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Silent Witness

1996 • BBC
4.7
51 reviews
Eligible

Season 12 episodes (12)

1 Death's Door Part 1
10/1/08
Harry acts as mentor to a young, eager medical student, Holly Farr, and is quickly charmed into involving her in his latest case, the post-mortem of a woman found dumped on the side of the road with her face skilfully removed. With no DNA or missing persons match, Nikki's skills are called upon to reconstruct the victim's face. But it is Holly who immediately recognizes her as Fran Price, a once successful TV presenter and journalist. She quickly becomes enthralled by the media coverage of Fran's murder, and Harry worries that she may have betrayed by leaking to the press.
2 Death's Door Part 2
10/2/08
With his protégé dead and the team themselves in danger, Harry is reeled into the murky world of Russian oligarch Oleg Kovik. Kovik claims Fran Price's murder was ordered by the Russian Government and Leonid Polyak. Distrustful of the police and of Kovik's intentions, Harry becomes determined to find the missing clues that will reveal the real reasons behind Fran and Holly's murders. With the assistance of his very able new bodyguard, he manages to find the contents of the book Fran was writing, revealing that Kovik is not the honest businessman he portrays himself to be.
3 Terror Part 1
10/8/08
The team are called in to investigate an armed raid on a suspected terrorist cell. Two terrorists have been killed, together with a police officer. But when Nikki's findings point to a bungled raid with innocent lives being lost, people start to pass the buck. Fighting against hostility and closed ranks Nikki beguiles her way into the police armed response unit uncovering a domestic dispute which could have lead to the police officer's death. Meanwhile, Harry is tasked to uncover the identity of a Jane Doe.
4 Terror Part 2
10/9/08
Nikki visits the only key eye witness, Isra, the teenage sister of one of the suspects who insists her brother is innocent. Nikki is appalled by the harshness of her treatment. But when Nikki reconstructs the raid, it leads her to discover Isra was far from the innocent teenager she thought she was. She had been organising a terrorist atrocity using her brother's email and bank accounts. Meanwhile, Harry tracks down the identity of the Jane Doe.
5 Safe Part 1
10/15/08
Leo is stopped for drink driving and finds himself having to do community service in a rough part of South London. When one of the lads is stabbed near their playing fields, Leo steps in and saves the boy's life. Elsewhere in South London, Nikki is called out to a funfair where a teenage girl, Shana, has fallen from a ride and died. Upon closer inspection Nikki suspects that the girl may have already been bleeding from a stab wound when she was strapped into the ride. DS Wallace, the investigating officer, suspects Shana may have been part of a gang and is the latest casualty in a turf war.
6 Safe Part 2
10/16/08
Harry and Nikki struggle to find any useful evidence from the Post Mortems to help DS Wallace in his investigations. The frustration amongst the team builds. Then Levi, a young lad who had turned to Leo for help following the death of his older brother, is brutally killed and Leo blames himself for not protecting the boy better. Finally there's a breakthrough and the gang leader is arrested. When his community service is up, Leo keeps coming to the community centre to work with AJ and the kids.
7 Judgement Part 1
10/22/08
When the badly decomposed body of a Hasidic man is discovered on disused wasteland, Harry is tasked to investigate his death, and to treat the community with care. Everything points towards a brutal anti Semitic murder by a polish labourer. The deeper Harry delves the tighter this close-knit community become until Harry and Nikki come across forensic evidence that suggests the killer comes from within the Hasidic community. Meanwhile, Leo investigates the death of a female Australian backpacker at a house party.
8 Judgement Part 2
10/23/08
The death of a second Hasidic boy, Chaim, convinces Harry they are looking for a Jewish killer, but without concrete evidence the police are reluctant to upset an already fragile relationship with the community. But when a Hasidic boy, Binyomin, appears to take the law into his own hands, attacking a Polish builder, Toni, Harry makes a shocking discovery. Meanwhile, Leo uncovers the truth behind the backpacker's death by lifting the lid on the hedonistic lifestyle of the backpacker community.
9 The Lost Child Part 1
10/29/08
The discovery of a dead 12 year-old floating in a drainage ditch brings Nikki back in contact with one of her former teachers, Noel Hopkins. During Harry's preliminary examination they find clear signs of abuse. And when the police discover the victim was last seen with another boy, Liam, who is now missing, they fear he may have been abducted. A paedophile ring is suspected; the dead boy's stepfather comes under suspicion, as does Noel - but Nikki can't believe he'd be involved. Then a badly mangled body is found on train tracks near the woods where the boys went missing.
10 The Lost Child Part 2
10/30/08
The search for Liam resumes. Nikki's loyalty towards her former mentor, Noel Hopkins, is severely tested when past allegations of sexual misconduct from a former student surface. Leo and Harry refuse to give up their search for Liam, as they try to identify and locate a toxic chemical which was found in both bodies. If they can find the source of the chemical, they may find where Liam is being held.
11 Finding Rachel Part 1
11/5/08
When Rachel Harrington's bones are found in Zambia, her father's employer and mine owner Peter asks his childhood friend Nikki to fly out. Rachel had been accusing the government of a health cover up. The local police claim that Rachel was killed by wild animals. Leo and Nikki examine the bones and determine that the body received multiple stab wounds - but when they do a full post mortem, they realise that the bones belong to a woman in her mid forties, not Rachel.
12 Finding Rachel Part 2
11/6/08
The team find a woman named Bethany dead in a hotel room having booked in with Rachel's credit card. Nikki performs the post mortem against the wishes of a government minister and is soon arrested, leading to a shocking discovery inside the prison. Meanwhile, Leo has been pursuing Rachel's research. She talks about one woman, Cossie, in particular. Nikki visits the village, where she discovers Cossie had been ill and her husband killed her for seeking help from Rachel. When Leo carries out water tests he discovers that Rachel had uncovered a uranium leak from Peter's mine.

About this show

Every dead body tells a story; who they were, how they lived, and most importantly, how they died. Silent Witness follows a team of expert pathologists at the Lyell Centre as they attempt to dissect the truth and help the friends and families of the deceased deal with the aftermath of terrible crimes in this gripping and emotionally charged drama.

Ratings and reviews

4.7
51 reviews
m
April 1, 2017
Tbh, Silent Witness is one of things that kept me alive when I was depressed. That's a bit extreme and not overly helpful to the average viewer, but it's true. My past desperation aside, these characters are complex, realistic, and beautiful. They feel like home to fans of the show, and the scientific attention to detail (while not always accurate, c'mon, what crime show is?) is mesmerising. A triumph of television, and a positive work of art. I'll stop with the flowery descriptions now (I'm a poet, can't help it), and just say: This show is always enjoyable, has achieved massive viewership in the UK (season 20 has over 8mill), had a massively positive impact on my life and I couldn't recommend it more highly. I love Silence Witness.
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Daniela Duspara
April 2, 2016
Yet another great TV experience done the way it should be done.. Different enough from all other 1 million crime dramas of today... Very well written and actors, particularly new comers Jack and Clarissa, make the show.. Nikki is brilliantly portrayed by Emilia fox!!
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Craig Perkins
March 14, 2015
I love this series. Well acted great stories and a feel like this is how it really is...unlike US (Fake)crime series. Glad I can get this series through google play.
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