Modern-day detective chief inspectors must adapt to the culture and technology of the past — namely the '70s and '80s — after being thrown back in time after freak accidents.
A detective chief inspector from 2006 is investigating a serial killer when he is knocked over by a speeding car. Waking up, he finds himself mysteriously transported back in time to 1973. Initially struggling to come to terms with his situation, he has to come to terms with the old-fashioned technology and attitude of the day, while figuring out how he came to be trapped in the past.
DCI Alex Drake of the Metropolitan Police is shot in the head and wakes to find herself apparently thrown back in time to 1981. She soon recognises DCI Gene Hunt and his team from detailed reports made by DCI Sam Tyler about his own trip to 1973. Alex, a modern, no-nonsense woman, soon clashes with her sexist colleagues but both DCIs have to learn to adjust while she tries to find a way back to 2008.