Unsuitable Job for a Woman: Series 1 and 2

Young, aspiring private detective Cordelia Gray (Helen Baxendale, Friends) suddenly becomes sole proprietor of a ramshackle agency when her mentor, an ex-policeman, commits suicide. Join Cordelia as-undaunted and eventually pregnant-she tackles cases that would give even seasoned sleuths a run for their money: crimes of infidelity, kidnapping, forgery, theft and murder. Includes all four mysteries from both seasons, with PBS Mystery! introductions by host Dame Diana Rigg. Based on the novels of British mystery queen P.D. James.

Season 1 - Suddenly finding herself at the helm of a floundering detective agency, Cordelia wastes no time settling in.

The Sacrifice - When a young man commits suicide for no obvious reason, his father, a prominent scientist, employs Cordelia to discover why. Following one of her old mentor's rules, Cordelia does everything she can to get to know the dead man's pending time with his friends, even going so far as to move into his cottage and sleep in his bed. But how close is too close? Will Cordelia manage to unravel the mystery, or will she find herself another victim, lost in the same game as the dead man she's come to know so well?

A Last Embrace - Cordelia arrives at work one morning to find a distraught woman desperate for her services. Ideally, the woman would like Cordelia to gather evidence against her philandering husband for use in divorce proceedings. Specifically, she'd like to use Cordelia as bait. Instead, Cordelia uncovers her client's own infidelity and her husband's considerable charms. Is Cordelia's client the bitter, unbalanced mess she seems, or is the husband in question guilty of much more than breaking his marriage vows?

Season 2 - One lackluster year after taking charge, Cordelia is still resolved to make her mark on the Pryde Detective Agency, determined to prove that the work of a private detective is not an unsuitable job for a woman or, thanks to an unexpected development, an expectant mother.

Living On Risk - Struggling to accept that her life is changing and refusing any help from the anxious agency secretary, Mrs. Sparshott, Cordelia takes an early-morning call from a man who needs her to do some surveillance. Believing that she has been hired to prevent a kidnapping, Cordelia resorts to desperate measures only to stumble upon the body of one of the men she has been watching, forcing her to wonder who exactly she ís working for.

Playing God - Despite the hostility between Scotland Yard and people in Cordelia's line of work, Superintendent Fergussen condescends to hire her to check up on his daughter's beau, a handsome young doctor. But when Cordelia turns over her notes, the doctor turns up dead. Afraid she's been somehow used by the police, Cordelia is only too happy to take up the case again when Fergussen's now estranged daughter asks her to dig deeper.

The Sacrifice

Written by P.D. James
Screenplay by William Humble
Directed by Ben Bolt
Produced by Ian Strachan
Cinematography by Dick Dodd
Film Editing by Liz Webber
Costume Design by Sheena Napier

A Last Embrace

Written by P.D. James
Screenplay by William Humble
Directed by John Strickland
Produced by Colin Ludlow
Executive Produced by Rebecca Eaton, Stephen Matthews
Original Music by Colin Towns
Cinematography by Dick Dodd
Film Editing by Jerry Leon
Costume Design by Sheena Napier

Living on Risk

Written by P.D. James
Screenplay by Christopher Russell
Directed by David Evans
Produced by Debbie Shewell
Executive Produced by Rebecca Eaton, Douglas Rae
Original Music by Colin Towns
Cinematography by John Daly
Film Editing by Ken Pearce
Costume Design by Sue Thomson

Playing God

Written by P.D. James, Jeffrey Caine
Screenplay by Barbara Machin
Costume Design by Sue Thomson