Below is an alphabetical list of fictional police detectives and their creators (with, in many cases, the actor/actress most known for playing the character in a dramatisation).
A Detective Butch Ada – Saving Grace (played by Bailey Chase) Detective Tohru Adachi – Persona 4 (voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch) Commissaire Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg – Fred Vargas Detective Goro Akechi – Persona 5 (voiced by Robbie Daymond) DCI Roderick Alleyn (later DCS) – Ngaio Marsh (played by Simon Williams and Patrick Malahide in The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries) Chief Inspector W. R. Allison – The Brighton Strangler (played by Miles Mander) Detective John Anthony – Kingston's Finest (played by himself) Inspector Arnz – House of Frankenstein (played by Lionel Atwill) Detective Nick Armstrong— The Rookie (played by Harold Perrineau)
B Detective Sergeant (later Detective Inspector) John Bacchus – Alan Hunter (played by Lee Ingleby in Inspector George Gently ) Detective (later Detective Sergeant, then Lieutenant, then Captain, then retired) Angel Batista — Dexter (played by David Zayas in the tv show and James Martinez in Dexter: Original Sin) Kriminalhauptkommissar Balko – Balko (German, played by Jochen Horst and Bruno Eyron) Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks – Peter Robinson (played by Stephen Tompkinson in DCI Banks) Detective Carolyn Barek – Law & Order: Criminal Intent (played by Annabella Sciorra) Detective Anthony Vincenzo "Tony" Baretta – (played by Robert Blake) created by Stephen J Connell Detective Inspector Charlie Barlow – Troy Kennedy Martin and Allan Prior (played by Stratford Johns in Z-Cars and Softly, Softly) Detective Chief Inspector John Barnaby – Caroline Graham (played by Neil Dudgeon in Midsomer Murders) Detective Chief Inspector Thomas "Tom" Barnaby – Caroline Graham ( played by John Nettles in Midsomer Murders) Detective Kate Beckett – Castle, Andrew W. Marlowe (played by Stana Katic) Detective Cal Beecher – Person of Interest (played by Sterling K. Brown) Detective Mick Belker – Hill Street Blues (played by Bruce Weitz) Detective Olivia Benson (later, Sergeant, then Lieutenant, then Captain) - played by Mariska Hargitay on Law & Order: SVU Detective Sergeant Jim Bergerac – Robert Banks Stewart (played by John Nettles in Bergerac) Detective Chief Inspector David Bilborough – Jimmy McGovern (played by Christopher Eccleston in Cracker) Inspector Bird – (played by Harry Stubbs in The Invisible Man) Detective G. Lynn Bishop – Law & Order: Criminal Intent (played by Samantha Buck) Detective Captain John Book – Pamela Wallace, Earl W. Wallace and William Kelley (played by Harrison Ford in Witness) Detective Inspector Mike Bolt – Simon Kernick Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte – Arthur Upfield (played by James Laurenson in Boney) Detective Stella Bonasera – CSI: NY (played by Melina Kanakaredes) DS Camille Bordey – Death in Paradise Detective Harry Bosch – Michael Connelly (played by Titus Welliver) Detective Constable Gary Boyle – Ben Elton (played by Mark Addy in The Thin Blue Line) Detective Braenders – The Light in the Dark (played by Charles Mussett) Detective Aya Brea – Parasite Eve Inspector William Brent – Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode Banquo's Chair (played by John Williams) Detective Lennie Briscoe – Law & Order (played by Jerry Orbach) Detective Inspector Nash Bridges – Carlton Cuse (played by Don Johnson in Nash Bridges) Detective Constable David Briggs – Jasper Carrott (played by Robert Powell in The Detectives) Inspector Bristol – The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (played by E.E. Clive) Detective Sergeant Ronnie Brooks – Dick Wolf (played by Bradley Walsh in Law & Order: UK) Inspector Bucket – Charles Dickens (played by Stephen Rea in Dickensian) (played by Alun Armstrong in Bleak House) Detective Lieutenant Frank Bullitt – Robert L. Fish (played by Steve McQueen in Bullitt) Detective Sergeant George