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4 Episodes 1997 - 1997
Episode 1
95 mins
Peter and Ellie take a holiday in the Cotswold village of Thornton Lacey, staying with old college friends - one of whom, author Colin Hopkins, has written a new book that gives a thinly veiled account of some of the villagers' dark secret. When Colin's wife is murdered and Colin disappears, Peter investigates - though his help is not entirely appreciated by local superintendent Backhouse. At the same time Peter finds a connection with a thief nicknamed the Micturator - after his habit of urinating in victims' kettles.
Episode 2
95 mins
Teen-aged Pauline Stanhope becomes the fourth victim of the Yorkshire Choker, a serial killer who strangles girls and then phones the local paper, quoting lines from 'Hamlet' - which is the play being staged by Ellie's teacher friend Mark Wildgoose, at the school attended by the girls. Dalziel, however, suspects gypsy Dave Lee, who rowed with one of the victims - a fact which brings him into conflict with the formidable gypsy rights lawyer Adi Pritchard. To help trap the killer a medium and linguistic expert are brought in but Peter solves the case by studying an old thespian photograph.
Episode 3
95 mins
Dick Elgood (Keith Barron), an old friend of Dalziel's (Warren Clarke), unofficially reports two strange incidents which nearly kill him. He asks Dalziel to investigate. The subsequent investigation by Dalziel and Pascoe (Colin Buchanan) exposes a chain of bizarre, accidental deaths stretching back nearly three decades - but not a single shred of evidence to suggest foul play. Each of the seemingly-unconnected deaths have somehow or other benefited Patrick Alderman (Jonathan Cullen) even though it could not be proven that he had any connection to the deaths. The trail leads to Penny Highsmith (Mel Martin), an old flame of Dalziel's, but goes cold when she is shown not to be involved. The case is eventually closed with the death, in mysterious circumstances, of Dick Elgood, the victim of yet another weird accident.
Episode 4
95 mins
Peter is called out to investigate the murder of elderly Robert Deeks, an old soldier whose medals were also stolen. On the same night, Andy is accused of drunk driving, resulting in the death of an old cyclist, though Andy's friend, sober Arnie Bancroft, claims to have been the driver. With Andy on suspension, Peter looks into the murder and it turns out to be no coincidence that Mr Deeks' grandson Charley is in the same regiment as one Major Kassell, whom Andy suspects of being involved in a heroin-smuggling ring, and that Charley's fiancée Karen is a tarty waitress at the function that Andy attended. Peter learns why Andy let people assume he was a drunk driver as the parallel cases are closed.