Above Suspicion is a British crime drama television series based on Lynda La Plante's novels Above Suspicion, The Red Dahlia, Deadly Intent and Silent Scream which follows the career of La Plante's latest heroine Detective Inspector Anna Travis as she solves a variety of gruesome crimes.
The series aired in the UK on ITV from 4 January, 2009 to 23 January, 2012. There are 11 hour-long episodes in four seasons.
Above Suspicion premiered in South Africa on DStv's BBC Entertainment channel on Monday 8 August 2011, at 20h00. See "Seasons" below for seasonal broadcast dates and times.
Season 4 - entitled Silent Scream - premieres on BBC Entertainment on Friday 23 May 2014, at 20h00. New episodes broadcast weekly. There are three episodes in the fourth and final season.
Season 1
A beautiful teenage girl has been missing for five days. When her dead body is found hidden on waste ground, DCI James Langton (Ciarán Hinds) heads up the murder enquiry.
Over a period of eight years, there have been six virtually identical murders of women, all found with their hands tied with their stockings or tights, and strangled in the same way as his victim.
All the murdered women are middle aged prostitutes, their tough lives reflected in the brutal circumstances of their deaths.
Six victims, no clues, and cold cases hard to solve, but the latest, Melissa, was a teenage student, middle–class and from a good family – not the usual profile.
DC Anna Travis (Kelly Reilly), a young rookie detective, joins Langton's investigation, as cover for one of his team who is off sick. The relationship between the hardened detective and the young woman is a pivotal and emotionally charged one.
Fresh out of training school, Anna watches her new boss cut corners and drive his team into exhaustion as their killer continues to evade detection.
The first break for the police comes when it is discovered that all the murdered women, bar the latest victim, knew each other. Over twenty years ago, at various times they had all lived in the same house in Manchester.
The house was run as a brothel and, at long last, they have a suspect. He is Anthony Duffy, the son of the woman who ran it.
However his name and circumstances are totally different now. He is an established actor, known as Alan Daniels (Jason Durr), who already has a high UK profile and is about to break into Hollywood movies.
Alan Daniels may be the police's prime suspect but they have not one shred of evidence to prove he is the killer. Daniels is handsome, wealthy, and has buried his past deep. He also has a strong alibi for the time of the most recent murder: he was filming in Cornwall.
A prime suspect with such a high profile severely hampers the enquiry. The police know that if it becomes pubic knowledge that they were even interviewing Daniels, the media could destroy his career, and the subsequent fall out if he is eventually found innocent would be nuclear. Without more than circumstantial evidence, the case is stalled.
Alan Daniels is questioned discreetly. He maintains his innocence and is very helpful and polite to the police. It really comes down to Langton's gut feeling that this affluent and famous actor is a serial killer.
Interviewing him is like walking through a minefield; here is a handsome man of keen intelligence who is a talented and skilled performer. No wonder the case against him looks like folding.
A profiler is brought in to observe the interviews. Unable to take part directly in any of the sessions, the profiler immerses himself in details of the suspect's life and background. His final conclusion is that Daniels is a devious and dangerous sociopath.
Langton embarks on a risky course which he hopes will result in Daniels' arrest without any accusation of police entrapment. DC Anna Travis is his Mata Hari. She is encouraged to befriend Daniels in the hope he might somehow incriminate himself.
Anna is chosen because Daniels has already made flirtatious approaches to her whilst the police searched his elegant apartment. The profiler warns that such approaches are typical of sociopaths; they need to feel they are in control.
Travis must handle him with great caution. She must not allow Daniels to win her trust. Equally, if he feels she is betraying him, she will find herself in a potentially very dangerous situation.
Travis starts to date Alan Daniels. The young naive officer is very much in awe of the movie star, his invitation to the ballet, to dinner, etc. Daniels is the epitome of elegance and sophistication.
The two of them dine together at the Ivy where of course he is recognized. He is all charm and care towards Anna, confiding to her his continuing fear that somehow all his fame will be ripped from him because all those years ago, he lived in a house used as a brothel.
Alan Daniels is not only charm personified, he is also very believable. He asks Anna why the police are hounding the wrong man, and admits it is starting to get to him. His past should not be held against him. If they continue to question him, it will get out and, even though he is innocent, his career will be destroyed.
Anna Travis feels caught between two dominating men; her boss Langton, and the beguiling Alan Daniels.
Above Suspicion is made by La Plante Productions for ITV1. The drama is produced by Lynda La Plante and Jolyon Symonds and directed by Christopher Menaul. Executive Producer is Liz Thorburn.
Lynda La Plante is the creator and writer of a string of critically acclaimed and ratings winning crime dramas including Prime Suspect, Widows, The Governor, The Commander and Trial and Retribution.
Season 2
DC Anna Travis (Kelly Reilly) is back, reunited with the inimitable DCI James Langton (Ciarán Hinds), to face her most challenging and terrifying case yet.
