Join or Sign In
Sign in to customize your TV listings
By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy.
The Doctor Blake Mysteries Season 5 Episodes
Season 5 Episode Guide
8 Episodes 2017 - 2017
Episode 1
A Lethal Combination
58 mins
Attending an exhibition boxing match, Dr. Blake see a boxer knocked down and die. The initial impression is that it was a brain injury, but the doctor isn't satisfied. Also the doctor starts selectively announcing his and Jean's engagement.
Episode 2
Sorrow Songs
56 mins
The murder of a beautiful gypsy woman takes Blake inside the intriguing and exotic world of Romani travellers passing through Ballarat. Part of a different world, deeply misunderstood - or are they? After all, at Edward Tyneman's request The Courier has been publishing stories on a series of thefts in town that just so happen to coincide with their arrival. And Rose is the one who has discovered the victim's body. Just why was she there so late at the camp that night, taking photographs of a 'gypo wedding'? So even as Blake tries to win their trust during his investigation, he will be constantly met with suspicion and oftentimes-outright hostility. If the Romani cannot trust the police, why should they trust the Police Surgeon? And Lawson, newly restored to his position as Chief Superintendent at the Station, will begin to realise how limited his involvement will be in the field from this point onward. He's going to learn how to do this job all over again, in an entirely different way to how he was previously accustomed. As always Jean will help Lucien in his investigation, asking the right questions, providing comfort when and how she can - all of which coincides with this new relationship dynamic between the two of them. Yes, there has always been rumours in town about the Doctor and his 'housekeeper', but Jean always knew the truth - that it was all just idle gossip. But now - things have changed. Desire and propriety rear their ugly heads, forcing Jean to truly wrestle with the implications for her faith.
Episode 3
The Call of the Void
56 mins
The French chef Philippe is found murdered in the freezer of his restaurant, when Jean and Doctor Blake are hoping to have dinner there. The evening before, officers Bill Hobart and Ned Simmons raided his home, on a tip of possible homosexual activity from the local butcher, Mr Robinson; they found him alone. The raid became violent, with Hobart hitting Philippe hard. The autopsy slowly reveals three sets of injuries to the chef, and the fatal one was a blow to the head. A button from a police uniform was collected in the freezer with the dead body. Robinson's daughter Tilly takes cod liver oil from Jean's kitchen, which Blake realizes will not help her but hurt her. They find her collapsed and send her to the hospital; she reveals her relationship with Philippe, who is not homosexual, and that she was at the restaurant the evening Philippe was killed, seeing a light there. She saw no one, as her father had already left after punching Philippe. Superintendent Lawson is angry with Hobart, as it is his uniform button found in the freezer. Henry Dent owns the restaurant and shared his lodgings with Philippe. He tells of the argument they had after the police raid and Philippe's absences from home, with Tilly. He shares that Philippe carried the police officer's uniform button with him, meaning to complain to the police about the raid, which removes Hobart from suspicion of murder. Philippe had hepatitis, which closes the restaurant for a few days to test the patrons for the disease. Blake realizes what the piece of shell is, and confronts the sous-chef Mrs Cornish at the closed restaurant, stealing liquor. She was found in the same activity by Philippe the night he was killed. Philippe was at the restaurant to meet a delivery. Mrs Cornish became angry and struck with him with a frozen leg of lamb, the third and fatal blow. Hobart and Charlie have bad feelings between them. Jean invites Lawson to stay with them, which he accepts.
Episode 4
All She Leaves Behind
56 mins
Controversial writer Patricia Neville has finally returned to her old hometown, armed with a new novel that promises to excoriate Ballarat and it's many inhabitants - as evidenced by a book reading at the local library that quickly devolves into violence and chaos. But when she's found dead the next morning with her sister Eve unconscious beside her, seemingly part of some murder-suicide pact, Blake has to search out some truths about the place in order to understand how and why the woman died. Blake will quickly discover all is not as it seems. Eve is a devout Catholic - so why would she try to commit the mortal sin of suicide? Why does Patricia's publisher, Angus Reed, seem so emotionally unaffected by his most successful client's murder? Who is the man who drunkenly interrupted Patricia's book reading, and swore she'd 'get hers' sooner or later? And if both sisters ingested poison, then how was it administered? There's no trace of it in the house - As he investigates, Blake will butt heads with Charlie, who has been tasked with additional responsibility and authority by Lawson, seemingly as some kind of test. Is Charlie ready to show he has what it takes to one day take the reins at this Station? Blake will come face to face with the Neville's horrible family legacy, a curse he can do nothing to lift. He'll turn to the whole 'family' to try and decode Patricia's mysterious final novel, and its web of intricately drawn characters. And for the first time he and Jean will be forced to confront the fact that the road towards their impending nuptials may not be as straightforward as they'd initially hoped.
