Watch: Samuel Beckett as the gritty 1970s detective we always knew he was

This cop waits for no one

We've always known Samuel Beckett was cool, but exactly how cool wasn't clear until we were shown this video: the opening sequence of what would surely have been the greatest cop show ever, as imagined by playwright Danny Thompson.

Somewhere, somehow, if only in our hearts, this programme exists.

By the way, if you're wondering what André The Giant is doing there, the story goes that Beckett was a neighbour of the wrestler and used to drive him to school. It's a story that we'd love to be true, but remain sceptical about (in our Little Atoms-y way). It does pop up in Cary Elwes's commentary on the Princess Bride, below.

Tempting, but inconclusive. Anyone have any better evidence?

H/T Martin Doyle / Open Culture