The 24th and antepenultimate series of the British television drama The Bill consisted of 88 which ran from 2 January until 31 December 2008. Des O'Connor continued to host Take Your Pick!, which ran from 24 February 1992 to 23 December 1999 while the Wilkinson and Homebase stores continued to appear on the show. This series was the last to feature the song "Have a Nice Day" by Stereophonics as well as the first to feature songs by the Australian singer Gabriella Climi. This series was also the last to feature the killing of an officer, PC Emma Keane. The death on-screen led to the resignation of the longest serving character, PC Reg Hollis, his controversial exit off-screen after actor Jeff Stewart attempted suicide on set, after being axed by producers following 24 years on the show. Another long-term character, Inspector Gina Gold, left the show after six years as part of the aftermath of the storyline, Gold retiring after becoming increasingly terrified at the thought of losing another officer.
| Sierra Oscar 5-2 | ||
| Sierra Oscar 1 | ||
| SO 25 / Sierra Oscar 1 | ||
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| Crime Scene Examiner | ||
Episode Count[]
| Ranking | Character | Played by | Number of Episodes | Running total | Previous year's ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PC Roger Valentine | John Bowler | 46 | ||
| 2 | PC Benjamin Gayle | Micah Balfour | 45 | ||
| 3 | PC Tony Stamp | Graham Cole | 45 | ||
| 4 | PC Nate Roberts | Ben Richards | 42 | ||
| 5 | PC/DC Will Fletcher | Gary Lucy | 40 | ||
| 6 | Supt John Heaton | Daniel Flynn | 39 | ||
| 7 | DC Jo Masters | Sally Rogers | 37 | ||
| 8 | PC Sally Armstrong | Ali Bastian | 34 | ||
| 9 | Sgt Dale Smith | Alex Walkinshaw | 34 | ||
| 10 | DC Kezia Walker | Cat Simmons | 33 | ||
| 11 | DCI Jack Meadows | Simon Rouse | 32 | ||
| 12 | Sgt Callum Stone | Sam Callis | 32 | ||
| 13 | Insp Gina Gold | Roberta Taylor | 30 | ||
| 14 | DC Stevie Moss | Lucy Speed | 29 | ||
| 15 | DS Max Carter | Christopher Fox | 28 | ||
| 16 | DC Grace Dasari | Amita Dhiri | 28 | ||
| 17 | DS Stuart Turner | Doug Rao | 28 | ||
| 18 | PC Beth Green | Louisa Lytton | 27 | ||
| 19 | DI Neil Manson | Andrew Lancel | 27 | ||
| 20 | DC Terry Perkins | Bruce Byron | 27 | ||
| 21 | DC Mickey Webb | Chris Simmons | 25 | ||
| 22 | PC Millie Brown | Clare Foster | 23 | ||
| 23 | DI Samantha Nixon | Lisa Maxwell | 23 | ||
| 24 | PC Arun Ghir | Abhin Galeya | 22 | ||
| 25 | Sgt/Insp Rachel Weston | Claire Goose | 18 | ||
| 26 | CSE Eddie Olosunje | Jason Barnett | 17 | ||
| 27 | DC Jacob Banks | Patrick Robinson | 16 | ||
| 28 | PC Mel Ryder | Rhea Bailey | 16 | ||
| 29 | PC Emma Keane | Melanie Gutteridge | 14 | ||
| 30 | PC Leon Taylor | Dominic Power | 14 | ||
| 31 | Sgt Nikki Wright | Gillian Taylforth | 11 | ||
| 32 | PC Diane Noble | Kaye Wragg | 10 | ||
| 33 | PC Reg Hollis | Jeff Stewart | 8 |
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| Preceded by: 2007 Episodes (Series 23) |
2008 Episodes (Series 24) (Episode Chronology) |
Succeeded by: 2009 Episodes (Series 25) |