The Best Episodes of The Bill Season 17

Dave Quinnan just stands and watches as a shopkeeper and a young woman are attacked by a gang of thugs at his local corner shop. When he finally turns up at the station, he identifies the leader of the gang as Robbie Gaitskill. Polly Page turns up in tears, and she and the rest of the relief are concerned as Dave seems to be cracking up. The crackheads arrested the previous night identify Quinnan as the policeman who attacked them. As Hagen and Page try to find him, Quinnan goes AWOL and tracks down the woman from the shop, Tricia Martin, and demands she tell him Gaitskill's address. Half the relief turn up on Gaitskill's doorstep, only to find Quinnan sitting in a car outside. Gaitskill is arrested, and Quinnan is told by Supt. Chandler to take his sick leave and seek professional counselling.

Director: John Howard Davies

Writer: N/A

Sgt. Cryer and PC Hayward attend an incident at a local school where an angry divorcee, Chris Finnessey, is demanding to see his son. When the boy's teacher warns the police of Finnessey's violent reputation and a possible restraining order against him, he grabs a Stanley knife and takes the teacher and Sgt. Cryer hostage. Faced with an armed suspect and two hostages, Supt. Chandler calls in SO19, although the only Trojan unit available is that of the newly-qualified PC Smith and PC Stanley. When Finnessey and his son leave the school building, Chandler gives authorisation to fire. Smith shoots first but to his horror, accidentally hits Cryer. Stanley takes down Finnessey. Cryer survives the shooting, but his career in the police is over.

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Supt. Chandler is outraged when he finds out about the aggrevated burglery of a deaf and blind woman in the local paper rather than from CID. Reg Hollis overhears Matt Boyden gossiping to Vicky Hagen about Dave and Polly, and soon the news of their affair is all over the station. Accompanied by a reporter from the newspaper, CID and Uniform raid the house of suspected burgler Mick Corcoran, but when Corcoran attacks Polly Page, he is brutally beaten by Quinnan and requires hospital treatment. Sgt. Boyden arranges tickets for a charity ball, but the limo breaks down and they all take refuge in a country pub, where Jenny Quinnan finally works out that Dave is having an affair.

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The relief have organised a farewell party for Bob Cryer, but it sounds like he's not too keen to go, so Ch. Insp. Conway pays him a visit. The police inquiry clears PC Smith of charges relating to Cryer's shooting, although his probation period is extended. PC Worrell and PC Clarke attend a reported break-in at the house of a hippy couple, who claim a valuable necklace was stolen, and the intruder turns out to be a plumber who still has the key. PC Klein and PC Hayward are called when a strange young woman accuses her neighbour of torturing her elderly mother. When the old woman disappears, it appears she was taken by her son who is wanted for parole violation in Manchester. Cryer turns up for his leaving do at the Bell & Badger, and is in high spirits, though he is angered by Supt. Chandler's speech. Cryer also announces he has brought along a special guest: Dale Smith - he insists he has no hard feelings against Smithy, and that the others should forgive him as well.

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A teenage boy is found badly beaten, and a young girl, Lisa, from the same school is missing. DC Webb shows little interest in the case, so Sgt Cryer investigates the girl's disappearance himself. A local 'photographer', Andrew Morton, is the main suspect, as he has an obsession with Lisa and her friends, and he is arrested when PC Harker spots him acting suspiciously by the canal. When Lisa turns out to have been hiding out at a friend's house the whole time, Cryer must rush to prevent Lisa's father from taking the law into his own hands by killing the innocent Morton.

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DC Webb poses as a 'rent-boy' in Eddington Park, a well-known gay beat in Sun Hill, as he and DC Lennox investigate a series of brutal attacks on gay men in the area. A car alarm alerts Webb and Lennox to the car of a local MP parked in the bushes. When questioned, the MP claims he was car-jacked and certainly was not 'cruising' in the park. He threatens legal action and Supt. Chandler moves quickly to prevent further damage to Sun Hill's reputation. A helpful security guard offers the police an observation post in a nearby office building, but Webb is suspiscious of the guard's attitude.

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PC Klein is offered the position of partnership officer, but he is shunned by the relief, who think he grassed Smithy up to get the job. Sgt. Cryer has a funny feeling about Frank Kennedy, and decides to do some digging of his own, and he encourages Smith to do the same. With Klein's help, Smith infiltrates the gang of youths intimidating the local residents, and discovers that the real estate firm Mather & Devine is indeed behind the harassment. Meanwhile, Cryer uncovers the fact that Kennedy was a notorious East End gangster named Ken Franklin who stored weapons for the Kray brothers, and that Kennedy's claim of shooting in self-defence is disproven by the forensic evidence and a statement from the other gang member. Smith is re-instated, Supt. Chandler approves his transfer to SO19, and Klein turns down the partnership officer job.

