| The Body Farm | |
|---|---|
Title Card |
|
| Format | Police procedural |
| Starring | Tara Fitzgerald Keith Allen Wunmi Mosaku Finlay Robertson Mark Bazeley |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Trevor Eve Susan Hogg |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Liquid Television |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | BBC One |
| Picture format | 1080i |
| Original run | 13 September 2011 – 18 October 2011 |
| Chronology | |
| Related shows | Waking the Dead |
The Body Farm is a British police procedural crime drama series for the BBC network, featuring a fictional private forensic pathology facility that conducts scientific research to help solve crimes, lead by Dr. Eve Lockhart, played by Tara Fitzgerald.
Contents |
The programme is a spin-off from the cold case police procedural drama Waking the Dead, and was commissioned following the series' closure. The series features on the work of Dr. Eve Lockhart, who originally appeared in Waking The Dead from 2007-2011. An initial six part run was announced in January 2011, and filming began in March 2011.[1][2] A brief trailer was shown following the final episode of Waking the Dead. The programme was filmed in rural Macclesfield and urban Manchester.[3] The series began airing on September 13, 2011, with the first episode gaining a strong 6.3 million viewers. By the end of the series, ratings had dropped to 4.6 million.[4] The BBC have yet to announce if they are to commission a second series. Episode 3 was filmed in the fishing village of Staithes, Cleveland.
The first series is expected to be released on DVD on October 24, 2011, in a three-disc set.[5] The DVD release features an extended cut of episode one, running 94 minutes and including material not broadcast on the television. The DVD is being released in conjuction with BBC Worldwide and 2|Entertain.[6]
| # | Title | Director | Writer | Viewers (millions) | Airdate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "No Peace For The Wicked" | Diarmuid Lawrence | Declan Croghan | 6.31 million | 13 September 2011 |
| Hale calls upon Eve and her team when a disused council flat is found covered in human remains. Investigations soon uncover that the remains are of two local boys, who had been reported missing just a week previously. It transpires that the pair were part of an illegal rave that occurred in the council flat, and that during the rave, they were involved in the rape of a teenage girl, JoJo Collins (Katherine James), who subsequently attempted to commit suicide and is now in a coma. Eve believes the pair were killed before the explosion, and soon, JoJo's father Alan (Dean Andrews), an ex-army officer, comes under suspicion from Hale, as it is discovered that the explosion was caused by an incendiary device. Eve believes, however, that JoJo's sister Natasha (Dominique Jackson) and her boyfriend Nathan (Luke Tittensor) may have more to do with the deaths than meets the eye, and must use her scientific skills to prove it. | |||||
| 2 | "Wealth Pays The Rent" | Diarmuid Lawrence | Simon Tyrell | 5.78 million | 20 September 2011 |
| The discovery of a hand in the grounds of an estate belonging to wealthy businessman Harold Penton (Michael Byrne) leads Hale to believe that the hand belongs to Sam Villiers (Nico Mirallegro), an employee of Penton's who disappeared three weeks ago. Hale questions Penton's right hand man Jimmy West (Gary Lewis), as he believes he holds the key to finding Sam's body. Using his instinct, Hale hires Eve and the team to investigate a vegetable patch, and they find the body to which the hand belongs. However, after running tests on the body, Eve discovers that it is not the body of Villiers, but that of his boyfriend, Jason Quinn (Tom Gibbons). Hale investigates a local drop-in centre where Villiers and Quinn regularly visited, and discovers that not only are both of them addicted to drugs, but have been remanded for soliciting men in the past. After some investigation, it transpires that Penton is the man behind the drop-in centre, and that the possible murderer is Dr. Thomas Grove (Adam Kotz), a friend of Penton's whom he hires to visit the drop-in centre to look after the youngsters. Eve soon discovers that Villiers is still alive, and has simply been living in solitude. He reveals that on the night of Jason's murder, they had a row over a possible client, whose money they needed to buy drugs, and that Jason was apprehensive to meet him. However, he also reveals that he forced him to go, and that after that, he never saw him again. Hale believes he has Grove banged to rights after a hair belonging to Quinn is found in his car, and Quinn's blood is found at his house, but does Eve have evidence to prove his innocence? | |||||