Episode 5
Measure Twice
58 mins
When Blake is called to investigate the murder of a retired carpenter Vernon Armstrong, his first suspect is Ethan Young, a young Jehovah's Witness, who was discovered praying over the body and covered in blood, by Vern's niece Florence and her husband Trent Bowman. The police interview Ethan, and despite his pleas of innocence, there is some secret he will not reveal. They learn that Vern has won a lot of cash at cards, in an illegal gambling game at a local bakery and cafe, generating enemies. Florence works at the bakery, as she and Trent are too often short of money. Trent is in debt to Vern and under suspicion. Charlie and Blake find Ethan attacked at his work site, with the weapon still in his chest, and he is saved by surgery. Superintendent Lawson shuts down the gambling. Ethan's mother reveals that her son helped Vern with paperwork, as Vern could not read or write. Blake searches at Vern's workshop, realizing the man's excellent memory (probably how he won the card games), and finds plans for a portable electric drill, which Percy Walker, a plumber and Vern's former partner, is also seeking. It will be a valuable patented device. Vern had parted ways from Percy and was using Ethan to fill out the patent forms. Percy attacks Blake, penetrating his chest with a chisel and nearly killing him. Blake drains his own lung before he passes out, seeing a man in the shadows. Blake wakes up in the hospital with Jean at his bedside. Percy is charged with Vern's murder and two attempted murders.
Episode 6
First Dance
57 mins
When a teenage girl dies at her Debutante Ball, Blake does his best to investigate despite being housebound as he recovers from being stabbed weeks before. It quickly becomes apparent the victim, Charlotte Worthington, was not only murdered but had recently suffered physical abuse and was self-harming. As the only daughter of the domineering school principal, Charlotte has long suffered the taunts and teasing of the more popular girls at her school, Sally and Christine. So why on earth was she being partnered to the Deb Ball by Sally's ex-boyfriend? Why did none of the teachers at Wendouree Grammar ever do anything to stop her ongoing bullying? And what 'big surprise' did Charlotte have planned for the assembled crowd at the dance, before her untimely demise? Rose, who had been covering the Debutante Ball for the newspaper, aids Blake in his search for the killer. But she soon finds herself becoming increasingly emotionally invested in the case. The case and Blake's recent close call with death makes him confront his own tendency for self-obsession and how it impacts his relationship with Jean. But will it be enough to help him find Charlotte's killer? And what will Jean do when she discovers that despite assuring her that he would consult her about any decisions that could affect his messy divorce, Blake has decided to take matters into his own hands?
Episode 7
A Good Drop
55 mins
It's the week before Christmas, and Blake has been called upon to investigate the murder of a local farmer shot to death at point blank range after what appears to be a deliberately lit fire on his land. But is it actually his land? Because Edward Tyneman claims to have purchased the dead man's farm, which promises to one day soon become the first vineyards in Ballarat. He'd even taken Rose out there the day before (under the false pretext of pursuing a story), hoping that his latest acquisition may somehow impress her. Blake and Charlie will soon find a tangled web of dodgy land deals, old grudges, frustrated ambition and familial intrigue. Amidst all this a familiar face suddenly arrives back in Ballarat - could he have something to do with this case? As the police dutifully follow the chain of evidence, Blake, as always, will trust his instincts and follow his gut. But this time those instincts, and a series of disastrous spur of the moment decisions, will lead him horribly astray. It will not only bring his official role as Police Surgeon into question, but also threaten to fracture Lucien's relationship with his old friend Lawson completely. And then, when it seems things couldn't get any worse, Blake's divorce proceedings are suddenly made very, very public, leaving Lucien and Jean to cope with the fallout. Has Rose betrayed Jean's confidence in pursuit of yet another story? And can Blake solve this case even as both his professional and his private life falls apart?
Episode 8
Hear the Angels Sing
58 mins
Ballarat is thrown into chaos when a young policeman is found brutally murdered overnight in the station, his neck broken, files and paperwork strewn all over the office. It emerges that the victim had been due to give evidence at a police corruption enquiry, about money being paid under the table by a notorious Melbourne crim named Walter Gregan. And, at that time, the head of the station being bribed? None other than William Munro. Who has just now returned to Ballarat - for redemption? Or is he here for revenge? Blake doggedly pursues Munro, that same old animosity there between them. Munro is incredulous that after that scandalous report in the newspapers that Blake still somehow has a job. And Blake thinks Munro's return can't just be a coincidence. Munro claims he's there following Walter Gregan - whose old flame has just recently started dating the victim. Whether Blake believes that is another story. But Munro isn't the only person in Melbourne who heard about that story, about Blake's drunken antics on the job. And Edward Tyneman won't rest until Blake is officially charged for assaulting him in front of his staff at The Courier. The consequences of Lucien's actions are finally about to catch up with him, and he has no one to blame but himself. The reappearance of an old enemy, the excommunication of Jean from her church, and the very public revelations of Blake's drinking: all of these obstacles Lucien must fight to overcome if he's going to catch a killer and somehow make things right with Jean.
