Leon Griffiths

[1] Griffiths was born in Sheffield but grew up in Glasgow, where his mother was a local Communist Party activist.

He reported from Budapest for much of this time, but after witnessing the repression of the Hungarian Uprising in 1956 he decisively renounced communism.

[2] Griffiths' early credits include scripts for TV shows such as The Adventures of Robin Hood, The Four Just Men and Play for Today.

His film credits include The Grissom Gang (1961), The Hellfire Club (1964), The Treasure of Monte Cristo (1964) and The Squeeze (1977).

[1] Initially intended as a crime drama in the style of The Sweeney, Griffiths centred the programme more firmly on the character of Arthur Daley after being advised by his agent to introduce some humour into his scripts.