Sergeant Craig Gilmore     played by Hywel Simons

First appearance    Tour of Duty (10/04/01)

Craig Gilmore had big shoes to fill when he arrived at Sun Hill; he was Bob Cryer’s replacement. Chandler had headhunted him for the job and wanted young blood to fill the post. Gilmore represented the modern face of policing - he was confident and ambitious, yet not interested in ‘office politics’. He preferred to be out on the beat with his officers rather than staying in at the station. From Swansea, he came from a tight knit family, and his first years in the service were served in Wales. He "came out" to them at the age of 19, but knew his own sexuality years earlier. 

Gilmore had only been a sergeant for a year when he arrived at Sun Hill and sometimes appeared too cocky for an officer with so little experience. His frequently brusque manner did not always endear him to his colleagues; he kept a very tight reign on the relief and often came across as insensitive and unsympathetic. Sun Hill did come to respect the man over time however, and he was seen as a sergeant who led from the front. But he didn't really care what the troops thought of him; in his eyes, structure and routine were far more reliable than colleagues.

There was a degree of tension for some time between Gilmore and PC Taviner, although they eventually came to some sort of understanding following a drunken brawl. Gilmore was openly gay but didn't flaunt it in front of his colleagues and had no interest in joining any support groups like the Lesbian and Gay Police Authority. He did, however, camp it up slightly in front of Inspector Gold in whom he found a good friend and confidante. The gay scene was never really his thing either although after breaking up a long-term relationship he embarked on a new one with troublemaker, Carl. His desire for a relationship with PC Luke Ashton and savage beating whilst guarding a witness in hospital led to him eventually requesting a transfer from the station.