The Worst Episodes of Inspector Morse

Episode Rankings

1. #1 Worst Episode
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   6.6/10(1053 votes)

   #1 - The Settling of the Sun

   S2:E33/15/1988

   Oxford is shocked when a a Japanese student dies in what seems to be a brutal ritual killing. Then Morse finds he has unwittingly given all his suspects a watertight alibi.

   Director:Peter Hammond

   Writer:Charles Wood

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   Director:Peter Hammond

   Writer:Charles Wood
2. 

   7.0/10(1167 votes)

   #2 - Service of All the Dead

   S1:E31/20/1987

   Morse investigates murder on hallowed ground. A quiet country church is an unlikely setting for the killing, and a vicar and his voluntary helpers are the unlikely suspects. Among them is Ruth Rawlinson, whom Morse is attracted to. Then it appears that a serial killer is at work.

   Director:Peter Hammond

   Writer:Julian Mitchell

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   Director:Peter Hammond

   Writer:Julian Mitchell
3. 

   7.2/10(863 votes)

   #3 - Fat Chance

   S5:E22/27/1991

   Morse finds himself attracted to a female cleric when he is called upon to investigate the suspicious death of a woman deacon. St Saviour's College is about to appoint Oxford's first ever female chaplain, and emotions are running high among the more conservative clerics, but Morse & Lewis find it hard to believe such feelings could lead to murder.

   Director:Roy Battersby

   Writer:Unknown

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   Director:Roy Battersby

   Writer:Unknown
4. 

   7.3/10(871 votes)

   #4 - Cherubim and Seraphim

   S6:E54/15/1992

   A new drug developed to combat senility is ironically being distributed to teens at all-night parties and driving some to suicide.

   Director:Danny Boyle

   Writer:Julian Mitchell

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   Director:Danny Boyle

   Writer:Julian Mitchell
5. 

   7.4/10(841 votes)

   #5 - The Secret of Bay 5B

   S3:E41/25/1989

   Playboy architect Michael Gifford is found strangled in his car, and the only clues are a car-park ticket and his diary. Morse and Lewis uncover a love triangle involving the murdered man, and the list of suspects grows. Meanwhile, Morse considers asking Grayling Russell for a date.

   Director:Jim Goddard

   Writer:Unknown

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   Director:Jim Goddard

   Writer:Unknown
6. 

   7.5/10(1421 votes)

   #6 - The Dead of Jericho

   S1:E11/6/1987

   Morse is passed over for promotion and gets a new working partner in the shape of Lewis, who is not sure what to make of his new boss. Their first case together is a murder, when Anne Staveley, who was Morse's friend in a choral society, is found hanged in her house in the Jericho area of Oxford. The death looks like suicide, but Morse has his own reasons for treating the case as a murder investigation. A parking ticket and Oedipus the King, by Sophocles, come to his assistance.

   Director:Alastair Reid

   Writers:Colin Dexter, Anthony Minghella

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   Director:Alastair Reid

   Writers:Colin Dexter, Anthony Minghella
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7. 

   7.5/10(1072 votes)

   #7 - The Wolvercote Tongue

   S2:E112/25/1987

   Laura Poindexter, a rich American tourist, dies in the Randolph Hotel, Oxford, apparently from a heart attack, but Morse suspects foul play. Laura was due to return a historic jewel to an Oxford museum, and it has gone missing. Then Dr Kemp, who is a womanizing historian, dies of a fall, Lucy Downes is crushed to death in a telephone box, and Dr Kemp's widow appears to take a fatal overdose of Paracetomol.Morse believes the deaths are all linked.

   Director:Alastair Reid

   Writer:Julian Mitchell

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   Director:Alastair Reid

   Writer:Julian Mitchell
8. 

   7.5/10(907 votes)

   #8 - The Last Enemy

   S3:E21/11/1989

   A body is found in the canal and the only clue to its identity points to a connection with one of the university's colleges. It happens that intense rivalry for one of the most prestigious posts in the university has led to murder. But which one of the highly respected contenders is the calculating killer?

