List of Luther episodes
Luther is a British psychological crime drama television series that was broadcast on BBC One in the UK between 4 May 2010 and 23 July 2013. A total of 14 episodes were produced.
The series is about DCI John Luther, played by Idris Elba, a highly talented detective working in London to solve a series of high-profile murders. Co-stars include Ruth Wilson as Alice Morgan, Warren Brown as DS Justin Ripley, Steven Mackintosh as DCI Ian Reed and Saskia Reeves as DSU Rose Teller. As the series progresses Nikki Amuka-Bird joins as the recently promoted DCI Erin Gray, Dermot Crowley stars as DSU Martin Schenk with Michael Smiley as Benny 'Deadhead' Silver. The main cast is then expanded to include David O'Hara as DSU George Stark, and Sienna Guillory as Luther’s new love interest, Mary Day.[1] Further guest stars include Lucian Msamati and Ned Dennehy.[2]
Series overview
| Series | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Series premiere | Series finale | |||
| 1 | 6 | 4 May 2010 | 8 June 2010 | |
| 2 | 4 | 14 June 2011 | 5 July 2011 | |
| 3 | 4 | 2 July 2013 | 23 July 2013 | |
Episodes
Series 1 (2010)
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (million)[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Episode 1" | Brian Kirk | Neil Cross | 4 May 2010 | 6.35 |
| DCI John Luther (Idris Elba) returns to active duty several months after suffering a nervous breakdown related to the capture of a serial kidnapper/murderer named Henry Madsen (Anton Saunders), whom he allowed to fall from a great height, and who is now in a coma. On his first day back, Luther solves a double homicide by unraveling the bizarre behaviour of the murdered couple's daughter, Alice Morgan (Ruth Wilson). Despite pursuing her relentlessly, he is unable to prove her guilt. Luther also pursues his ex-wife Zoe (Indira Varma), whom he still loves, and ends up in a violent altercation with her new boyfriend, Mark (Paul McGann). | |||||
| 2 | "Episode 2" | Brian Kirk | Neil Cross | 11 May 2010 | 5.80 |
| A sniper begins targeting police officers all over London, and Luther must track him down. The sniper, traumatised by his experiences in war, is being driven to his brutal crimes by his father, who--despite being in prison--has complete control over his son's actions. Luther stages a television interview, insulting the sniper and drawing him out at great personal risk. Meanwhile, Alice continues to stalk Luther, becoming increasingly obsessive and threatening. | |||||
| 3 | "Episode 3" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 18 May 2010 | 4.56 |
| Luther pursues a serial killer (Paul Rhys) and occult writer named Lucien Burgess who kidnaps mothers every decade and drains them of their blood. Things become complicated when Burgess accuses Luther of having attacked him, making it difficult for him to continue the case through legal means. Luther continues to communicate with Alice, forming an unusual friendship with her; she proceeds to hire a group of girls to beat up Mark in an attempt to unman him and drive Zoe back to Luther. Meanwhile, Henry Madsen awakes from his coma; though he is not yet able to testify, when he does so he will be able to destroy Luther's career. | |||||
| 4 | "Episode 4" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 25 May 2010 | 4.57 |
| The serial killer continues targeting women alone at night, taking a piece of jewellery from each of them and giving them to his unknowing wife. He escalates rapidly, and Luther's team is forced to enlist the help of his wife in order to track him down. He is successfully taken alive, but his wife assaults him in a fit of rage, striking him with a hammer in the back of the head. In an attempt to win Luther's friendship, Alice impersonates a doctor and lights a fire in the hospital, taking advantage of the distraction to fatally smother Henry Madsen. | |||||
| 5 | "Episode 5" | Stefan Schwartz | Neil Cross | 1 June 2010 | 3.61 |
| An art dealer's wife is taken hostage, with the kidnappers demanding a set of valuable diamonds in exchange for her life. The husband goes to the police for help because his wife has swallowed the diamonds, and he fears that if this is revealed, the kidnappers will kill her to get them. Events spin rapidly out of control when it is revealed that his colleague DCI Reed (Steven Mackintosh) had knowledge of the robbery, and allowed it to go ahead in exchange for a portion of the profits. DCI Ian Reed kills his criminal contact to cover his trail and then the kidnapper himself. He flees, finally killing Zoe in an attempt to draw Luther out, framing Luther for the crime. | |||||
