ITV are about to welcome Rowan Atkinson to their screens as French case-cracker Maigret, but they've attempted to make the character a Seine choice for viewers twice before. Richard Harris was immediately identifiable as the culprit behind Sixties classics This Sporting Life and The Guns Of Navarone, and the channel figured this made him a great choice for the part. Created by author Georges Simenon, this is the first literary detective on our list. Producers initially wanted Richard Burton, but after he passed away they turned to Harris for what was thought would be a similar vibe. Harris enthusiastically embraced the role, having been a fan of Simenon's books. An abundance of clashing accents, including Harris's (he did a Sean Connery and stuck to his native voice), and a time shift from the Fifties to the late Eighties sent the scruffy investigator packing. Like Widmark, Harris shrugged off the production and continued to impress in the cinema - The Field, Unforgiven, Gladiator and of course Harry Potter were to follow. In a strange quirk of fate Michael Gambon played Maigret for ITV's second stab in the Nineties - replacing Harris in the role the way he went on to do as J K Rowling's wizard Dumbledore.
I am a journalist and comedian who enjoys American movies of the 70s, Amicus horror compendiums, Doctor Who, Twin Peaks, Naomi Watts and sitting down. My short fiction has been published as part of the Iris Wildthyme range from Obverse Books.
