Inspector Lewis

About Inspector Lewis

Detective Inspector Robert "Robbie" Lewis is a fictional character better known as the sidekick in the Inspector Morse crime novels by Colin Dexter and the associated television series. In "Morse" he is a Detective Sergeant, so he is generally referred to as Sergeant Lewis. However, he is currently the lead character in a new series, Lewis. On television, he is played by Kevin Whately.

Lewis is a police detective on the staff of the Thames Valley Police in Oxford, England, and in "Inspector Morse" is assistant to the titular Detective Chief Inspector Morse. Morse's given name (Endeavour) was kept secret until the end of the series and thus he is almost universally referred to only by his last name. Similarly, although Lewis's given name of Robert (Robbie) was not kept secret, he was rarely referred to as anything but "Sergeant Lewis" or "Lewis."

Lewis is a loyal, hardworking, honest, and earnest police detective, who is often troubled or frustrated by the erratic, emotional, and egotistical behaviour of his superior, Morse. The background and personality of Lewis – a working class, easygoing family man with a Geordie accent – is frequently contrasted with that of Morse – Oxford educated, RP-accented, lifetime bachelor. Morse frequently uses these differences to insult or demean Lewis, perhaps, from Morse's point of view in a playful manner, but Lewis is often not amused by the jabs. In his frustration, Lewis is often more in step with their joint superior Chief Superintendent Strange, himself an evident supporter of Lewis; however, despite a great respect towards Strange, Lewis is always unflinchingly loyal to Morse, and follows his lead.