7.6/1029 votes#1 - Skeletons and Cupboards
Season 12 Episode 1 - Aired 10/6/2002
Ventress fears for his job and his sanity when Blaketon sees a man whom they certified dead fifteen years previously. Meanwhile, the villagers are sceptical when Vernon finds gainful employment Meanwhile Mike is worried about Tricia as she returns to work, but she is determined that she is ok.
Director: Noreen Kershaw
Writer: John Flanagan, Andrew McCulloch
7.9/1029 votes#2 - A Girl's Best Friend
Season 12 Episode 2 - Aired 10/13/2002
Mike discovers that a couple's wealth has not brought them happiness. Vernon is concerned that his dabbling with hypnotism has sent David barking mad.
Director: Albert Barber
Writer: Gillian Richmond
7.5/1026 votes#3 - A Dog's Life
Season 12 Episode 3 - Aired 10/20/2002
Private drama is played out in public when Lord Ashfordly hosts the County Sheepdog Trials. But Bernie and David find it inconvenient when Vernon offers their services.
Director: Gerry Mill
Writer: Susan Wilkins
7.8/1025 votes#4 - Where There's Muck
Season 12 Episode 4 - Aired 11/3/2002
Ventress tries to stop a bankrupt farmer from taking revenge on the bank. When Vernon goes into the horseradish business he discovers that he can't stand the heat in the kitchen.
Director: Judith Dine
Writer: Douglas Watkinson
7.8/1032 votes#5 - Harmony
Season 12 Episode 5 - Aired 11/10/2002
Merton's cousin, the famous singer-songwriter Deborah Vine, arrives in Aidensfield to find a secluded location in which to work.
Director: Noreen Kershaw
Writer: Peter Gibbs
7.7/1026 votes#6 - No Man's Land
Season 12 Episode 6 - Aired 11/17/2002
Gina has a near miss with a local farmer defending his land against ramblers. Villagers are puzzled by Vernon's bizarre personality switch.
Director: Paul Walker
Writer: Peter Gibbs
7.6/1027 votes#7 - Dirty Len
Season 12 Episode 7 - Aired 11/24/2002
Mike searches for a link between a dead farm worker and a spate of animal deaths. Alfred leaves David high and dry in Whitby. Meanwhile Tricia is upset, because of her patient dieing. She soon starts to feel guilty over the death of Len. She thought that it was tetanus but lad results come back with poison and she blames herself for not picking up on it. Even though there was nothing she could have done she still blames herself and feels that she was bad doctor.
Director: Albert Barber
Writer: Jane Hollowood
7.8/1026 votes#8 - Growing Apart
Season 12 Episode 8 - Aired 12/1/2002
When Tricia gets involved in a domestic dispute, she can't stand the heat in the kitchen. Vernon attempts to take the horticulture industry to new heights.
Director: Jonas Grimås
Writer: Candy Denman
8.1/1029 votes#9 - Many Splendoured Thing
Season 12 Episode 9 - Aired 12/8/2002
It is Christmas in Aidensfield and Lord Ashfordly decides to throw a ball to celebrate his marriage, but his elegant young bride is not what the locals expect. Vernon jeopardises Bernie's funeral business by finding a more festive use for the hearse. Tricia also gets the wrong end of the stick at the Christmas party. She thinks that Mike is proposing when he gives her a jewelry box, however it only contains a locket but she manages not to let him see her disappointment.
Director: Roger Bamford
Writer: Susan Wilkins
7.9/1035 votes#10 - Horses for Courses
Season 12 Episode 10 - Aired 12/15/2002
Mike is horrified when Tricia gets involved with a racehorse trainer, and Vernon has a surprise visit from a long-lost sibling.
Director: Noreen Kershaw
Writer: Andrew McCulloch
7.6/1027 votes#11 - Sins of the Fathers
Season 12 Episode 11 - Aired 12/22/2002
Mike is reacting badly to Tricia's death and has an altercation with an underage drinker in the pub. The boy hits him but is let off by the magistrate - who turns out to be his father.
Director: Terry Dyddgen-Jones
Writer: Brian Finch
7.5/1026 votes#12 - Bread and Circuses
Season 12 Episode 12 - Aired 12/29/2002
Bellamy is smitten with Alice, the victim of a handbag snatch. Merton and the others are trying to track some valuable porcelain figures stolen in Whitby when a similar theft occurs at Mr Osbourne's.
Director: Jonas Grimås
Writer: Neil McKay
7.8/1024 votes#13 - For Whom the Bell Tolls
Season 12 Episode 13 - Aired 1/5/2003
Lord Ashfordly is concerned about falling royalties from High Rigg Quarry and asks Blaketon to investigate. The police are concerned about a quantity of explosives which have gone missing from the quarry just before a visit by the defence minister.
