BBC television drama, "The Gold"

Recently watched this mini-series about the 1983 Brink’s-Mat robbery. Fascinating story with a good cast and low-key performance by Hugh Bonneville.

Apart from the gold heist and attempts to crack the case, another thing that struck me was several references to Freemasonry in the police department, amongst the perpetrators, and implied interference or corruption of Masonic members during legal investigations. The script implies this sort of obstruction was believed to be more overt than shadowy. I would have liked to see this explored further, but the problem was only hinted at.

Is Freemasonry a common theme of British TV shows regarding police matters?

 

None immediately come to mind.

 

I'd say it was relatively common, there is plenty about Freemasonry, * I think, in adaptions of Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes and several British TV shows about police matters have referenced Freemasonry, often using it as a plot device to explore themes of corruption, secret networks, and undue influence within the police force.

And via google etc.

"Specific examples include:
Line of Duty: makes multiple references to Freemasonry, strongly implying a link between membership and police corruption and an Organised Crime Group (OCG).
In Series 3, a "Masonic handshake" is shared between Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) and retired Chief Superintendent Patrick Fairbank, a character later exposed for child sex abuse.
The show suggests Masonic connections as a way for corrupt officers to network discreetly, with the character Ian Buckells hinted to have been recruited into a corrupt group through such ties. The show's creator, Jed Mercurio, has indicated these plot points were grounded in research into historical police corruption.
Midsomer Murders: The episode "The Axeman Cometh" (Season 10, Episode 3) features a murder investigation that leads the police to a local Freemasons Lodge. In a notable twist, Detective Ben Jones reveals to his superior, Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby, that he is a Freemason himself and uses his membership to gain access to the lodge for the investigation.
Endeavour and Inspector Morse: The shows in this franchise have also included references to Masons running the police, contributing to the theme of secret societies influencing the force.
George Gently (or Inspector Gently in the US): In the episode "Gently Through the Mill" (2009), set in the 1960s, a murder investigation involves a victim who was a Freemason. Detective Sergeant John Bacchus joins a lodge to help solve the case, exploring the organization's role and influence at the time.
These shows often portray Masonic lodges as places where a "firm within the firm" could operate, facilitating discreet relationships and secret patronage among corrupt individuals"

* And -

"While references to Freemasonry are present in Arthur Conan Doyle's original Sherlock Holmes stories, they are generally fleeting and used for Holmes's deductions (e.g., identifying a character as a Mason by a tie-pin) rather than central plot points. Adaptations, however, have sometimes expanded these references or introduced significant Masonic plots."

 

Jolly boys clubs still occur in the ecilop world.

 

During the 1980s there was clearly considerable Freemasonry in the UK police, which affected promotions and presumably disciplinary matters. There were external moves to ban or restrict it, but I cannot recall now if anything like that happened. Relatively recently there was a call, possibly in the Met (London) for a register to be held and officers were encouraged to voluntarily register.

By the late 1990s Freemasonry appeared to retreat, in part as alternative groups appeared to have an impact.

There a couple of so-called "investigative exposes" in book form.

 

As Ramilles notes, the series Inspector Morse and perhaps to a greater extent its prequel Endeavour used to feature Freemasonry, invariably in clichéd form. I don't really remember much in Lewis, but it was probably there too. I'm not a spotter, unless it's served up on a plate. What irritates me more in Police dramas - apart from sloppy modus operandi and the routine tick-tock stupidity of senior characters is a pervasive creep of sub plots, generally having nothing to do with crime busting, but rather designed to almost subliminally indoctrinate the viewer with crappy trendy messages and fill time, because the standard of writing is usually so poor. Most offerings are pretty formulaic and are 50% froth, often further disguised by pointless flashbacking. Lazy and dull, although there are rare exceptions.

 

Thanks all for the replies. Tribal intelligence networks and a list of fallen bodies assumed to be connected with the robbery is quite the rabbit hole.