drop whilst the series itself becomes catchphrase ridden formulaic and unfunny or even worse, twee.

The decision to keep Life on Mars to just 16 episodes is definitely the right one. I'd hate it if I became bored with it or just lost interest.