The series stars John Gregson in the titular role as Commander George Gideon of Scotland Yard, with Alexander Davion as his assistant, Detective Chief Inspector David Keen (Gorgeous), Reginald Jessup as Det.

Many well-known British actors appear in guest roles, including Patrick Allen, Keith Baxter, George Cole, Harry Fowler, Gordon Jackson, Ronald Lacey, Anton Rodgers, Rosemary Leach, Gerald Harper, Victor Maddern, Richard Carpenter and John Hurt.

Several actors, including Mike Pratt, Angela Douglas, Jean Marsh and Kay Walsh, appear twice in the series, cast in different roles.

In scoring the incidental music, Astley re-used some of the cues from The Saint on which he was also working; in turn, he re-purposed material composed for this series in The Baron, which followed a year later.

This revival ended on 18 February 2020 with "The Nightlifers" including an onscreen tribute to guest star Derek Fowlds who died in January 2020.

All 26 episodes of this classic 1960s British crime thriller series were released on Region 2 DVD by Network Distributing in August 2005.