John Simm stars in the Emmy Award-winning  Life on Mars, a fast-paced suspenseful crime series with a twist. After a near-fatal car crash Detective Sam Tyler finds himself mysteriously transported to 1973. Is he in a coma? Has he gone crazy? Or has he really travelled back in time?

Smart, savvy, sharp-suited detective Sam is at the top of his game. Cool, calm and collected, if he were a flavor he’d be spearmint. Sam has ultimate control over his work, his life and his relationships. That is until his world is turned upside-down when the hunt for a cold-blooded murderer becomes a desperate rescue mission for his own girlfriend and fellow cop Maya.

After a near-fatal car accident, Sam is mysteriously transported back to 1973 - only four years after he was born. Confused by his new and outdated surroundings, Sam impatiently tries to return to the present, but without success. He struggles to come to terms with a lifestyle he sees on the one hand as nostalgic and familiar, but on the other as crude and unsophisticated.
 
But returning back to the present evades Sam time after time; something beyond his control is keeping him in this time-warp – the police force of long ago needs his help in solving a parallel crime. Can Sam overcome their rough and ready ways and maddening lack of forensic technology to catch the killer? Will he be able to get back to the 21st century and find Maya?

Catch the entire two seasons on WGBH 44.

Life on Mars Trivia:

Question: Who is the eerie little girl in the red dress that Sam sees in his TV?

Answer: A 'test card', also known as a 'test pattern' in North America, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when no programs are being broadcast. These were used to calibrate the TV signal. The girl in the red dress featured in the most famous UK test card was Carol Hersee, broadcast from 1967 onwards, holding a clown doll.

Confused by what these Brits are saying? Take a look at our fun Life on Mars Glossary!

 

Starring John Simm as DC Sam Tyler
(Sex Traffic, State of Play, Canterbury Tales)

Philip Glenister as DCI Gene Hunt
(Cranford, Island at War, Byron)

Liz White as WPC Annie Cartwright
(A Thing Called Love, Vera Drake)