Part 1 A Sleeper Tiger – The episode opens with Alex Ridley (Adrian Dunbar) walking down an isolated road surrounded by sheep. He later has a therapy session with Dr. Samantha Larsson (Suzanne Packer). He imagines Ella with him, even though, she and her mother, Kate perished in a house fire three years ago.

CCTV footage inside Benthams Jewelers in Allerton shows several people on motorbikes pull up outside and bombard a woman. As the security alarm blares in the background, a man shouts out orders from the doorway. The assailants retrieve the jewels. One of them cuts their arm on a piece of glass. The man yells for everyone to go. A pair on a motorbike escape the police. One of the assailants falls from a motorbike and is immediately restrained by the police. DC Darren Lakhan (George Bukhari) is questioning Harry Bentham (John Michie) when DI Carol Farman (Bronagh Waugh) arrives at the crime scene. She dons show coves before entering through the rear entrance. Dr. Wendy Newstone (Georgie Glen) informs her of the assailants wearing gloves and helmets. One of the CCTV cameras was smashed during the robbery. Carol suggests it was carried out by the same gang. Wendy shows her blood, left by one of the assailants, on the broken display case. The intruder SmartWater spray possibly covered at least one of the three assailants. Later, Carol questions one of the assailants, Ryan Stanford (Ruaridah Mollica), about the jewelry store heist. He demands to see a doctor. DCI Paul Goodwin (Terence Maynard) tells him that he has been medically cleared to be interviewed. Ryan denies any affiliation with the robbery. Carol says there are witnesses that put him at the scene. Goodwin suggests the same gang from Framley is responsible for the robbery and three similar robberies carried out over the past year. Carol says he could get 10 years for his involvement. Ryan assures her that no one was supposed to be hurt. Goodwin asks for names when Defense Attorney Rebecca Bayling (Krissi Bohn) insists on briefing her client. Carol says Paralegal Liam Manley (Kerim Hassan) has already briefed him. Ryan agrees to speak with Rebecca.

Ridley is called in to the station. At Bridge Inn, Annie Marling (Julie Graham) leaves Tasha Walker (Chloe Harris) in charge. Donna Burnside (Isabelle Smith) tells her about the police questioning Ryan about the robbery. She questions if he tipped off the police. At the police station, Carol, Ridley, and Goodwin discuss the case. Ridley calls one of his contacts, ICE, but no one answers. Later, Donna meets Ryan outside the Copelton Magistrates Court. She admits to informing Frank Stanford (John Henshaw) that he got bail. He is startled to see Callum Douglas (Kaya Moore) waiting for him in a Blessingdale Paints & Decorators’ van. As Callum, who has his left wrist bandaged, emerges from the van, Ryan flees on foot. He gets a short distance before being mowed down by a vehicle. Elsewhere, Goodwin informs Ridley of the hit-and-run. Ridley questions why Ryan was bailed. Goodwin attributes it to Baylings’ persistence. They enter the investigation room as Carol is going on the case with her team. Ryan is affiliated with Liam Manley (Kerim Hassan), a prime suspect in the case. Darren suggests Ryan’s murder was an act of retaliation. Carol says stolen items are sold abroad. Ridley insists someone higher up is in charge. Someone tipped off the police, not Ryan.

Wendy believes the fatal hit-and-run was intentional. Ridley says it was pre-meditated. No CCTV cameras were in the area. Grease-contaminated white paint flecks were found on Ryan’s pants. An IR analysis may determine the make and model of the suspect vehicle but Wendy warns that white paint is very uniform. Ridley believes the hit-and-run is uncommon for gangs. A short time later, Donna denies any knowledge of where Ryan was going when he got hit. She breaks down crying. Distraught, Frank claims Ryan promised to turn his life around when he found out Donna was pregnant. Donna overhears him saying it was the only reason he agreed to let her move in. She intervenes to stop him from saying anything about the gang. Carol hands him a photo to identify. He voices concern about talking to the police before identifying the man in the photo as Liam who frequents the Bridge Inn Pub on High Street. After leaving, Carol and Ridley agree Donna is withholding information. Determined to keep his cover, he urges her to take Darren along.

Darren and Carol find Liam at Bridge Inn playing pool with several guys. She asks where he was yesterday morning. Tasha claims he was repairing a refrigerator at the pub. Liam claims to have working in Lostock when Ryan was killed. Seeing a Blessingdale van outside the pub, Carol asks if it belongs to him. He says it is a company van. After assessing the van, Darren says there is no front-end damage. Later, Ridley informs Annie that he cannot work his shift because a job has come up. She expresses her disappointment. Harry pats Annie’s hand and suggests asking the new girl. Ridley asks if he runs the jewelry shop that was recently robbed. Annie scolds Harry for not telling her. Ridley informs them of Ryan’s murder before leaving to meet Tasha who is actually a cop. He says the police believe Ryan’s murder is linked to the jewelry store robbery. She tells him that Donna was concerned about Ryan tipping off the police. She believes Ryan stayed with Donna because she was pregnant. He asks how she knew about the robbery. She claims to have overheard the Framley guys talking at the pub and gives him a notepad with the details. She insists Liam is not running the show. He asks how her alias is working out. She grew up in Framley and believes they will talk to her. He urges her to be careful.

