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The Best Episodes of The Bill Season 17

Every episode of The Bill Season 17 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of The Bill Season 17!

Binge this in Unknown•Peaking at 8.7/10

The daily lives of the men and women at Sun Hill Police Station as they fight crime on the streets of London. From bomb threats to armed robbery and drug raids to the routine demands

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    The Bill Season 17 Episode 79 - Shout
    8.7/10(17 votes)

    S17:E79

    DI Liz Rawton and DS Peter Cork are visiting the scene of the latest attack. Cork is doubtful that the perpetrator is 'their' rapist as there's no bag over the victim's head and her hands haven't been tied. Meanwhile DC Kate Spears is fruitlessly searching for her missing friend Eddie; she fears for his safety when Cork hands in Eddie's phone, claiming to have found it. As DS Vik Singh propounds to Cork and Rawton that their prey might be getting bolder, Rawton opens a package containing torn knickers and a rose petal. Horrified, she explains she received the same from an old boyfriend a couple of years ago who later committed suicide. Cork is aware of this and suggests the rapist is baiting them. He proposes they set a trap. Along with PCs Roz Clarke and Polly Page, Spears volunteers to pose as a prostitute in a local park hoping to attract the rapist. However, it is Spears who is dangerously exposed when Cork, who is supposed to be guarding her, is nowhere to be seen.

    Director:Declan O'Dwyer
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. The Bill Season 17 Episode 80 - Judas Kiss
    8.5/10(14 votes)

    S17:E80

    DC Spears's hunch is proved correct when the truth about the rapes turns out to be more terrifying than anyone imagined.

    Director:John Howard Davies
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. The Bill Season 17 Episode 78 - Compulsion
    8.4/10(25 votes)

    S17:E78

    DI Liz Rawton addresses her team and puts forward the theory that rape victim Terri's death was not suicide but murder. Whilst Pete Cork and DS Vik Singh voice doubts, Spears supports Rawton. Afterwards, when Cork tries to talk to Spears, she accuses him of nearly raping her but he scoffs that no one would ever believe her. Spears returns to the riverside where Terri's body was found and makes a major break-through when a passer-by, Mr Bindman, reveals that his wife saw Terri's body being dumped. He promises to get his wife to call her. Later, Spears decides to keep an eye on Cork and follows him to a pub where he meets up with an old mate, DI Collins. Spears remains outside whilst inside Collins and Cork talk cryptically about the case. On her return, Spears spots a man lurking outside her flat and blasts him with CS Spray. He turns out to be her friend Eddie who works for the Thames Valley police. Her feminine charms persuade him to get information on Cork. Unfortunately, Spears is a

    Director:Declan O'Dwyer
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. The Bill Season 17 Episode 59 - Beech on the Run
    8.3/10(26 votes)

    S17:E59

    Don Beech turns up in Sydney, Australia, and almost immediately hooks up with Frankie Nguyen, a Vietnamese-Australian woman with contacts in Sydney's criminal underworld. Together, she and Beech engage in a ruthless crime spree and are soon wanted by the New South Wales Police, the Australian Federal Police, a rival Vietnamese gang and a ruthless and determined DI Claire Stanton, who has arrived to arrest Beech and extradite him to Britain for the murder of DS Boulton six months earlier. The chase comes to a head at a Sydney dock, and as Beech tries to make a getaway in his new boat, Stanton fires a shotgun after him, blowing up the boat and leaving Beech missing, presumed dead.

    Director:Ian White
    Writers:Geoff McQueen, Steve Griffiths

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  5. The Bill Season 17 Episode 1 - Appropriate Action
    8.2/10(27 votes)

    S17:E1

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. The Bill Season 17 Episode 13 - Home and Away
    8.2/10(19 votes)

    S17:E13

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  7. The Bill Season 17 Episode 30 - Hitting Home
    8.2/10(29 votes)

    S17:E30

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. The Bill Season 17 Episode 43 - Gun Crazy (2)
    8.2/10(29 votes)

    S17:E43

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

    Director:Richard Holthouse
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. The Bill Season 17 Episode 56 - Britanniamania: To Us and Ours
    8.2/10(26 votes)

    S17:E56

    DC Mickey Webb is close to infiltrating the Britannia gang, despite the suspiscions of some of its members - suspiscions which fire up when DS Debbie McAllister, posing as his girlfriend, turns up to a gang meeting overdressed and wearing Givenchy perfume. Julian Napper smells a rat and follows McAllister as she desperately tries to find a hospital to keep her cover as a nurse intact. Napper catches up with her and accuses her of being an undercover reporter - with her cover blown, McAllister returns to Sun Hill. Supt. Chandler blasts her for her stupidity, and forces her to take notes as they hear Webb taking a severe beating from Napper's thugs over his mobile phone. As DCI Meadows races to save Webb, Napper stops the beating and welcomes ""Mickey Malone"" as a full-fledged member of Britannia.

