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Titular Character

Jonathan Creek

Played By: Alan Davies

Deadpan Snarker: Manages to be the undisputed king of this, even in a show in which half the characters are grandmasters themselves.
Eureka Moment: Frequently gets them off of seemingly unrelated objects or statements. Tends to go completely silent and stare into the distance with a look of realisation on his face.
- He is, in fact, so well-known for them that at one point a conspirator in one of the mysteries he's investigating intentionally plants herself in his lap to avert one.
Good with Numbers: Can tell a supermarket checkout is faulty by doing the arithmetic in his head.
Insufferable Genius: He hasn't had a single assistant who he hasn't royally pissed off at least once.
Intelligence Equals Isolation: Lives on his own in a windmill in a small town well outside of London.
Magician Detective: Although not technically a magician himself, he's certainly capable of performing many of the less-involved tricks that he designs, and he's certainly a good detective.
Regular Caller: If there is a mystery, fate will conspire to have Jonathan investigate and solve it. Even if he doesn't want to. Even if he tries to get away. Even if he's retired.
- Resigned to the Call: Even after he attempts retirement from stage magic and mystery-solving, he still manages to get roped into solving murders. Eventually he just rolls with it.
Stage Magic: Designs illusions for a living, which is where he gets an appreciation for the lengths people will go to to deceive their audience.

Associates

Maddie Magellan

Played By: Caroline Quentin

Consummate Liar: Something Jonathan remarks bitterly on.
Drives Like Crazy: Almost spends more cumulative time on camera during driving scenes not looking at the road than she does looking at it, much to Jonathan's chagrin.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She can be selfish, petty, manipulative and downright rude, but she's an investigative journalist who works to clear the names of the wrongly accused, and continues to do it despite it not earning her much money.
- Exemplified in The Scented Room where she initially ropes Jonathan into solving a mystery to get her hands on a £50,000 reward, but by the end asks instead that the money be put towards giving the clients' neglected son the love and attention he really needs.
Put on a Bus: After the end of the third season, she moves to the States for a while. She stays in contact with Jonathan for a while and even provides information relevant to one of his cases, but isn't seen again in person.

Carla Borrego

Played By: Julia Sawalha

Joey Ross

Played By: Sheridan Smith

Polly Creek

Played By: Sarah Alexander