In all honesty, how often do you find yourself saying "put ITV on now! Now! Now! NOW!" and meaning it? If you're anything like me, it's seldom bordering on never. Well, this year ITV got it right at least once, with the return of Cracker.

Naturally I assumed that it wouldn't be able to match up to my expectations. I mean, when it was originally on our screens, Cracker had an almost cultish following. I braced myself thinking that the new one could do nothing other than let me down. That's when I got a very very nice surprise. Cracker blew me away, and here's why... read on.

Fitz returned to our screens looking older (obviously) and fatter. The story revolved around his return to Manchester, which has also changed since the series was last on. Both tied in nicely to a superb story line which revolved around Fitz' inability to stop doing what he loves, and probably the best villain I've seen on TV since... well... since another Cracker baddie played by Robert Carlyle (remember that one? Oh he was nasty!). The show always has great villains, and the brilliant depth of character written by Jimmy Govern left me on my back gasping for air.

With Fitz having been out of Manchester since the bombings, it was neatly tied in with troubles in Ireland which the show was based around. This story centred on former soldier Kenny Archer who found himself on the very police force that Fitz  was helping out. Basically, Archer, still agreived by his time in Northern Ireland, finds himself juggling the roles of doting parent and savage murderer. It's too easy to have a baddie that's merely out-and-out evil for Govern.  Kenny Archer was played by an Anthony Flanagan, who in my mind, has given the single finest performance all year. He was astonishing and compelling. I'm not actually sure that his role could be bettered. Put it this way, if you like Kevin Spacey's role in Seven, the Flanagan would have blown your mind. He managed to play a damaged mind that was psychologically in pieces after having seen the terrible atrocities whilst serving for the Brit forces.

McGovern knitted the Irish battles together with the 'war on terror' declared by George W. Bush, and the attacks on 11 September. Archer spiralled out of control into a murderous descent into a blacker then black madness, which Fitz naturally picked apart. The whole thing was frighteningly good... and the tension was at time unbearable. Many shows have tried to emulate Cracker and failed miserably. There are great programmes stood in Fitz' huge shadow, but this return showed them all who the daddy really is. Absolutely faultless programming and sad only because I want more and more... and I don't think it's-a-coming. [Mof Gimmers]