The Inspector Lynley Mysteries The Complete Fifth Series   Starring: Nathaniel Parker and Sharon Small Acorn Media UK RRP: £19.99 AV9705 Certificate: 15 Available 05 October 2009

Based on the the best-selling novels of Elizabeth George, the fifth series of The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, follows Lynley and Havers as they continue to reach across an ever-crumbling class barrier in their attempt to solve cases of murder that would challenge the savviest of detectives. As the series begins, Lynley is suspended pending an investigation and Havers gets a new temporary partner...

Series four of The Inspector Lynley Mysteries contains another four 90 min episodes, and was originally broadcast in 2006.

Natural Causes: Since Lynley's suspension for threatening a suspect, Havers has been without a partner. She begins a new case alongside the no-nonsense, pregnant DI Knight investigating the murder of a young girl. Lynley begins to help with their investigations, but with the discovery of another body and a kidnapping, will Lynley's involvement jeopardise this efforts to be reinstated?

One Guilty Dead: When the chief witness that can bring down Michael Shand, an organised crime boss, if found dead on the south coast, it all points to Shand's henchmen. But the desolate caravan site that Lynley and Havers find themselves on is haunted by ghosts of the past , and ghost - it appears - can come back and kill.

Chinese Walls: When Emily Proctor is found murdered in Hyde Park, Lynley and Havers are led to human rights lawyer Tony Wainwright, Wainwright's passionate temper and a concealed affair with the victim seem to place him as the main suspect, but when Emily's double life is exposed, Lynley and Havers enter a world of internet porn and a family with something to hide.

In the Blink of an Eye: When former war photographer Peter Rooker is shot, a murder trail leads back to the family slaughtered by the Serbian militia in Bosnia. When Lynley asks his wife Helen to assist him with unlocking the psychological history behind the killing, he sets in motion a tragic trail of events.

My favourite episode in this collection was Natural Causes - mainly due to the fact that Liza Tarbuck's performance as DI Knight is just so spot on. It's a shame she only appeared in the one episode as her character is so well conceived and executed.

If I had one slight grumble, it was that the end cliff-hanger was just a little too predictable. With 10 minutes to go it was pretty easy to work out how it was all going to go down (the show has a habit of concluding each series on a surprise ending).

Extras include text based Cast Filmographies; Elizabeth George Biography; and Elizabeth George Bibliography.

So, yet another collection of top notch episodes with any detective fan will be pleased to add to their collection.

8

Nick Smithson