Bulman - Created by Murray Smith and played by Don Henderson in the TV series Strangers Inspector Edward C. Burke – (played by Lon Chaney in London After Midnight) Special Agent Peter Burke – (played by Tim DeKay in White Collar) Detective Harvey Bullock – Batman comics, Archie Goodwin, Howard Chaykin, Doug Moench and Don Newton (played by Robert Costanzo in Batman: The Animated Series) (played by Donal Logue in Gotham) Detective Aiden Burn – CSI: NY (played by Vanessa Ferlito) Detective Sergeant Marcus Burnett – George Gallo (played by Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys, Bad Boys II and Bad Boys for Life) Detective Inspector (later Detective Chief Inspector) Frank Burnside – Geoff McQueen (played by Christopher Ellison in The Bill)
C Max Carrados – a blind detective in a series of mystery stories by Ernest Bramah Detective Inspector Jack Caffery – Mo Hayder Detective Christine Cagney – Barbara Avedon and Barbara Corday (played by Loretta Swit 1981, Meg Foster 1982 and Sharon Gless 1983 to 1988 in Cagney and Lacey) Lieutenant Horatio Caine – (played by David Caruso in CSI: Miami ) Inspector Harry Callahan – Harry Julian Fink and Rita M. Fink (played by Clint Eastwood in the Dirty Harry film series) Chief Inspector Chen Cao – Qiu Xiaolong Detective 2nd Grade Stephen Louis ("Steve") Carella – Ed McBain Detective Sergeant Ray Carling – Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes (played by Dean Andrews) Detective Chief Inspector (Retired) Ted Case – Nigel McCrery and Roy Mitchell (played by Larry Lamb in New Tricks ) Lieutenant Gabriel Cash – Randy Feldman and Jeffrey Boam (played by Kurt Russell in Tango & Cash ) Detective Sergeant George Carter – Ian Kennedy Martin (played by Dennis Waterman 1975 to 1978 and Ben Drew 2012 in The Sweeney) Detective Jocelyn "Joss" Carter – Person of Interest (played by Taraji P. Henson) Detective Constable (later Detective Sergeant) Jim Carver – Geoff McQueen (played by Mark Wingett in The Bill ) Detective Sergeant Sam Casey – Dick Wolf (played by Paul Nicholls in Law & Order: UK ) Commissaire Henri Castang – Nicholas Freeling Detective Phil Cerreta – Law & Order (played by Paul Sorvino) Inspector Raoul de Chagny – Phantom of the Opera (played by Edgar Barrier) Detective Inspector Hal Challis – Garry Disher Charlie Chan – Earl Derr Biggers Detective Elizabeth Childs – Orphan Black (played by Tatiana Maslany) Detective John Clark, Jr. – NYPD Blue (played by Mark-Paul Gosselaar) Detective John Clark, Sr. – NYPD Blue (played by Joe Spano) Police Sergeant Barry Clive – Thirteen Women (played by Ricardo Cortez) Inspector Jacques Clouseau – Blake Edwards' The Pink Panther (played by Peter Sellers 1963 and 1964, Alan Arkin 1968, Peter Sellers 1975 to 1982, Steve Martin 2006 and 2009 ) Detective Rust Cohle – True Detective (played by Matthew McConaughey) Lieutenant Frank Columbo – William Link (played by Peter Falk in Columbo) Lieutenant Marion "Cobra" Cobretti – Paula Gosling (played by Sylvester Stallone in Cobra ) Detective Chief Inspector Roisin Connor – Lynda la Plante (played by Victoria Smurfit in Trial & Retribution ) Sergeant Cork (played by John Barrie) Detective Inspector Henry Crabbe – Pie in the Sky (played by Richard Griffiths) DI Vincent Crane – Shaun Hutson DI Andy Crawford in Dixon – Dock Green Sergeant Cribb – Peter Lovesey Detective Sergeant James "Sonny" Crockett – Anthony Yerkovich (played by Don Johnson 1984 to 1990 and Colin Farrell 2006 in Miami Vice) Detective Alex Cross – James Patterson – Wilkie Collins's The Moonstone Commissioner Cummings – Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode Safety for the Witness (played by James Westerfield) Detective Jackie Curatola – Blue Bloods played by Jennifer Esposito Detective Nick Curran – Joe Eszterhas (played by Michael Douglas in Basic Instinct ) Detective Rey Curtis – Law & Order (played by Benjamin Bratt) Special Agent Clara Seger ((Criminal Minds - Beyond Borders) - (Alana de la Garza)) Detective Lieutenant Frank Cioffi – Curtains (musical) (played by David Hyde Pierce)
