Back in 1994, I caught a BBC show I had never seen. From the opening notes of Nigel Hess’s evocative theme song, I was hooked on Hetty Wainthropp Investigates. For four years in the mid '90s, Hetty, a plucky 60-ish Englishwoman, tackled cases with the dogged determination of Miss Marple, though she wasn’t the usual quaint English lady detective. Now, there's a new DVD set compiling all four seasons of the classic BBC show.

Hetty is played by always wonderful Patricia Routledge, best known as Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced Bouquet) of the classic Britcom Keeping Up Appearances. When Hetty’s husband is made redundant, she looks for ways to bring in some extra money. She decides to become a detective. Hetty takes on cases that don’t quite interest the police, though she strikes up a friendship with a police inspector, who comes in to save the day when murder or mayhem ensue. “We don’t do murder, we leave that up to the police.” But murder does enter into the equation at times, as do drugs, gangsters, missing persons, lost treasures, and family secrets.

To her husband’s chagrin, she takes in a boarder, a juvenile delinquent, Geoffrey Shawcross, played by Dominic Monaghan. Geoffrey becomes both her assistant (and eventual partner) as well as a kind of surrogate son, to take the place of her real son, who is living in Australia. Halfway through season three, Geoffrey gets a girlfriend, the vivacious mechanic Janet Frazer, bringing another female dynamic to the show.

Hetty gets her cases from strangers, family friends, and the local populace of Lancashire, where she becomes a minor celebrity. Not even a vacation can take her away from her job. As Hetty quips, “Half the cases come when you’re on a steamboat up the Nile.” The episodes touch on social issues as well: schizophrenia, mental retardation, the elderly, and the homeless. While there is a light sense of British humor that pervades the shows, some of the more serious subject matter is handled well.

Routledge makes the character memorable. She can be charming, empathetic, wily, and loving. She can also throw out a caustic line with the best of them. When Geoffrey breaks down en route to Hetty’s aid, she throws out a searing “I’ll have his guts for garters.”

The DVD transfers are good, but not fantastic. That’s probably a result of the original prints. It’s also a little light on extras. There are photo stills, production notes, an interview with Patricia Routledge, and the feature length Missing Persons, which became the pilot episode for the series. I would have loved to see a few commentaries from the cast. But this is an essential DVD to own for fans of British crime dramas.