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New Area Car driver, PC Des Taviner, makes an instant (but negative) impression on the relief when he starts work on the night shift at Sun Hill, with his overbearing manner and sharp mouth. He clashes with PC Worrell, and demands she be taken off Area Car duty with him, as he says she is ""clueless"". Paired with PC Hollis, Taviner chats up two girls waiting for the night bus and offers them a lift home. DC Glaze makes a breakthrough in a series of brutal rapes on the Jasmine Allen estate, and when residents report a woman screaming on Canley Fields, all Sierra Oscar units race to the scene. Taviner is sympathetic towards the victim, prostitute Lynn Roberts, and vows to ""get the bastard"" responsible.

Director: Michael Ferguson

Writer: N/A

The Section House is closing, and PC Reg Hollis is not only looking for a new place to live, he is also applying for a transfer to SO14 (the Royal Protection unit). He is about to buy a flat owned by an elderly friend, Doreen Tyler, but she changes her mind at the last minute, so he moves in with Tony Stamp temporarily. Hollis's intuition gives CID an important lead on a planned armed robbery, but his uniformed colleagues conspire to have Nick Klein organise the Section House closing party instead of him. Deciding to skip the party, Hollis goes to visit Doreen, but finds her dead in her flat. With no alibi, Hollis is the prime suspect for her murder, and he is suspended from duty. As Stamp and Klein work to find someone who can verify Hollis's whereabouts, CID discover a woman posing as Mrs Tyler's adopted daughter.

Director: Rob Bailey

Writer: N/A

At the stakeout of the prime suspect, Chandler prevaricates, and Meadows has to act quickly when McAllister is in mortal danger.

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Dave Quinnan arrives late after rowing with Jenny all night. Ever the troublemaker, Sgt. Boyden sends him out on patrol with Polly Page, Tony Stamp and Vicky Hagen. Quinnan and Page have trouble keeping their mind on the job, and this gets dangerous when Stamp is attacked by a gang of thugs on the DLR and Quinnan is nowhere to be seen. When Jenny leaves him and returns to Dublin, Dave starts to crack up. He puts on his uniform after his shift and goes on a vigilante mission to find the gang responsible for the attack on Stamp. DC Webb gets an anonymous call and finds some of the gang members tied up and sprayed with pepper spray.

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Visiting Bob Cryer in hospital, June Ackland is horrified to find that Cryer doesn't know he has already been replaced at Sun Hill. His replacement is Sgt. Craig Gilmore, transferring from Manchester Police. Gilmore wastes no time in telling the relief that the rumours are true: he is gay. DC Lennox investigates the harassment of a local publican by a gang of youths, but when Gilmore organises a 'beat sweep' of the local estates, they find the publican's daughter is involved with the gang. Her information leads them to an illegal drinking club. After the police raid the club and arrest the gang members, one of them accuses PC Harker of brutality.

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A mad gunman is on the loose in Sun Hill. Supt. Chandler takes a personal interest in the case, but when he confides his reasons to a young woman who was threatened by the gunman, he is horrified to find she was a journalist and the story is published in the Sun Hill Gazette. Feeling unappreciated in the job, DCI Meadows considers other options, and attempts to smooth things over with his long-suffering wife, Laura. Meadows teams up with DS McAllister and the two of them strike out on their own, and after a few close calls, arrest their prime suspect - a motor mechanic with a history of firearms offences. As they interview him however, the gunman strikes again...

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Under pressure from Supt. Chandler and the NCS to release Phil Brown, DCI Meadows convinces Moira Scott to admit to George Stubbs's involvement in the armed robbery as well as drug dealing. DC Kate Spears goes undercover as a cocaine buyer, and with some help from NCS and SO19, they catch Stubbs and his supplier red-handed with the drugs. During his interview, Stubbs makes an allegation of corruption against Supt. Chandler. Before he calls in CIB, DI Cullen convinces Meadows he's only been told half the story.

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When the victim in yesterday's domestic disturbance turns up badly beaten and left for dead, her husband is adamant he had nothing to do with it. Mandy tells Cryer that the woman who was bashed, Cath Evans, was working as a prostitute, and that the Councillor's husband Justin was one of her clients. But Justin in turn, having admitted his deeds to his wife, says that he was seeing Mandy as well, and that on the night of the fire, she turned up late and had blood on her clothes. Meanwhile, Smith arrives at SO19 to find his new friend Julie also made the grade, but on their training course, treats her as the token female. When she beats him on the rifle range it causes friction, and their boss cautions that they have to learn to work as a team.

Director: N/A

Writer: Phil Ford

Hoping it will convince Supt. Chandler to endorse his transfer to SO19, PC Smith volunteers with PC Klein to 'babysit' Clive Allein, the victim of a gay bashing who is reluctantly testifying against his assailant, Gary Cook, in court the next day. Smith nearly blows it when his angry reaction to Clive's partner Ian Jones's teasing causes Jones to run off, where he is promptly attacked, and Allein refusing to testify, until Smith convinces him otherwise. The trial goes ahead, and the attacker is found guilty, but further threats from Cook's friend Paul Taylor cause Ian to storm off again, this time he goes missing. Smith and Klein fear the worst when a stabbing victim is reported, but it turns out to be Paul Taylor who is the vicitm, and Ian Jones the attacker.

