A stellar cast headed by Ian McDiarmid and Iain Glen brings to life the story of the very first 'cops', the Fielding brothers, in City of Vice, a major new historical drama series set in the vice-ridden world of Georgian London. Informed by primary source material, the six-part series is set in 18th Century Covent Garden - the centre of London's vice trade. It follows the fortunes of Henry and John Fielding - brothers, magistrates of London and the men who created the modern police force.
Henry Fielding (the man we know as the father of the English novel) and John Fielding (his half-blind brother) are London's first real 'cops' - investigating the lives and crimes of prostitutes, pimps, gamblers and villains (all meticulously researched real characters) who operate in a world where the rules of policing have not yet been invented. Making up the 'procedure' as they go along, the Fieldings invent many of the standard systems of policing today including taking witness statements and creating an organised system of informants.