The worst episodes of Scott and Bailey
Ranked by viewer rating, lows first. Lit marks on the season rail place this list across the run. Vote on a placement to back it or contest it.
- 01
Troubled by Gill's comments about her relationship with Will Pemberton, Rachel gets cold feet about accompanying him to an awards ceremony. When Janet discovers that Elise's heart is being broken by Eleanor's son, her maternal instincts make her want to rescue her daughter and bring her home. When a couple are shot at close range in their pub in the early hours, their son Simon feels utterly alone, having lost his sister Carla when he was three. But when his aunt is identifying the bodies, she tells them that Carla did not die, but was disowned by the family after failed attempts at rehab.
- 02
The discovery of slaves on the Pritchard farm has turned a murder inquiry into a huge, multi-agency investigation. Under investigation for the crash, a devastated Janet finds solace in Chris's calm reasoning. When an incandescent Evie Pritchard smells alcohol on DCI Gill Murray's breath, she has all the ammunition she needs to discredit both the investigation and Gill. But Scott and Bailey are determined to get Gill through to retirement with her reputation intact.
- 03
Rachel learns that Sean has a son while the team investigate the murder of a provacatively-dressed woman with a green head.
- 04
When businessman Adam Armitage shoves a homeless man, he doesn't know he's killed him. So why is he running away? And while Rachel weds a delighted Sean, Janet admits her marriage is over.
- 05
After promising that the chaos of her personal life was behind her, Rachel is torn when she discovers that her mother's new boyfriend is a violent domestic abuser. Janet goes on her first date, but gets cold feet at the last minute when the idea of having to sell herself to a stranger makes her heart sink. The murder of a gay man has all the markings of a hate crime, but why is his friend struggling to answer some simple questions?
- 06
Janet is unnerved to discover that DSI Dodson cannot ignore her concerns about Gill's drinking. Just as Rachel feels as if she is getting to grips with the job, she makes a fatal error that puts Janet and Chris in danger. When a man's body is found wedged between rocks on the moors with nothing to identify him, a road block is set up and an appeal put out. Enquiries lead Janet and Chris to a nearby farm, but they discover something much more sinister and shocking than they could ever have anticipated.
- 07
Newly-wed Rachel struggles to adjust to living with Sean. Admitting their marriage is over, Janet and Ade put their house on the market, planning to split when it sells. When she is called to a crime scene, Janet discovers the severed head of 75-year-old Eunice Bevan at the bottom of the stairs in her home, with her bedridden husband Joe lying upstairs. Tracing their relatives becomes crucial, but as Joe becomes more lucid in hospital, their daughter Helen's alibi starts to fall apart.
- 08
When a vulnerable young man goes missing, the suspicion is he's dead already. But a search of a local quarry reveals the unexpected. Meanwhile, both Janet and Rachel's futures lie in Gill's hands.
- 09
When a woman is found dead in a hotel room, the personal ads on a website look like they might hold the key. And while Rachel enjoys her secret relationship with Will, Janet investigates speed dating.
- 10
When an unconscious baby is admitted to hospital, it's unclear who had his best interests at heart. And while Rachel is stung by Gill's harsh words, Janet feels lost when Elise decides to leave home.
- 11
Rachel resorts to sleeping under her desk in response to Sean's possessiveness, but finds a much more comfortable place to rest her head when Janet invites her to stay at her place. Janet prepares to take the next step in her career as sergeant, but a much younger candidate is given the role. Back on the case from earlier in the series - when an elderly wife was found decapitated with her bedridden husband languishing nearby, there are further twists to the tale as the couple's daughter directs Janet to her brother's remains, admitting that she helped to bury him. Is she a witness or a suspect?
- 12
The murderer of an eight-year-old boy places himself at the heart of the boy's grieving family.
- 13
When a badly burned body surfaces in a remote woodland, DCI Gill Murray, DC Janet Scott, DC Rachel Bailey and the team are called in to investigate.
- 14
The shocking truth behind the killings surface when the four murder suspects break down their wall of silence.
- 15
Rachel's first job as Sergeant proves to be a baptism of fire, bringing with it all the challenges of a high profile, historical case. And while Janet keeps Gill's secret, she does share another with Rachel.
- 16
When a rape and murder case bears a striking resemblance to an infamous case from 13 years ago, Gill and Rachel are sent to Bristol to investigate.
- 17
The team investigate the murder of Leon Foster, including evidence that he was sexually mutilated.
- 18
A hungover Rachel discovers that she is at the top of the suspect list when she learns that Nick Savage has been brutally assaulted.
- 19
Rachel's self-destructive behaviour begins to have an effect on Janet's daughter Taisie. Janet, meanwhile, is mortified when Gill berates her for inappropriate behaviour towards young sergeant Rob. The duo investigate the death of a care home resident whose daughter complains about the level of care he was receiving. Will they find any evidence of foul play?
- 20
In the series finale, the story of Joe Bevan and his house of horrors takes another twist as DCI Gill Murray is kidnapped by someone heavily involved in the case. Their friendship in tatters, DCs Scott and Bailey are forced to pull together in order to save their boss, but face a desperate race against time as Gill is taken to Flamborough Head on the east coast, a beautiful clifftop spot notorious for suicides.
- 21
- 22
When the body of teenager Will Hudson is found in a Manchester park, Rachel knows that his death could have been prevented. With information about the Taking Out The Trash website in the public domain, monitoring potential targets has been severely compromised.
- 23
Rachel's moment of indiscretion threatens to come back and haunt her when Sean takes a phone call from her recent one night stand. Janet forces Ade to move in with his new girlfriend and asks her mum Dorothy to take his place. The team investigates the brutal murder of a wealthy man whose double life left him vulnerable to exploitation. Could his son really be the prime suspect?
- 24
Rachel is narrowly missed by a car which smashes into the side of the road.
- 25
Rachel is criticised for the lack of progress in the investigation and with Steve Dench still the prime suspect, she knows she must find both a murder weapon and the encryption code used to access the Taking Out The Trash website. Then, they not only get Steve for multiple murders, but they also find the man he's playing his sick game with. Discovering that the witness at Michael Edgerton's murder may be one of the killers marks a big breakthrough, and with the attacks increasing, Rachel hopes that the killers will start to make mistakes. The appearance of a star on Rachel's gatepost terrifies Alison and when Julie Dodson finds out, Rachel's position as Acting DI is jeopardized. But with new evidence challenging Steve's alibi and a positive ID of the witness, Rachel is determined to hang onto the case. When Janet's attempt to help Taisie results in a complaint, her faith in doing everything by the book is rocked, and with Rachel's pregnancy out in the open, both Scott and Bailey have life-changing decisions to make about their futures.
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