Ashes to Ashes

The team is working on the kidnap of a young girl, Dorothy Blonde, who was abducted as her stepmother walked her to school. With a £50,000 ransom demanded for Dotty's life the team has to work fast. However, Dotty's father, David, wants to go it alone and when newly promoted Ray panics while running the sting, it seems the family may have been better off without CID's involvement. Gene is forced to put his career on the line as he's unable to stand by and watch a young girl lose her life.

When DC Chris Skelton opens CID's post and discovers a human hand, DCI Gene Hunt and his team find they have a murder to solve. The only defining feature on the severed limb is a strange burn mark and DI Alex Drake and the team discover there have been a string of single women murdered across the country, each left with the same crescent moon shaped burn.

It's the run up to the 1983 General Election and pressure is mounting on DCI Gene Hunt and his team as they investigate a series of politically motivated arson attacks. As CID turn up to investigate the latest fire, a quiet word from DCI Jim Keats in DI Ray Carling's ear leads to the detective risking his life. Meanwhile, DI Alex Drake is still being haunted by the police officer with the 6-6-20 epaulettenumbers.

DCI Gene Hunt and his team, DI Alex Drake, DI Ray Carling and DC Chris Skelton, are hot on the tail of a van they believe contains a large amount of heroin. When the Quattro blocks the van's escape route, the team are faced with a woman brandishing a sawn-off shotgun, but bullish Gene shows no fear and heads straight over to take on the female blagger. However, things suddenly take a strange turn when Gene seems to let her escape.

When DCI Gene Hunt's former Manchester colleagues, DCI Litton and DI Bevan, turn up on his patch he immediately smells a rat. Meanwhile, Alex takes the opportunity to delve deeper into the disappearance of Sam Tyler.

All hell has broken loose at Fenchurch East prison; the inmates are rioting and DCI Gene Hunt is ready to go in all guns blazing to teach the lags a lesson. However, things don't go to plan; the riot team are hugely outnumbered, and in the chaos of the retreat Sgt Viv James is left behind. Chris and Ray are sent in undercover to get Viv out, but they too soon find themselves in mortal danger.