Professor T. (British TV series)

Professor T. is a British crime drama television series starring Ben Miller as Professor Jasper Tempest, a genius University of Cambridge criminologist with obsessive compulsive disorder, Emma Naomi, Barney White, and Frances de la Tour. It is an adaptation from the Belgian TV series of the same name. It began broadcasting on Britbox on 3 June 2021, ITV on 18 July 2021, and PBS in the United States on 11 July 2021.

On 6 October 2021, it was announced that the programme had been renewed for a second series which premiered on 16 September 2022. In January 2023, it was renewed for a third series which premiered on 27 March 2024 and in February 2024 was renewed for a fourth series.

Premise
Professor Jasper Tempest, a genius criminologist at Cambridge University, who has OCD and an overbearing mother, assists the police in solving crimes. Miller has stated in an interview that Jasper is also autistic.

Cast

 * Ben Miller as Professor Jasper Tempest
 * Emma Naomi as Detective Inspector (DI, previously Detective Sergeant DS) Lisa Donckers
 * Barney White as DS Dan Winters, Lisa's boyfriend
 * Andy Gathergood as DI Paul Rabbit
 * Sarah Woodward as Ingrid Snares
 * Juliet Aubrey as Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) Christina Brand (Series 1-3)
 * Frances de la Tour as Adelaide Tempest
 * Sunetra Sarker as DCI Maiya Goswami (Series 3 onward)

Recurring

 * Douglas Reith as The Dean/Wilfred Hamilton
 * Juliet Stevenson as Dr Helena Goldberg (Series 2 onward)
 * Alastair Mackenzie as DI Simon Lanesborough (Series 2)
 * Lucy Anna Richardson as Young Adelaide Tempest

Reception
Carol Midgley of The Times gave it two stars out of five, praising Miller but lambasting the plot and tonal shifts. Ed Cumming of The Independent also commended Miller's performance as well as Naomi's and de la Tour's, but suggested that the show "isn't quite there yet".

Anita Singh of The Daily Telegraph criticised the use of rape in the show's first episode, as well as the scenes depicting the attacks, stating: "There is promise in Tempest's story, but, please, can this be the last time that rape is used as cheap entertainment?".

Controversy
Professor T. received strong criticism from national OCD organisations, arguing the show promoted stereotypes (akin to Channel 4's Obsessive Compulsive Cleaners). The British charity OCD-UK stated: The start of the series is no better than the opening sequence... a pair of hands being scrubbed hospital theatre style, rather than OCD style, and just like that ITV's failure to accurately portray OCD begins." "As that first scene ends, not a word spoken and this crime series already feels like a crime against the accurate portrayal of mental health problems." "The reality is that OCD doesn't really appear integral to the show and is not adding anything but creating a quirkiness about the character, and that could so easily have been done without giving the character Compulsive Disorder.... I won't say Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, because there doesn't appear to be any reference to the obsessions that cause the behaviours across any of the six episodes. Whilst I know that Professor T is not a documentary, ITV have a responsibility not to create programming that is stigmatic and perpetuates stereotypes”.