When the body of a young woman is discovered by the Thames, sadistically mutilated and drained of blood, it would seem an ominous re-enactment of the infamously unsolved murder, from 1940s Los Angeles, dubbed The Black Dahlia.
Travis races to stay one step ahead of the killer, using the case as some sort of instruction manual. Meanwhile, the underlying sexual friction between Travis and Langton threatens to derail the investigation, while Anna's choices in her personal life could be career damaging.
However, Langton and Anna must pull together to stop this depraved copycat killer before they strike again. As they close in on their suspect, and the case reaches its shocking conclusion, they uncover a world of sadistic cruelty and a murderous secret.
The three part drama, Above Suspicion: The Red Dahlia, is adapted by Lynda La Plante from her successful second novel about rookie detective, Anna Travis. It is produced by La Plante Productions for ITV1.
Kelly Reilly returns to the role of Anna Travis. Ciarán Hinds stars as her boss, the volatile Detective Chief Inspector James Langton.
They are joined by Shaun Dingwall as Detective Inspector Mike Lewis, Celyn Jones as Detective Sergeant Paul Barolli, Michelle Holmes as Detective Constable Barbara Maddox and Amanda Lawrence as Detective Constable Joan Faukland.
Guest stars in the new season include Simon Williams, Sylvia Syms, Holliday Grainger, Edward Bennett and Hannah Murray.
Season 3
Kelly Reilly returns as the newly promoted DI Anna Travis in Above Suspicion: Deadly Intent, adapted from Lynda La Plante's fourth novel in her best-selling series about the rookie detective.
Reilly stars alongside Ciarán Hinds, who reprises his role as her boss, the volatile Detective Chief Superintendent James Langton.
They are joined by Shaun Dingwall as Detective Chief Inspector Mike Lewis, who will be heading up his first murder case, Celyn Jones as Detective Sergeant Paul Barolli and Amanda Lawrence as Joan Faukland.
Guest stars in the new season include Ray Fearon, Robbie Gee, Andrew Woodall, Julian Sands and Richard Brake as well as acclaimed Danish actresses Stine Stengade and Benedikte Hansen.
Following a fatal shooting in a notorious drug dealer's squat, the murder team, headed up by DCI Mike Lewis (Shaun Dingwall), quickly identify the victim as Frank Brandon - an ex-police officer from the drug squad, and friend of DCS James Langton (Ciarán Hinds).
The team begin the task of trying to connect the presence of their ex-colleague in such desperate and squalid surroundings.
After further investigation Travis (Kelly Reilly) begins to uncover suspicious links between Brandon and the notorious drug-trafficker, Alexander Fitzpatrick, one of the most wanted men in the Western world.
Operating under numerous aliases, he has eluded arrest for 20 years and there have been no sightings of him... until now.
Energised by her findings and with the body count mounting, it seems more likely that this infamous drug baron is back in the UK. Will they figure out Fitzpatrick's plan in time or will he be the one that got away...
Above Suspicion: Deadly Intent is a La Plante Production for ITV1. The executive producers are Lynda La Plante and Liz Thorburn. The producer is Hugh Warren and the director is Gillies MacKinnon.
Season 4
Above Suspicion: Silent Scream, starring Kelly Reilly and Ciarán Hinds, has been adapted by Lynda La Plante from her successful novel about detective Anna Travis.
Kelly Reilly returns to the role of Anna Travis. Ciarán Hinds stars as her boss, the volatile Detective Chief Superintendent, James Langton.
British film star Amanda Delany has the world at her feet. Young and talented, she has a string of affairs with the hottest actors around. The tabloids can't get enough of her and she, in turn, can't get enough of the spotlight.
Then, late home one evening from a night shoot, Amanda puts the key in her front door for the very last time. The next morning, the press has gathered on her doorstep once again, this time to report on her brutal murder.
DI Anna Travis (Kelly Reilly) is shocked by what she finds, especially when she discovers the truth behind Amanda's glamorous public image. For all her fame and fortune, it seems Amanda Delany was lonely, damaged and afraid. But who would want to take her life?
While Travis and the team, headed by the ever demanding DCS James Langton (Ciarán Hinds), grapple to track down Amanda's killer, Travis has challenges of her own to overcome.
Above Suspicion: Silent Scream, is produced by La Plante Productions for ITV1. The drama is directed by Catherine Morshead and produced by Cherry Gould. The executive producers are Lynda La Plante and Liz Thorburn.
Seasons
Series exclusive to BBC Entertainment
Season 1 (2 episodes)
Premiere: 8 August 2011 | Finale: 15 August 2011 | Mondays, 20h00
Season 2 (3 episodes)
Premiere: 22 August 2011 | Finale: 5 September 2011 | Mondays, 20h00
Season 3 (3 episodes)
Premiere: 14 May 2012 | Finale: 28 May 2012 | Mondays, 20h00
Season 4 (3 episodes)
Premiere: 23 May 2014 | Finale: 6 June 2014 | Fridays, 20h00