| 6 | "Episode 6" | Stefan Schwartz | Neil Cross | 8 June 2010 | 4.11 |
| Luther, framed for Zoe's murder, chooses to run from the police until he can prove his innocence. His boss, DSU Rose Teller has stong regrets for not having Luther suspended a long time ago. And John Luther is almost shot by a Special Branch sniper at a meeting with Ian Reed. Teller believes in Reed. However her colleague, DSU Martin Schenk takes nothing for granted. Thanks to Schenk's interview with Mark, he soon realizes that Reed may be the guilty rather than Luther. Luther plots to take revenge on Ian Reed with the assistance of Alice and Mark. However a revenge within the law, in which Alice and Mark disagree. | |||||
Series 2 (2011)
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (million)[4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | "Episode 1" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 14 June 2011 | 6.48 |
| Luther, still plagued by the death of Zoe, faces a serial killer wearing a Punch mask and tries to rescue an old acquaintance's daughter from the dangerous world of drugs and prostitution. | |||||
| 8 | "Episode 2" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 21 June 2011 | 6.11 |
| Luther must rescue Ripley before Cameron sets out his final murdering piece: schoolkids who are set to be dumped and gassed. Meanwhile, Jenny's ruthless and vengeful boss is demanding compensation for stealing her protege. | |||||
| 9 | "Episode 3" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 28 June 2011 | 6.36 |
| What appears to be a racist killer soon begins killing at random, but there is a larger twist than Luther thinks. Meanwhile, Jenny's tormentor Toby demands Luther help him and, when Luther can't deliver on time, threatens Jenny's life. And Detective Gray discovers Luther is hiding something and asks Ripley to help her. | |||||
| 10 | "Episode 4" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 5 July 2011 | 6.77 |
| The random killings are being made by twins, one in jail and one still on the loose. It is up to Luther to capture or kill the twin. Meanwhile, he must try to keep Jenny's ex-boss from discovering Toby's death and his own colleagues from discovering his activities. | |||||
Series 3 (2013)
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | UK viewers (million)[5] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | "Episode 1" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 2 July 2013 | 6.43 |
| Luther hunts for a killer who lurks in the houses of victims, before killing them and then stealing their shoes. The killer is escalating, so Luther must try and find him before he strikes again. Meanwhile, Luther is also distracted by an ongoing case concerning the murder of a cyber troll, but there are people watching Luther with darker intents. | |||||
| 12 | "Episode 2" | Sam Miller | Neil Cross | 9 July 2013 | 5.95 |
| As the killer strikes again, the team work hard to try and track him down, a hunt that leads them to a top criminal now contained in a retirement home. The team must stop the killer before he attacks a group of young female nurses having a night in. Luther and Ripley also hunt for the murderer of the cyber troll, but their sympathies threaten to cloud their professional judgement. Meanwhile, Luther realizes that a case is being built against him, by one of his very own - but Ripley might also be willing to help bring Luther down. | |||||
| 13 | "Episode 3" | Farren Blackburn | Neil Cross | 16 July 2013 | 5.57 |
| Luther is sent on the hunt of a vigilante killer, killing those he believes have lost their right to life. The case probes the interests of the media, and soon the team have a political and criminal nightmare on their hands. As public support seems to grow for the killer, the team put themselves in danger to try and stop him killing again - however, Ripley and the vigilante come face-to-face where only one can come out of the encounter alive. | |||||
| 14 | "Episode 4" | Farren Blackburn | Neil Cross | 23 July 2013 | 5.96 |
| After the murder of DS Ripley, everyone is hunting for the murderer, but a vigilante has now turned in to a serial killer who will gun down anyone that gets in his way - including the loved ones closest to Luther. However, in a cruel twist of fate Luther himself becomes suspect, and suddenly his old friend Alice Morgan is back to help him clear his name. Meanwhile, the case against Luther comes to a climax; is this really the end for the detective? | |||||