David Boreanaz

Emily Deschanel is philosophical about why there are so many forensic detectives on screen at the moment.

"People like to think that criminals can’t get away with murder; that someone, somewhere will keep looking and find the evidence that will point a finger," she said.

"People hope that even years after a crime is committed and almost everyone has given up hope of finding the criminal, there are still clues that will bring the bad guys to justice.

"And with forensics, that’s often the last chance to find those clues."

As Dr Temperance "Bones" Brennan, Deschanel plays a woman who really is the last chance to find clues.

A forensic anthropologist called in by the FBI when all else fails, she’s the Sherlock Holmes-ian detective who can look at a pile of bones that have been lying around for years and immediately tell the police more than they ever suspected.

And as amazing as it all looks on screen, Deschanel said it is all very firmly based in fact.

"Temperance Brennan is a character who was created by real-life anthropologist Kathy Reichs," she said.

"She is someone who used her knowledge time and again to help track down clues that other investigators wouldn’t have seen.

"That’s why we have to be careful to make sure we get everything right."

What may not be based on her creator’s life, however, is the smouldering love interest between Brennan and her FBI contact Agent Seeley Booth (played by ex-Buffy and Angel star David Boreanaz).

Once again Deschanel is philosophical about the departure from reality - anything that pairs her up with Boreanaz is acceptable poetic licence.

"David’s great to work with," she said, "and he really helps show a more human side to Temperance.

"She’s a woman who in many ways is far more comfortable working with a dead body than she is with live people. She needs that interaction to bring her back into the world."

But will there be any romance for the pair?

"Who knows?" Deschanel said.

"They have a history that makes any kind of romance pretty hard to imagine, but who knows what may happen in the future?" Life one long play

When it came to career choice, Emily Deschanel probably didn’t have to think too hard. Her father is director/cinematographer Caleb (who worked on National Treasure and The Passion Of The Christ); her mother is actor Mary Jo (Twin Peaks, The Patriot) and her sister is Zooey (The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, Failure To Launch). Acting, she said, was something she always did.

"As early as six or seven years old my sister and I would put on plays we wrote and charge a penny or something for people to see," Deschanel said. Flashback

CSI and NCIS may be the most popular initials in the TV forensics business at the moment, but way back at the beginning it was all down to ME. Quincy M.E. (medical examiner), which screened from 1976 to 1983, was one of the first investigators on the small screen who showed us how crimes could be solved by careful examination of the victim or the crime scene. Starring Jack Klugman as Dr Quincy, the series was based on the work of real-life medical examiner Dr Thomas Noguchi, who performed autopsies on such famous people as Marilyn Monroe, Natalie Wood, John Belushi, Sharon Tate and Robert Kennedy.

Bones Channel Seven, Tuesday, 7.30pm