Original pilot TV film. Following the murder of his wife by notorious gangster Joe Webster, Inspector George Gently is pondering retirement. When he hears about a murder in Northumberland that sounds like Webster's handiwork, he delays his retirement to take on this one last case. Paired with local detective DS John Bacchus, he must track down Webster, while at the same time trying to deal with his headstrong young assistant and keep him on the straight and narrow.
When a badly-burned body discovered near an RAF base is suspected to be an IRA murder, Special Branch get involved.
When the beaten body of wealthy German businessman Gunter Schmeikel is discovered in the harbour, Gently and Bacchus are forced to consider whether a barman's anti-German sentiments are a motive for murder. However, the case takes a sinister turn when a key witness to Schmeikel's death is revealed to be a killer trained by United Kingdom Special Forces.
Investigating the murder of an old man in his dilapidated mansion, Gently and Bacchus discover a world which is beyond their comprehension.
Gently and Bacchus investigate the murder of a young woman whose body is found in a local church. They discover that the girl was a 'Fox', a waitress working at the first hostess club in Newcastle.
When a young woman is raped and murdered, Gently and Bacchus are thrown into a world of racial intolerance, sexual jealousy and turf warfare.
When a body is found in a local mill, Gently and Bacchus go on to uncover a web of local corruption, blackmail, fraud and robbery.
Gently and Bacchus find themselves investigating a family with unimaginable secrets.
Gently and Bacchus investigate the murder of a well-known left-wing academic.
Gently and his sidekick investigate the suspicious death of Gently's ex-snout, China.
Gently and Bacchus investigate when a schoolgirl's body is discovered in a shallow grave.
The racial unrest that is sweeping the United States reach British shores as Enoch Powell launches his tirade against immigration, but racial harmony can be found at the all-nighters that take place in 1968, where disillusioned young people, black and white, escape the boredom of factory life to dance the night away to imported soul music. In Newcastle, the haven of equality found at the Carlton Ballroom all-nighter is destroyed when a young black girl, Dolores Kenny, is murdered, leading Gently to uncover a disturbing and racist undercurrent growing within the local community.
The indefatigable Chief Inspector George Gently and Detective Sergeant John Bacchus experience the inflated authority of their "social betters" first hand, when a beautiful young girl called Ellen Mallam is found dead in the passenger seat of a an upturned car registered to local aristocrats.
It is 1968 and the shame of illegitimacy still burns the cheeks of single mothers and the families who force their unmarried daughters into 'mother and baby homes'. When the adopted child of a middle-class couple is kidnapped, suspicion falls upon the baby's birth mother. However, Gently and Bacchus's investigation into the mother and baby home itself reveals a much darker side to this hothouse of morality and raises serious questions about this seemingly perfect couple.
It has been four years since George Gently came north, but his old enemies haven't forgotten him. A vicious career criminal who Gently sent down years ago has been released, on the grounds that evidence was fabricated to frame him by Gently himself. And he is hell-bent on revenge. Suspended from duty, Gently finds himself powerless, unprotected and persecuted. If he is to survive, Gently must confront his deepest fears and fight to the death.
Gently is surprised after he receives Bacchus’s resignation, and he soon works out that he has lost his confidence. Attempting to help Bacchus, Gently insists that he needs him to help investigate a death in custody.
Gently and Bacchus make their way to a family holiday camp to investigate both the staff and holidaymakers after a body of one of the greencoats is discovered nearby. Gently and Bacchus soon discover a story of jealousy, ambition and the dark side of a permissive society.
When two deaths connect in an unexpected way, Gently finds himself drawn into the world of drugs and LSD, and considering a Cold-War conspiracy. In the process of his investigation Gently relies on the help of an old friend – and as they begin to dig into the case, old feelings begin to stir for Gently.
A suspicious death in the mine in Burnsend leads Gently and Bacchus to explore the tensions and relationships in a community whose seams have been ripped wide open by politics – and discover grudges that date back to the Second World War.
A woman’s body is discovered having been brutally attacked. Gently is determined to catch the killer and stop him attacking anyone else. Worried that mistakes could have been down to one inspector, he is determined to get to the bottom of another mystery that is happening within the police force.
Inspector Gently is intrigued as to why a woman has tragically committed suicide. There are too many details that don't add up, and he suspects murder. Why did this woman, a GP, want to end her life? Gently's investigation leads him and his team to the discovery of a bigger industrial crime, more murders and more victims. Gently puts his career on the line to uncover who is really to blame.
A man has thrown himself off the Tyne Bridge and is found dead, landed on a pile of rubbish. Or so it seems. Gently knows it's murder and believes it's one involving lifelong friends. Who would want to kill a man who was apparently loved by all?
Following an armed robbery, Gently seeks to find the armed gang and bring them to justice before more innocent people are shot.
The North East, 1970. On the brink of retirement, DCI Gently and his team investigate a body found in a chemical waste tank. When Gently discovers the victim's wife was convicted of the murder eight years ago, he decides to re-open the case - a controversial move. But DI Bacchus opposes Gently's decision, not least because he worked as a DS on the original investigation - putting mentor and protégé at complete odds. Is Gently about to expose an appalling miscarriage of justice, or will he sacrifice his reputation and legacy for a convicted murderer? And can Rachel help heal the widening rift between her superiors, whilst navigating being a woman in a professional male world? Finally, will the team finally prove beyond doubt the identity of the killer?
The Old Bailey, London, 1970. Gently is bowing out of the force on a professional high when he is approached by a covert anti-corruption police unit with one last tantalising job: The cold case of a young girl murdered four years ago in new town Washington, County Durham. The investigation finds Gently tracking MP Michael Clements, a charismatic politician who fearlessly pursues political reform in the North, promotes ever-closer links to Europe, and who is tipped to be a future Labour Prime Minister. When the investigation leads to a murky web of union and political intrigue, placing Bacchus and Rachel in danger, will Gently do the unthinkable and bend the course of justice? How can Bacchus and Gently repair their frosty relationship - and faced with mortal danger, how will Gently and his team survive?