| 3 | "If You Go Down To The Sea Today" | David Drury | Declan Croghan | 5.61 million | 27 September 2011 |
| When the body of thirty-five year old Connor Ryan (Brendan Mackey) is pulled from waters on the coast, Eve and the team are called to investigate when Hale suspects something suspicious has occurred. The team discover Ryan was part of a three man crew who had been on a diving expedition to recover soil samples from the sea bed, and that the possible cause of death might have been lack of oxygen. However, when a second member of the crew, Tom Wilkes (David Harewood), is found alive and well, and provides different information regarding the incident, Hale realizes that pieces of the investigation don't slip into place. When the third member of the crew, mother of two Patsy Faye (Zara Turner), is found dead at sea, Eve and Mike uncover a drug smuggling operation which could have cost Faye her life. Hale must prove that Wilkes killed his fellow crewman when they discovered he was a drug smuggler in order to obtain an arrest. | |||||
| 4 | "Sexual Intentions" | David Drury | Graham Mitchell | 5.61 million | 4 October 2011 |
| When the body of inmate Beth Fox (Sarah Patel) is found during a riot in a open prison, Eve and the team are called to investigate the cause of her death. While a strike on the head with a pool cue during the riot appears to have only been superficial, whoever cut her throat had stronger intentions of killing her. With one of the suspects, Tess Williams (Vicky McClure), protesting on the roof of the prison, and unable to be reached, Hale must try and extract information from Nicole (Melanie Hill), a fellow inmate. Hale discovers that both Tess and Beth were part of an international drugs trial, in which inmates offered themselves up for tests in return for privileges at the prison. Nicole also reveals that Tess and Beth were having a sexual relationship. When the roof of the prison is cleared, however, Tess is nowhere to be found. | |||||
| 5 | "You've Got Visitors" | Philippa Langdale | Simon Tyrell | 4.60 million | 11 October 2011 |
| When the burning body of a human rights defence lawyer Richard Warner (Tim McInnerny) is found at his house, Hale suspects that it could be a possible suicide. However, Eve has other ideas. When Rosa finds the urine of illegal immigrant Joseph Marcell (Misimisi Affolderbach-Dlamini), a victim of a miscarriage of justice, in his toilet, Hale begins to suspect a case of revenge after Marcell was deported back to Sudan for a crime he did not commit. It soon transpires that Marcell was not the only visitor that night - Sarah Haines (Pooky Quesnel), a fellow colleague and secret partner, and the man's son, Rob (Jonas Armstrong), however, when Eve discovers that the man was in the advanced stages of dementia, Hale's suicide theory begins to look more likely. | |||||
| 6 | "Scientific Justice" | Diarmuid Lawrence | Declan Croghan | 5.55 million | 18 October 2011 |
| The team are called in to investigate the death of Ray Quinn (Ryan Pope), a security guard who appears to have been murdered during a robbery gone wrong at his place of work. The owners of the garage, Mick (Jamie Draven) and Martin Flannery (Wayne Foskett), are keen to clear the scene so that they can open for business again, but after an initial investigation, Eve is convinced that there is more to the case than meets the eye. When Hale pays a visit to Ray's home, he discovers that he was from a travelling community, who are very suspicious of the police and refuse to tell him anything. Hale becomes concerned, however, when members of the community claim to deal with Ray's death themselves. The case takes a sinister twist when a young girl, Amanda (Grace Cohen), appears to be missing. Eve must earn the trust of Ray's family by showing them that she is only motivated by finding justice for Ray, and finding Amanda before she becomes another victim. | |||||