D Commander Adam Dalgliesh – P. D. James (played by Roy Marsden) Lieutenant Eve Dallas – J. D. Robb Detective Jack Cloth – A Touch of Cloth (BBC TV series) Detective Jake Peralta – “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (played by Andy Samberg) Detective Jo Danville – CSI: NY (played by Sela Ward) Assistant Commissioner Shabor Dasgupta – Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay Detective Sergeant Deke DaSilva – David Shaber and Paul Sylbert (played by Sylvester Stallone in Nighthawks) Detective Constable "Dangerous" Davies – Leslie Thomas (played by Peter Davison in The Last Detective) Senior Detective Antonio Dawson - Chicago P.D. (Played by Jon Seda) Lieutenant Rick Deckard – Philip K. Dick (played by Harrison Ford in Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049) DI De Cock – A. C. Baantjer Detective Inspector Vivenne Deering – Paul Abbott (played by Joanna Scanlan in No Offence) Detective Sergeant Dan "Bean" Delgardo – Robert Kaufman and Floyd Mutrux (played by Alan Arkin in "Freebie and the Bean") Detective Lieutenant James Dempsey – Ranald Graham (played by Michael Brandon in Dempsey and Makepeace) Detective Sergeant Matt Devlin – Dick Wolf (played by Jamie Bamber in Law & Order: UK) Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond – Peter Lovesey Detective Ryotaro Dojima – Persona 4 (voiced by JB Blanc) Detective Inspector Alex Drake – Matthew Graham and Ashley Pharoah (played by Keeley HawesAshes to Ashes) Lt. Frank Drebin – Police Squad! (played by Leslie Nielsen) DCP Durai Singam – Singam (played by Suriya) Inspector Doyle – The Great Ziegfeld (played by Raymond Brown) Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus – Blake Edwards' The Pink Panther (played by Herbert Lom 1964 to 1993, Kevin Kline 2006, John Cleese 2009) Lieutenant Double-Yefreitor Harrier "Harry" DuBois – Disco Elysium Detective Lieutenant Dundy – (played by Robert Elliott and Barton MacLane) Detective Rosa Diaz – ”Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (portrayed by Stephanie Beatriz) Detective Sergeant James Doakes — Dexter (Played by Erik King in the tv show)
E Detective Alexandra Eames (later Lieutenant) – Law & Order: Criminal Intent (played by Kathryn Erbe) Detective Daniel Espinoza – Lucifer (played by Kevin Alejandro) Detective Javier Esposito – Andrew W. Marlowe (played by Jon Huertas in Castle)
F Inspector Jefe Javier Falcón – Robert Wilson Detective Nola Falacci – Law & Order: Criminal Intent (played by Alicia Witt) Inspector John "Scottie" Ferguson – (played by James Stewart in Vertigo) Inspector Fix – Around the World in Eighty Days (played by Robert Newton and Ewen Bremner) Detective Don Flack – CSI: NY (played by Eddie Cahill) Lieutenant Flannery – Alfred Hitchcock Presents episode Safety for the Witness (played by Robert Bray) Police Inspector Jim Flower – (played by Jay C. Flippen in A Woman's Secret) Detective Joe Fontana - Law & Order (played by Dennis Farina) Detective Inspector Maggie Forbes – Terence Feely (played by Jill Gascoine in The Gentle Touch) Detective Chief Superintendent Christopher Foyle – (played by Michael Kitchen in Foyle's War) DI Stuart Fraser – Taggart Inspector Joseph French – Freeman Wills Crofts Detective Sergeant Joe Friday – Jack Webb (played by Jack Webb 1951 to 1970 Dan Aykroyd 1987 in Dragnet) Detective Inspector Jack Frost – R. D. Wingfield (played by David Jason in A Touch of Frost) Detective Sergeant Matthew Fox – David Shaber and Paul Sylbert (played by Billy Dee Williams in Nighthawks ) Detective Lionel Fusco – Person of Interest (played by Kevin Chapman)
G Inspector Gadget – Inspector Gadget Chief Inspector Armand Gamache – Louise Penny Detective Harry Garibaldi – Hill Street Blues (played by Ken Olin) Detective Chief Inspector George Gently – Alan Hunter (played by Martin Shaw in Inspector George Gently) Inspector Ganesh V. Ghote – H. R. F. Keating (played by Naseeruddin Shah in The Perfect Murder) DSI Stella Gibson – The Fall (played by Gillian Anderson)