Never mind all these theories, the main question for me was who was the sexiest, Sam Tyler or anti hero Gene Hunt??

At first it seemed Tyler was primed to be the obvious heartthrob, with his caring sharing PC ways, but as time went on I found myself warming to Hunt, at least he had spontaneity and zest, never mind the grubby copies of Just Jugs on top of his desk...

In contrast Tyler turned out to be something of a box-ticking, mealy mouthed, health 'n' safety conscious, NuLabour party 7 pooper..

Looking forward therefore to seeing Hunt in Ashes to Ashes, set in 1981. Wonder if he'll have moved on from 'oops to Ravioli?