Forensic Files, originally known as Medical Detectives, is an American documentary-style television program that reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and outbreaks of illness.
The show was originally broadcast on TLC, narrated by Peter Thomas, and was broadcast for 406 episodes from its debut on TLC in 1996 until its final episode in 2011. On October 1, 2019, HLN announced it had greenlit a revival of the show, titled Forensic Files II, which began airing on February 23, 2020. In light of long-time narrator Peter Thomas' death, the show is narrated by Bill Camp.
Premise[]
The show helped pioneer documentary style crime-science shows. The show's official website says it profiles "puzzling, often baffling cases whose riddles are ultimately solved by forensic detection." The cases and people are real. Scientists and forensic experts in many fields are interviewed.
Not every case is a crime. In some cases, the investigation reveals that the suspects are innocent, and that the death was an accident or a suicide. Several shows have profiled people who have been jailed for or convicted of a crime, and who were ultimately exonerated by forensic evidence. Other episodes have focused on accidents where consulted experts relied on forensic evidence in order to explain why the incident occurred, such as the 1987 King's Cross station fire and the 1993 Big Bayou Canot train wreck.