    Director:Brian Parker
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. The Bill Season 17 Episode 57 - Britanniamania: To Us and Ours
    8.2/10(26 votes)

    S17:E57

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. The Bill Season 17 Episode 58 - Britanniamania: Stand By Me
    8.2/10(27 votes)

    S17:E58

    A series of dawn raids captures most of the Britannia gang, but Julian Napper and Gary Hughes are still at large. With Napper on the loose, Supt. Chandler and DCI Meadows insist DC Webb go into hiding, but he refuses to be intimidated, even when DC Lennox's wife's car goes up in flames. Webb convinces Gary Hughes to tell him where ""The Nap"" is, but Napper still manages to stay one step ahead of the police every time. Chander and Ch. Insp. Morys begin to suspect that Webb is the one informing Napper of their movements, but DC Riley and PC Quinnan's investigations turn up the FIU's DS John Curtis as Napper's brother-in-law and the informant. Webb races to Napper's hideout, but is too late to save Hughes from being stabbed by Napper.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. The Bill Season 17 Episode 61 - Come Live With Me
    8.2/10(26 votes)

    S17:E61

    PC Cass Rickman's lover Leroy Jones asks her to move to South Africa with him. As PC Sam Harker becomes involved in the NCS investigation, he warns Rickman about Leroy's suspected connection with heroin smuggling and a triple-homicide, but she doesn't believe him until she confronts Leroy. With the help of Nina, a woman he met in the hotel lobby, Harker keeps tabs on Leroy's movements until the NCS and CID make their move and raid a nightclub owned by one of Leroy's associates, Jen Resenbrink. A search of the furniture by Customs reveals no drugs as suspected, so Leroy is released. As he angrily heads off to the airport, leaving behind a distraught Cass Rickman, his fingerprints are found on a gun used to murder an undercover NCS officer.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. The Bill Season 17 Episode 11 - Cruise Control
    8.1/10(30 votes)

    S17:E11

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. The Bill Season 17 Episode 14 - Going Under
    8.1/10(25 votes)

    S17:E14

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. The Bill Season 17 Episode 15 - Faultline
    8.1/10(26 votes)

    S17:E15

    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:Unknown

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  16. The Bill Season 17 Episode 21 - The Leopard (2)
    8.1/10(22 votes)

    S17:E21

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. The Bill Season 17 Episode 41 - Happy and Glorious (1)
    8.1/10(28 votes)

    S17:E41

    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:Unknown

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  18. The Bill Season 17 Episode 42 - Gun Crazy (1)
    8.1/10(33 votes)

    S17:E42

    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...

    Director:Richard Holthouse
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. The Bill Season 17 Episode 54 - Another Country
    8.1/10(19 votes)

    S17:E54

    While on foot patrol on the Jasmine Allen estate, PC Jim Carver contends with an elderly man, Ronnie Atkins, who wants to deal with the local youths ""his way"". When Atkins' best friend, Len Harrap, is found having fallen from the top of the building, Carver suspects foul play and investigates further. Harrap's GP tells him that Len was recently suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and that he had served with British forces during the Korean War. When a man matching the description of the association secretary, Charles Barratt, is reported to have left Len's flat, Atkins realises what has happened. Barratt was a corporal in their platoon during the war, and had forced Len at gunpoint to murder surrendered Chinese soldiers. When Len's daughter put his name up for the reunion, Barratt realised this was his chance to get rid of the photographic evidence of his war crime. Carver admits it will be difficult to get the CPS to prosecute Barratt, especially now the photographs are mis

    Director:John Howard Davies
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. The Bill Season 17 Episode 63 - Crush
    8.1/10(26 votes)

    S17:E63

    A gang of masked girls armed with baseball bats run riot at a wedding, but escape with the presents before PC Taviner and PC Hollis can catch them. The gang have been causing headaches for Sun Hill for weeks, and although she is not involved in the case, Supt. Chandler sends DC Kate Spears to visit the local schools, ostensibly to encourage students to join the Met's Volunteer Cadet Corps, but secretly to obtain information on the gang and its members. The gang's violence intensifies and the bride's sister, Debbie Pike, is found badly beaten after an altercation with a mother and her baby on the high street. As rumours about her and Supt. Chandler fly around the station, Kate Spears pushes an eager schoolboy informant too far, and he too is found bashed. When he regains consciousness, he tells Spears that Debbie is a gang member. Debbie admits she arranged for the gang to attack the wedding as she was in love with the groom, and Spears finds herself in grave danger when she confronts t

    Director:Herbert Wise
    Writer:Phil Ford

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  21. The Bill Season 17 Episode 77 - Aftershock
    8.1/10(19 votes)

    S17:E77

    A traumatized Spears' attempts to escape the horrific events of the weekend are hindered by the surprise re-appearance of her tormentor. Once she is sure that would-be rapist DS Peter Cork has gone, a shaken DC Kate Spears hesitantly emerges from her hotel bathroom. Spotting her dishevelled appearance she tidies up herself and the room. Downstairs Cork arrives and asks hotel rep Fay to dance. They are watched by a jealous Tommy who tells PC Nick Klein that Fay has dumped him. At breakfast the next morning, Inspector Andrew Monroe notices uniformed police arrive at the hotel. He introduces himself to DS Greg Georgiou. As the others speculate, he returns to tell them that Fay has been found dead and Tommy is missing. Horrified, Spears runs to the Ladies and is sick. After being questioned by the local police the team return to Sun Hill. Spears' relief at being seconded to work with DI Liz Rawton on the serial rapist case soon turns to despair when she is introduced to case profiler DS Co

    Director:Laurence Moody
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. The Bill Season 17 Episode 22 - Tolerance (1)
    8.0/10(17 votes)

    S17:E22

    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:Unknown
    Writer:Phil Ford

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  23. The Bill Season 17 Episode 23 - Tolerance (2)
    8.0/10(18 votes)

    S17:E23

    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:Unknown
    Writer:Phil Ford

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  24. The Bill Season 17 Episode 25 - Return of the Hunter
    8.0/10(25 votes)

    S17:E25

    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.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. The Bill Season 17 Episode 33 - A Week of Nights (1)
    8.0/10(19 votes)

    S17:E33

    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:Unknown

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Season 17 Ratings Summary

"Shout" is the best rated episode of "The Bill" season 17. It scored 8.7/10 based on 17 votes. Directed by Declan O'Dwyer and written by Unknown, it aired on 12/4/2001. This episode is rated 0.2 points higher than the second-best, "Judas Kiss".