Silent Witness creator Nigel McCrery dies aged 71

Emilia Fox has paid tribute to Nigel McCrery, the creator of TV shows including the long-running hit Silent Witness, after his death at the age of 71. McCrery was also responsible for creating and penning New Tricks, using his own experience serving in the police as the basis of both popular BBC dramas. His agent confirmed the news of McCrery’s death to the BBC ‘with a heavy heart’, saying the writer would be ‘greatly missed’.

McCrery, who was also a published author, was diagnosed with an undisclosed terminal illness in October 2024. United Agents posted on social media platform X on Monday morning: ‘It’s with a heavy heart that we share the news of screenwriter, author and producer Nigel McCrery’s passing. ‘As the creative mind behind such hits as the much loved long running BBC drama series Silent Witness and New Tricks, Nigel captivated and inspired audiences for years with his work.

‘His numerous contributions to the arts will always be remembered. Nigel had an incredible career and will be greatly missed. Our thoughts are with his family at this time.’. Silent Witness has aired since 1996, with its 28th series broadcast earlier this year. Currently starring Emilia Fox, who took over as new lead character Dr Nikki Alexander when Amanda Burton’s Professor Sam Ryan departed in 2004, Silent Witness follows a team of forensic pathologists who solve crimes.

Fox wrote on Instagram that McCrery ‘brought something special to so many audiences around the world, and to those of us lucky enough to work on the show’. The actress added: ‘Its success and longevity are testament to Nigel and his brilliant idea in the first place – and of course many other shows too. I was hugely fond of him personally. ‘He was always kind and warm and spoke devotedly of his own family as an extremely proud parent and grandparent.

‘I am grateful that he remained connected to the show ongoingly and always wanted to know what plans there were for it.’. She continued: ‘His great friend the forensic pathologist Helen Whitwell, who inspired the Sam Ryan character played by Amanda Burton, also sadly passed away recently. ‘They will both live on through Silent Witness and we will do our best to make them proud. He will be missed by so many and my thoughts are with his family.’.

McCrery’s other high-profile show, New Tricks, ran for 12 years from 2003, and was focused on a group of retired detectives drafted in to help solve cold cases. The often irascible – but gifted – team was most famously made up of the late Dennis Waterman, Alun Armstrong and James Bolam, whose methods often tested Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman (Amanda Redman), the head of the unit and the only serving police officer.

‘We are deeply saddened to hear of Nigel McCrery’s death, and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time. Nigel was behind some of UK television’s most loved dramas, and his skill for creating brilliant stories with beautifully drawn characters shone for all to see,’ said director of BBC Drama, Lindsay Salt, in a tribute on behalf of the corporation. ‘The enduring success of Silent Witness, still entertaining millions of viewers after almost 30 years, is a testament to his incredible talent and he will be sorely missed.’.

McCrery’s first job saw him work for the murder squad in Nottingham before, serving as a police officer from 1978 to 1987. He joined the BBC in 1990 on a graduate scheme after reading modern history at Cambridge.. Moving over to the drama department, he first used his professional background to create Backup, which ran from 1995 to 1997 and followed a police operational support unit. He also created and wrote 1999 film All the King’s Men, starring Dame Maggie Smith and Sir David Jason, and 1950s-based medical drama Born and Bred (2002 – 2006), as well as penning several fiction and non-fiction books.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Saturday Live programme in November about facing a terminal diagnosis, McCrery admitted it had come as ‘quite a shock’. ‘I mean people deal with their deaths in different ways, and I think it’s all very, very individual to each of us. But I think for a little while you do go into shock – or I did, and I was in a bit of a state,’ he shared. The writer said he had ‘used to cry a lot, used to sob a lot’ as he processed the news.

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