Director: Noreen Kershaw
Writer: Peter Gibbs
7.7/1023 votes#14 - Out of the Blue
Season 12 Episode 14 - Aired 1/12/2003
Vernon and David are travelling in a tanker which overturns spilling its load. Vernon is taken to hospital with memory loss and David claims not to know what they were carrying. The police discover that the tanker has false number plates and its contents are contaminating the water supply.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.7/1023 votes#15 - The High Life
Season 12 Episode 15 - Aired 3/9/2003
A gang of mods cause havoc in the in the village and David is all set to join their gang. Jenny worries when a visit from her brother puts a strain on her relationship with Merton.
Director: Bob Tomson
Writer: Susan Wilkins
7.7/1029 votes#16 - Hung for a Sheep
Season 12 Episode 16 - Aired 3/16/2003
Ventress thinks the new PC, Steve Crane, is a bit too anxious to prove his worth. Vernon attempts to impress another new arrival, Dr Liz Merrick, with his community spirit.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.5/1024 votes#17 - The Third Man
Season 12 Episode 17 - Aired 3/23/2003
Mike takes on his first big CID job after getting a tip-off. Vernon persuades Dr Merrick that the surgery needs a face-lift.
Director: Noreen Kershaw
Writer: Candy Denman
7.4/1023 votes#18 - Missing in Action
Season 12 Episode 18 - Aired 3/30/2003
Lesley wishes her father was still alive to give her away at the wedding. Bernie visits the chiropodist to have his bunions treated. Gina organises Lesley's hen night.
Director: Jonas Grimås
Writer: Peter Gibbs
8.0/1025 votes#19 - Caped Crusaders
Season 12 Episode 19 - Aired 4/6/2003
Liz receives anonymous phone calls late at night, and Alec and Dean dress up as Batman and Robin.
Director: Terry Dyddgen-Jones
Writer: Brian Finch
7.7/1022 votes#20 - Moving Target
Season 12 Episode 20 - Aired 4/13/2003
The village is horrified when it seems there is a sniper on the loose, and Bellamy rethinks his priorities after a near miss with a bullet. DI Shiner makes Mike an offer it would be hard to refuse.
Director: Bob Tomson
Writer: Susan Wilkins
7.5/1022 votes#21 - Lily of the Valley
Season 12 Episode 21 - Aired 4/20/2003
PC Crane and Dr Merrick worry about the welfare of an elderly farmer's widow. David helps Blaketon front a protest against a local quarry, but Vernon is working for the opposition.
Director: Judith Dine
Writer: Peter Gibbs
7.5/1023 votes#22 - House Rules
Season 12 Episode 22 - Aired 4/27/2003
illagers are curious when a mystery woman comes to live with Steve Crane, and Vernon gets a lucky break when he ventures into the modern art market.
Director: Gerry Mill
Writer: John Flanagan, Andrew McCulloch
7.7/1021 votes#23 - Mackerel Sky
Season 12 Episode 23 - Aired 5/4/2003
An ex-con uses Jenny to put pressure on Sgt Merton. A newly affluent Vernon organises a charity auction.
Director: Jonas Grimås
Writer: Neil McKay
7.5/1023 votes#24 - Absent Friends
Season 12 Episode 24 - Aired 5/11/2003
When a farming couple go missing, Jenny and Liz are left minding the children. Vernon takes a reluctant Bernie on a country hotel mini-break.
Director: Bob Tomson
Writer: Jane Hollowood
7.6/1027 votes#25 - Music of the Spheres
Season 12 Episode 25 - Aired 5/18/2003
Things get complicated for Steve when he falls for the beautiful daughter of a Polish violinist staying at Ashfordly Hall. Vernon is visited by two long-lost cousins claiming to have an irresistible business proposition.
Director: Noreen Kershaw
Writer: Susan Wilkins
The Best Episodes of Heartbeat Season 12
Every episode of Heartbeat Season 12 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Heartbeat Season 12!
Set during the 1960s in the fictional North Yorkshire village of Aidensfield, this enduringly popular series interweaves crime and medical storylines.
Genres:CrimeDramaComedy
Network:ITV1
Season 12 Ratings Summary
"Skeletons and Cupboards" is the best rated episode of "Heartbeat" season 12. It scored 7.6/10 based on 29 votes. Directed by Noreen Kershaw and written by John Flanagan, Andrew McCulloch, it aired on 10/6/2002. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "A Girl's Best Friend".