Suranne Jones

Rachel steps up to Acting DI on a case that becomes bigger and more sinister than it first seemed. Glad of Rachel's return, Janet couldn't have known how much she was going to need her friend.

When the killers change the rules of their sick game, Rachel's safety is in question. As a police officer, Janet is powerless to protect her daughter but she knows she needs to stop the madness.

When Janet gets called in to Gill's office to explain a cheeky email that she's sent to Rob, she's adamant that it wasn't from her, and mortified that Rob will think it is. Meanwhile, Catherine, daughter of care home resident Gerald French, raises concerns about the level of care her father had been receiving, so Scott and Bailey are sent in to investigate.

Gill introduces her new sergeant to Will Pemberton, an ambitious detective superintendent on his way to the top. Unbeknownst to her, Rachel and Will have been enjoying a passionate yet discreet affair. The case of the week involves the murder of a woman in a Manchester hotel. With only a necklace and the name Lola to go on, Syndicate 9 try to piece together her last known movements.

The detectives investigate the murder of a wealthy man whose double life left him vulnerable to exploitation. Away from work, Rachel's recent moment of indiscretion threatens to come back to haunt her when a confused Sean takes a phone call from her one-night stand.

Troubled saleswoman Helen turns up on Janet's doorstep with information that takes the investigation into the death of her mother in a completely different direction - paving the way for the formidable Det. Supt Julie Dodson to be called in.

Syndicate 9's new Sergeant is thrown in the deep end with a historical missing person's case. Their biggest challenge is to hide their contempt for the poor police work that hampered the original investigation. Janet keeps Gill's secret but shares another secret with Rachel. And when Mandy Sweeting's body is discovered, 23 years after she went missing, the new Sergeant takes on huge proportions.

The discovery of slaves on the Pritchard farm has turned a murder inquiry into a huge, multi-agency investigation. Under investigation for the crash, a devastated Janet finds solace in Chris's calm reasoning. When an incandescent Evie Pritchard smells alcohol on DCI Gill Murray's breath, she has all the ammunition she needs to discredit both the investigation and Gill.

After promising that the chaos of her personal life was behind her, Rachel is torn when she discovers that her mother's new boyfriend is a violent domestic abuser. Janet goes on her first date, but gets cold feet at the last minute. The murder of a gay man has all the markings of a hate crime, but why is his friend struggling to answer some simple questions?

Unable to get over being second choice for the sergeant's job, Rachel punishes Janet for not telling her. After Elise moves in with Ade, Janet feels inadequate as a mother although she has not given up on the idea of a boyfriend entirely. And when an unconscious baby is admitted to hospital, staff are concerned that his injuries do not match his parents' explanation.