Telemystery: George Gently Series 7 Episode Information

Filming has begun on the seventh season of George Gently, based on a character created by crime novelist Alan Hunter.

(Spoilers ahead if you haven't seen the sixth season yet …)

It's 1969 and Commander George Gently (Martin Shaw) and Sergeant John Bacchus (Lee Ingleby) are both suffering from their own physical and mental scars several months after the horrific shootings that nearly claimed their lives in Durham Cathedral (Gently in the Cathedral, the final episode of Season Six). As the seventh season opens, Gently has been pushing himself to full fitness and is back at work, while Bacchus is still recuperating from his serious injuries in a police convalescent home.

In the first episode — Gently Between the Lines by Tim Prager — Gently is shocked to receive Bacchus's resignation, but he soon realizes that his sergeant has lost his confidence. Setting about to fix Bacchus, Gently insists that while he serves out his notice, he needs him to help investigate a death in custody. The Newcastle police have arrested rioters as they tried to clear a slum due for demolition. The next morning, one of the protesters is discovered dead in the cells by WPC Rachel Coles (Lisa Mcgrillis). This will turn into a case that will have both Gently and Bacchus questioning what it means to be a police officer at a time when attitudes to the police are changing. They are no longer the trusted, familiar, local "bobbies on the beat". Police officers are now being seen as agents of the state.

The second episode — Green For Greencoat by Jess Williams — takes Gently and Bacchus to a family holiday camp to investigate staff and holidaymakers, when the body of one of the greencoats is washed up nearby. The colorful inmates of the holiday camp, from the flamboyant owner and his sister, to the chalet girls, performers, lifeguards and guests, throw the investigation sideways as Gently and Bacchus uncover a story of jealousy, ambition and the dark underbelly of the permissive society. PC Rachel Coles is now part of the support system for Gently and Bacchus at the police station with her modern policing ways.

The storyline for the third episode — Gently Going Under by Mike Cullen — sees the painful effects that the pressures on the coal mining industry in Northumberland have on a close-knit pit community. A suspicious death in the mine in Burnsend leads Gently and Bacchus to explore the tensions and relationships in a community whose seams have been ripped wide open by politics … and discover grudges that date back to the Second World War.

Finally, in the fourth episode of the season — Gently From the Cold by Jess Williams — when two deaths connect in an unexpected way, Gently finds himself drawn into the world of drugs and LSD, and considering a Cold-War conspiracy. In the process of his investigation Gently relies on the help of an old friend — and as they begin to dig into the case, old feelings begin to stir for Gently.

"We're delighted to be filming Inspector George Gently again in Durham and the North East," said executive producer Claire Ingham, "and it's fantastic to be able to recreate the world of 1969. There were such vivid and colourful changes in society at that time — and hopefully our series will continue to give a real portrait of the age."

No season premiere date has been announced, but if history is any guide, it should be late Summer 2013 in the UK with the season on DVD/Blu-ray disc available in the US in Spring 2014 (as the 6th season of the series). The fifth season will be available on DVD/Blu-ray disc on May 28th, 2013, and may be pre-ordered.