The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word MARLOWE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
M
A
R
L
O
W
E
More clues leading to the result MARLOWE
- Unpleasant experience, accommodating gloomy playwright
- Tough guy who investigated more lawbreaking
- Kit’s tungsten withdrawn, following cut by Spain
- Kit bag’s contents held by Dad’s Army‘s Arthur
- Thames town finishes the playwright
- Poet and playwright heard in town by Thames
- Dramatist from riverside town meets gruesome ending
- Hurt, depressed English dramatist
- New moral we found in old writer
- Fictional detective depressed when carried by horse
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Tough guy who investigated" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case tough guy who investigated = marlowe.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.