As Carol prepares to leave for work, Jack Farman (Tareq Al-Jeddal) tells her that he has football. Geri Farman (Bhavna Limbachia) is taking care of Meadow. Jack watches them play with Meadow before leaving. Geri tells her that she is contemplating returning to work. They agree a work-from-home teaching would be better for Meadow and them. Carol receives a call from Ridley about a call Ryan made while in custody. The number was traced back to Katharine Penrose (Christine Bottomley). Elsewhere, Frank finds Liam in his shed. Liam offers his condolences. Fran blames him for Ryan’s death. Liam says someone informed the police of the robbery. Frank assures him that the police are already onto him and denies being afraid of him. Liam says you should be before leaving.

At Ball Hall Fold Stud, Carol and Ridley find Janey Rutter (Jessica Whitehurst) working in the stables. She points them to Katharine’s office. Carol informs Katharine of Ryan’s murder. Katharine claims he called her to ask if she could help him out but she felt it was inappropriate. Simon Penrose (Toby Hadoke) is away in Ireland talking to buyers. Janey believes Ryan resented the Penrose lifestyle and suggests his relationship with Katharine was personal. Upon leaving, Carol tells him that Tasha gave Liam an alibi on the morning of the robbery. Shocked, he questions why she lied to him. She suggests Tasha is too close to the Framley gang. He insists they not share any more intel with Tasha until they are sure she can be trusted. Elsewhere, Tasha and Liam drive off together.

Ridley encounters Harry outside the police station. Harry alleges 800,000 grand worth of jewels were taken during the robbery. Ridley is shocked. Harry says the pieces were a valuable signature collection that he had recently received. Ridley questions if it was an inside job. Darren informs Ridley and Carol that Bayling handled the conveyance for cash purchases of several properties acquired by shell companies. One of the owners, Terrence “Terry” Sansom (Matt Bardock), was found to have stolen property from the auction house robbery 10 years ago. He was also a suspect in the murder of a Rotterdam assayer. Later, Ridley and Carol question Bayling about her client, Terry. Bayling refuses to talk until Ridley threatens to obvious a warrant on suspicion of money laundering. She confirms it was Terry who got her involved in Ryan’s case but refuses to go on record. Ridley vows to bring her down if Terry is implicated in the robberies.

Terry denies knowing Ryan. Ridley reminds him that he was a suspect in the murder of a Rotterdam diamond merchant. Terry says there were never any charges brought against him. Carol asks where he was yesterday morning. Terry claims to have been at his daughter’s birthday party and boasts of being one of the good guys. Elsewhere, Donna refuses to take Ryan’s cut from the robbery. When Callum pulls up in Blessingdale van, she says he was there when Ryan fled. Tasha assures Callum that Ryan never tipped off the police. Liam intervenes to stop him from badgering her about her military service. Tasha questions what Liam sees in Callum. Liam says he is harmless and asks if she is going to meet up with him tonight. She says maybe and urges him to be careful.

Darren informs Ridley that Harry bought 10,000 shares worth half a million in Bentham Rough Diamonds and within four days, the share price dropped by 40%. A short time later, Ridley confronts Harry about his unsuccessful investment. Harry suggests Terry utilizes his haulage company to move stolen merchandise. He says Terry will definitely want to offload the stolen jewelry as quickly as possible. He denies any wrongdoing. An incoming call from ICE, Tasha, pops up on Ridley’s phone. She tells him that Callum was waiting for Ryan when he left court on the day he was killed. At the police station, Callum is found to have SmartWater on his skin. Carol and Ridley interrogate him until he decides to talk. He admits to moving the stolen merchandise and delivering the money to the Penrose stud farm.

At Bridge Inn, Liam arrives to tell Tasha about Callum’s arrest. He asks her to dispose of his clothes. Donna watches them from the bar. Tasha reminds him that he denies any connection to the robberies. She reluctantly accepts the bag of clothes. Donna calls the police station and speaks to Darren. Later, Joy Walker (Christine Entwisle) warns Tasha against hanging out with Liam. Tasha gets defensive. Darren arrives with a search warrant. Officers find Liam’s clothes in her room. Darren arrests her on suspicion of assisting an offender. Tasha sees Donna as she is being escorted to a police cruiser. At the police station, Ridley is shocked to see Tasha in the interrogation room. The episode opens.

 

Ridley Review

The start of season two is less than impressive. To get the most out of the series, PBS splits each of the four cases into two parts. Story progression slows to a snail’s pace for most of the episode. The story is clunky and much of what is revealed is pointless. The case starts out as a simple jewelry store robbery and gradually turns into a murder and an investment scheme.

Season two is filmed in Derbyshire. The highlight of the episode is the beautiful scenery. The bleak setting is ideal for a police procedural drama. There is little about the series that sets it apart from other British crime dramas. The drama is overused to the point of being no longer original.

Adrian Dunbar is the perfect Alex Ridley. However, Ridley’s involvement in the cases pushes the other detectives to the sideline. There is really no need for more than Carol and Ridley.

The acting is top-notch which is to be expected. It’s unfortunate that some of the actors are miscast. The story is boring and cliché. Endless dialogue and very little action. The episode deserves a 4.5 out of 10.

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