   Director:Unknown

   Writer:Peter Buckman

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   Director:Unknown

   Writer:Peter Buckman
9. 

   7.6/10(1190 votes)

   #9 - The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn

   S1:E21/13/1987

   Someone at Oxford's Foreign Examination Syndicate is selling exam secrets. Nicholas Quinn, a member of the board, overhears something he shouldn't know about and is soon found dead at his cottage, poisoned with cyanide - but Nicholas was deaf. Then crossword compiler Philip Ogleby has his skull smashed in. During his investigations, Morse is attracted to Monica Height. She works for the Syndicate and may be mixed up in the corruption which led to Quinn's murder, and perhaps to Ogleby's as well.

   Director:Brian Parker

   Writer:Julian Mitchell

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   Director:Brian Parker

   Writer:Julian Mitchell
10. 

    7.6/10(872 votes)

    #10 - Who Killed Harry Field?

    S5:E33/13/1991

    An artist, fun-loving drinker and raconteur, Harry Field seems like a man after Morse's own heart. But when Morse and Lewis investigate his mysterious death, they discover that he was not such a lovable rogue.

    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown
11. 

    7.6/10(801 votes)

    #11 - Greeks Bearing Gifts

    S5:E43/20/1991

    When the chef at Lewis's favorite Greek restaurant is found murdered, and a baby goes missing, Oxford's close-knit Greek community closes ranks. Matters aren't helped when Morse has a bad-tempered exchange with the shipping millionaire who owns the restaurant.

    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown
12. 

    7.6/10(838 votes)

    #12 - Twilight of the Gods

    S7:E31/20/1993

    A nasty but very rich businessman and a world-famous opera singer are in Oxford to receive honorary degrees from the Chancellor of the University. However, the ceremony has to be abandoned when a sniper opens fire on the procession of dignitaries. The singer is seriously wounded, but was she the intended target?

    Director:Herbert Wise

    Writer:Julian Mitchell

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    Director:Herbert Wise

    Writer:Julian Mitchell
13. 

    7.7/10(1067 votes)

    #13 - Last Seen Wearing

    S2:E23/8/1988

    The schoolgirl daughter of rich parents has been missing for six months. Morse believes she has been killed, and his investigations show curious goings on at the missing girl's school. But before Morse can unravel the mystery, he finds another.

    Director:Edward Bennett

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Edward Bennett

    Writer:Unknown
14. 

    7.7/10(998 votes)

    #14 - Last Bus to Woodstock

    S2:E43/22/1988

    A young secretary is found dead in a pub car park. Morse suspects murder and uncovers a complex web of relationships - passion and corruption, lies and unhappiness.

    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown
15. 

    7.7/10(897 votes)

    #15 - The Sins of the Fathers

    S4:E21/10/1990

    Morse investigates the murder of Trevor Radford, managing director of the family-owned Radford's Brewery, who was attacked and killed while working late. Morse becomes immersed in the implications of a hostile take-over bid by another company. Then Helen Radford goes to the brewery to look for her missing husband Stephen and finds him also murdered.

    Director:Peter Hammond

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Peter Hammond

    Writer:Unknown
16. 

    7.7/10(907 votes)

    #16 - Happy Families

    S6:E23/11/1992

    Business tycoon Sir John Balcombe is found murdered at his country house, Balcombe Castle, with no signs of a break-in. As a result, the dead man's wife and sons come under suspicion. Morse finds that the family is strangely untroubled, and several of his prime suspects have flawed characters and dark secrets - and then the Balcombe family suffers another killing. Meanwhile, Morse has to cope with journalists who try to turn his own personality into a story - and he also suffers from an unhelpful Chief Superintendant, covering for the station's usual boss, who puts pressure on him to crack the case in a hurry. In the end, though, Morse is vindicated and his various tormentors get their comeuppance.

    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown
17. 

    7.7/10(847 votes)

    #17 - Absolute Conviction

    S6:E44/8/1992

    A convicted fraudster, one of three former business partners at an open prison, dies following an assault. Morse has to investigate the death while dealing with a brash subordinate and trying to avoid offending the prison authorities.

