Detective Inspector Inspector, also police inspector or inspector of police, is a police rank. The rank or position varies in seniority depending on the organization that uses it. Australia The rank of Inspector is present in all Australian police forces excep ...

William Edward "Jack" Frost, GC QPM, is a fictional detective created by

R. D. Wingfield Rodney David Wingfield (6 June 1928 – 31 July 2007) was an English author and radio dramatist. He is best remembered for creating the character of Detective Inspector Jack Frost, who was later played by David Jason in ''A Touch of Frost''. E ...

—characterised as sloppy, untidy, hopeless with paperwork—but unmatched at solving mysteries. The character has appeared in two radio plays, ten published novels, and a TV series spanning 42 episodes between 1992 and 2010. "Jack" is a nickname, alluding to

Jack Frost Jack Frost is a personification of frost, ice, snow, sleet, winter, and freezing cold. He is a variant of Old Man Winter who is held responsible for frosty weather, nipping the fingers and toes in such weather, coloring the foliage in autumn, a ...

Radio plays

The character first appeared in a radio play entitled ''Three Days of Frost'' first transmitted on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

on 12 February 1977, which is a re-telling of Wingfield's "Frost at Christmas" (the novel had yet to be published). He was portrayed by

Leslie Sands Leslie Sands (19 May 1921 – 9 May 2001) was a British actor and writer of TV and film. Born in Bradford, Yorkshire, Leslie Sands usually specialised in dour types in authority, often policemen. He was married to Pauline Williams (1950 – ...

. The character's second appearance was also on BBC Radio 4, in a play entitled ''A Touch of Frost'', also based on Wingfield's second novel of the same name, transmitted on 6 February 1982. In the second radio play the character was portrayed by

Derek Martin Derek Martin (born Derek William Rapp; 11 April 1933) is a retired English actor. Beginning his career as a stuntman, he moved into acting and played many roles on UK television. One of his most widely known roles is Charlie Slater on the BBC ...

Novels

Wingfield published six novels about DI Frost, starting with ''Frost at Christmas'' in 1984. Between 2011 and 2017, four Frost books were published under the name James Henry, with the approval of the Estate of R.D. Wingfield. In the case of ''First Frost'', this pseudonym refers to James Gurbutt and Henry Sutton, but in ''Fatal Frost'', ''Morning Frost'' and ''Frost at Midnight'' it refers to Gurbutt only. These are all prequels to the Wingfield novels. The first three books are set between 1981 and November 1982 when Frost was a Detective Sergeant, and ''Frost at Midnight'' is set in August 1983, when Frost is a Detective Inspector. The two latest—and so far last—Frost books are by Danny Miller. # ''

Frost at Christmas Rodney David Wingfield (6 June 1928 – 31 July 2007) was an English author and radio dramatist. He is best remembered for creating the character of Detective Inspector Jack Frost, who was later played by David Jason in '' A Touch of Frost''. ...

'' (1984 / 1995, Bantam Crimeline, New York), (U.S. mass market paperback edition) # ''

A Touch of Frost ''A Touch of Frost'' is a British television detective mystery drama series starring David Jason produced by Yorkshire Television (later ITV Studios) for ITV from 6 December 1992 until 5 April 2010, initially based on the Frost novels by R. ...

'' (1987 / 1995 Bantam Crimeline, New York), (U.S. mass market paperback edition) # '' Night Frost'' (1992, Constable, London / 1995, Bantam Crimeline, New York), (U.S. mass market paperback edition) # '' Hard Frost'' (1995 UK & U.S.) (U.S. mass market paperback edition) # '' Winter Frost'' (1999, Constable, London / 2000 Corgi Books, London) (Corgi Books paperback) # ''

A Killing Frost Rodney David Wingfield (6 June 1928 – 31 July 2007) was an English author and Radio drama, radio dramatist. He is best remembered for creating the character of Jack Frost (detective), Detective Inspector Jack Frost, who was later played by Davi ...

'' (2008, Bantam Press / Corgi Books, London) (Corgi Books paperback) # '' First Frost'' (2011, Transworld Publishers Ltd / Corgi Books, London) (Corgi Books paperback) # '' Fatal Frost'' (2012, Bantam Press / Corgi Books, London) (Bantam Press hardback) (Corgi Books paperback) # '' Morning Frost'' (2013, Bantam Press / 2014, Corgi Books, London) (Corgi Books paperback) # ''Frost At Midnight'' (2017, Bantam Press / 2018 Corgi Books, London) (Corgi Books paperback) # ''A Lethal Frost'' (2018, Bantam Press / 2018 Corgi Books, London) (Corgi Books paperback) # ''The Murder Map'' (2019, Corgi Books, London) (paperback original)

Television series

Beginning in 1992, television adaptations of the novels, and further stories based on the characters were transmitted on ITV in the UK. The series starred

David Jason Sir David John White (born 2 February 1940), known professionally as David Jason, is an English actor. He has played Derek "Del Boy" Trotter in the sitcom ''Only Fools and Horses'', Detective Inspector Jack Frost in the drama series '' A Touch ...

as Frost. This series was broadcast under the umbrella title ''

''. There were thirty-eight stories broadcast (forty-two episodes, if counted individually). These have been released on VHS and DVD internationally. Three endings were filmed for the final episode. The first ending saw Frost the victim of a hit-and-run on his wedding day, and later suffering a fatal heart attack in hospital. The second ending saw his colleague George Toolan die instead, as a result of the car crash. The third was similar to the second with Superintendent Mullet being the victim. The second ending was the one officially used (with

's support). The ending in which Frost dies was screened during a tribute to the show on ITV1 on 6 April 2010.

References

External links

Fan page
about the radio plays of R. D. Wingfield, by Alison and Nigel Deacon. {{DEFAULTSORT:Frost, Jack Fictional British detectives Fictional British police detectives Fictional English people