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When DC Lennox is accused of planting evidence in an armed robbery case, DCI Meadows is determined to charge the suspect's accomplice, Phil Brown. Unfortunately, Brown claims to have been an informant for DS Don Beech, which makes Supt. Chandler determined to drop the case. When an old friend of Meadows' reveals that George Stubbs had previously bribed Chandler's DS at Park Rise, Meadows realises he has some ammunition against Chandler. Meanwhile Sgt. Boyden and PC Hagen help PC Roz Clarke recover her ASP when it is stolen while pursuing a robbery suspect.

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Sgt. Bob Cryer is approaching his 30th year of service, but some of the senior officers at the station doubt he is still up to the job. Supt. Chandler assigns Cryer the difficult task of resolving a situation where a group of prostitutes are at loggerheads with a local residents group led by Counciller Angela Morris. Cryer suggests a 'zone of tolerance', a non-residential area where the prostitutes can work without upsetting the locals, and manages to convince the girls to give it a try. As Chandler heads off to a charity dinner, a call comes through that the Morris' house has been torched. Meanwhile, PC Smith attends his interview for transfer to SO19 - he is successful, and leaves Sun Hill to join the Armed Response Unit.

Director: N/A

Writer: Phil Ford

Tony Stamp joins a dating agency for professional people, telling them he is an antiques dealer, and as he is living in the section house, gives them Polly Page's address. A CID operation involving forged banknotes goes wrong, and Sgt. Gilmore tells Stamp and Hayward off when they pursue and arrest an armed suspect without backup. When DC Webb and DC Spears investigate a series of robberies, they discover a link to Tony's dating agency, and that Tony's date Lisa invites men to stay at her flat and then arranges for their house to be burgled. CID set up surveillance outside Page's house, and catch the thieves, and Stamp must sadly arrest Lisa.

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PC Smith and PC Klein attend to Mr Kennedy, whose house and garden shed have been attacked by vandals repeatedly over the past few weeks. When Kennedy threatens to take matters into his own hands, Smith casually comments that he wouldn't blame him if he did. Smith and Klein both apply for new jobs - Smith submits his application to SO19 and Supt. Chandler wants Klein to take the position of partnership officer at the Town Hall. When Kennedy shoots a young boy, and insists that PC Smith told him to do so, Klein reluctantly confirms what was said, and Smith accuses him of grassing him up. After attacking Klein in the corridor, and under investigation by CIB, Smith is suspended from duty.

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PC Dave Quinnan returns to duty, and is determined to prove to everyone that he's back to normal after his breakdown. Out in a panda car, Quinnan sees a man shot in the head in a van - he calls for assistance, but by the time reinforcements arrive, the victim, the van and the main witness have disappeared. Desperate to prove his sanity, Quinnan pursues the case vigourously, and enlists the help of DC Paul Riley's brother Joe, who asks the wrong people the wrong questions. PC Polly Page is outraged by a practical joke played by PC Taviner, but she and Quinnan get their revenge in a most amusing way.

Director: Susan Tully

Writer: N/A

Supt. Chandler is speaking at a meeting on the Larkmead Estate, but vandalism and a petrol bomb cut short his talk. Sgt. Ackland is called to the house of local MP Stephen Hadley and his wife Fiona, where their infant child has died of serious injuries. Forensic examination reveals the baby was thrown to the floor, and Fiona Hadley says her husband was responsible. Hadley is arrested, but denies her claim. A lack of evidence sees him released, but he is arrested again for beating his wife when he returns home. It turns out the Hadleys' other child knocked the baby's high chair over.

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After an ear-bending from Marsha Harris, Supt. Chandler is determined to bring to an end the one-boy crime wave on the Larkmead Estate caused by resident hooligan Peter Rogers. Chandler persuades Sgt. Ackland to talk to Peter's mother, and also tries to get Marsha Harris's daughter Cassie to make a statement to the police against Rogers, but both are too scared of the boy to comply. When Cassie Harris is found half-drowned in a river, and PCs Stamp and Hollis turn up a CCTV tape of Rogers smashing up cars, it seems they may be able to put him away at last - although it turns out that Cassie's drowning was self-inflicted and the CCTV tape is actually Peter's brother Gavin trying to frame him for criminal damage.

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DS McAllister pushes her informant and lover Jamie Ross too far when she tapes a privileged conversation between Ross and a client who admits to intimidating a witness in a court case. When Ross makes an official complaint against her, she turns to DC Riley for help and threatens to expose his cover-up of his brother's involvement with the French car gang unless he backs her up and says that he was present at all her meetings with Ross.

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It's Sgt. Matt Boyden's 40th birthday, and to make matters worse, he has to cancel a date to attend an outward-pursuit weekend with PC Vicky Hagen and a group of wayward teenagers. CID investigate the serious bashing of an elderly man, and their prime suspect is Jason Wyatt who had attacked the same man some months previously. Jason is one of the group with Boyden and Hagen, and his aggressive personality causes several arguments and fights over the weekend. Boyden forms a bond with the boy though, and suspects Jason's abusive father had more to do with the attack. Forensics prove him right, but to Boyden's dismay, Jason faces a manslaughter charge as the injuries he inflicted on the man months ago caused the man to die. Hagen promises Boyden a birthday drink, but the relief have organised a surprise party, so they take a raincheck.

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