    Director:Antonia Bird

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Antonia Bird

    Writer:Unknown
18. 

    7.8/10(944 votes)

    #18 - Deceived by Flight

    S3:E31/18/1989

    Morse investigates when the annual match of the Claret's old boys' cricket eleven is brought to an abrupt end by the sudden death of a team member - and it seems that cricket was the last thing on their minds.

    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Anthony Minghella

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    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Anthony Minghella
19. 

    7.8/10(998 votes)

    #19 - The Infernal Serpent

    S4:E11/3/1990

    Morse investigates a tangled web of university intrigue which surrounds the baffling murder of Dr Julian Dear, a college don and famous environmentalist who was killed just minutes before he was due to give a controversial lecture. It seems that the most respectable of academic families can have skeletons in the cupboard, and Morse has to put his job on the line to get at the truth.

    Director:John Madden

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:John Madden

    Writer:Unknown
20. 

    7.8/10(828 votes)

    #20 - The Day of the Devil

    S7:E21/13/1993

    Morse and Lewis hunt a violent rapist who has escaped from prison. They find themselves drawn into an under-world of satanists, and some of them seem more respectable than others.

    Director:Stephen Whittaker

    Writer:Daniel Boyle

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    Director:Stephen Whittaker

    Writer:Daniel Boyle
21. 

    7.9/10(1012 votes)

    #21 - The Ghost in the Machine

    S3:E11/4/1989

    Morse investigates the reported theft of erotic paintings belonging to Sir Julius Hanbury, a local baronet who is one of those standing for election as the new Master of Courtney College, Oxford. As well as the pictures, Sir Julius himself has also disappeared. Morse finds Sir Julius's dead body, and at first it looks like murder, but the new police pathologist, Dr Grayling Russell, believes he killed himself. Then there is another death which is undoubtedly a murder - but how is it connected with the late Sir Julius Hanbury?

    Director:Herbert Wise

    Writer:Julian Mitchell

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    Director:Herbert Wise

    Writer:Julian Mitchell
22. 

    7.9/10(981 votes)

    #22 - The Death of the Self

    S6:E33/25/1992

    The strange death of an Englishwoman abroad takes Morse and Lewis to the city of Verona in northern Italy. Morse takes delight in open-air opera in the Roman amphitheatre and falls under the spell of Nicole Burgess, a glamorous opera singer. But Lewis is home-sick.

    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown

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    Director:Unknown

    Writer:Unknown
23. 

    8.0/10(879 votes)

    #23 - Promised Land

    S5:E53/27/1991

    The search for a retired 'supergrass' takes Morse and Lewis from Oxford to the Australian outback. Strangely, Lewis is less at home down under than Morse himself is.

    Director:John Madden

    Writer:Julian Mitchell

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    Director:John Madden

    Writer:Julian Mitchell
24. 

    8.2/10(980 votes)

    #24 - Driven to Distraction

    S4:E31/17/1990

    The apparently motiveless murder of two young women points to a psychotic killer. Morse's speculations on what they might have in common leads him to a local garage owner, Jeremy Boynton, who knew them both, and who arouses his suspicions and dislike. Convinced that Boynton holds the key to the crime, Morse begins to hound him, despite having no firm evidence. Morse is also faced with the possible oss of his beloved red Mk II Jaguar.

    Director:Sandy Johnson

    Writer:Anthony Minghella

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    Director:Sandy Johnson

    Writer:Anthony Minghella
25. 

    8.4/10(1140 votes)

    #25 - Masonic Mysteries

    S4:E41/24/1990

    Morse finds himself at the top of the suspect list when his lady friend, Beryl Newsome, is stabbed at a dress rehearsal for the local amateur dramatic society's production of The Magic Flute. Then Lewis starts uncovering more incriminating evidence, and Morse becomes the target of direct attacks. Who is it that wants to get at Morse so badly?

    Director:Danny Boyle

    Writer:Julian Mitchell

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    Director:Danny Boyle

    Writer:Julian Mitchell