The Cleaner is a British televisionsitcom created by and starring Greg Davies, which premiered on BBC One on 10 September 2021.[2] The series is based on the German comedy Der Tatortreiniger ("Crime Scene Cleaner").[1] A second series, with a Christmas special, began airing on 23 December 2022.[3] A third series was announced in January 2024[4] and began airing on 4 October 2024.
Plot
Paul "Wicky" Wickstead, a government-certified cleaning technician, is responsible for the removal of any signs of death, injury or other biohazard debris from crime scenes. In the course of his work, he gets to know a variety of people.
Zita Sattar as PS Ruth Edwards, a police officer, who is a close friend (later girlfriend) of Wicky (several episodes)[5]
Guest cast
Helena Bonham Carter as Sheila. Sheila met her husband in business school; however, after she married him, she found herself bored. Sheila and her husband were married for at least 35 years. One day, after having reached the limit with her husband, she killed him. After meeting Wicky, they planned to go on holiday and then Sheila would turn herself in, but Wicky called the police at the last minute and Sheila was arrested (Ep.1)[5][6]
Shobu Kapoor as Neeta, Sheila's neighbour. She loves to bake and is extremely judgemental of any woman she meets who dislikes or doesn't do baking (Ep.1)[5][6]
Georgie Glen as Mrs Gathernoid, a fan of Terence's work who claims to invite him to an award ceremony, but he sees through her (Ep.2)[5]
David Mitchell as Terence Redford, a struggling writer who is hostile to Wicky (Ep.2)[5][6]
Ruth Madeley as Helena, a young woman in a wheelchair who is vegan and has recently broken up with her partner (Ep.3)[7]
Stephanie Cole as Vivienne Hosier, an aristocrat who is very proud of her estate, especially her sofa, which she deems precious to her family history and notes many famous people who sat there (Ep.4)[6]
Donald Sumpter as Sir James, a close friend of Vivienne's who is quite traditional (Ep.4)[6]
Esmonde Cole as Tony (Ep.4)
Layton Williams as 'Hosea' (Bernard), a young social media influencer who has an affinity with 1980s' culture, despite not having seen Back to the Future (Ep.5)[2][8]
Wicky is called to a suburban crime scene where everything is anything but normal. His efforts are impeded by the arrival of an officious neighbour, and then the rather eccentric murderer herself arrives to try and convince him into helping her abscond.
Wicky deals with one of his more tricky clients, a prickly novelist who obsesses over quiet, resistance to unbottling his emotions, the subtleties of a classical author, and the contents of the sandwich in his packed lunch.
Wicky is left out in the cold when he's unable to attend his latest crime scene, and meets his match when he meets someone who challenges the values and ways of life he holds dear.
4
4
"The Aristocrat"
Alex Winckler
Greg Davies
10 September 2021 (2021-09-10)
1 October 2021
3.24
Wicky meets the owner of a house where a burglar has died. She tells him of famous visitors who have sat on her couch, including Winston Churchill.
5
5
"The Influencer"
Tom Marshall
Greg Davies
10 September 2021 (2021-09-10)
8 October 2021
3.11
Wicky finds himself reliving his youth when called to clean the den of online influencer Hosea and discovers it's a shrine to the 1980s, before realising said influencer is desperately lacking a father figure (after his parents moved abroad without him when he was 16) and gets enlisted to recreate the crime scene to boost Hosea's flagging profile.
Wicky's next job proves personal, when he learns he knows the owner of the holiday home he's cleaning up – a former girlfriend who left him twenty years ago on his thirtieth birthday. Having been besotted with her, catching up proves an awkward experience, especially as, after Wicky discovers a set of anonymous love letters, both receive some home truths about their time together.
Wicky is sent to clean up an ice cream parlour on Christmas Day, following the murder of the owner. He plans to attend a raffle at the pub afterwards, but one of the parlour's regular customers gets in his way.
Wicky is sent to clean up after the manager of a pub dies; conversations unveil secrets between the landlady of the pub, the now-deceased manager, and the surly bartender.
Wicky is called to a theatre after a brawl at a strip show, and while there meets the theatre's manager, a less than thrilled employee and a man scheduled for a performance later. After hearing about how he got became a performer, Wicky starts to think about the other career options he could have taken.
Wicky's latest job, cleaning up after the death of a homeless man, is hampered by the presence of a shaman employed to free spirits from the property, whose obnoxious behaviour compels Wicky to become determined to expose him a fraud.
Wicky finds himself caught up in a contentious debate around the removal of a statue of a controversial local historical figure after he is employed by the local council to clean up after a protest carried out by a descendent of its subject against the replacement statue of a giant chickpea.
