Whispers in the Dark

DS Helen Ash is running the biggest job of her week, a stake-out on an armed robbery crew, and her husband is quietly trying to sink it. David Ash is a police officer too, a constable, and he cannot stand that his wife outranks him in the Flying Squad. So he makes life difficult at the worst possible moments, and when he refuses to look after the children she has to leave her observation point and go home. The rest of the team carries on without her, less settled for it.

The robbers are three ex-Army men, and their discipline shows. They hit a security van and stay one step ahead of Charlie Scott's squad, who for once look properly outclassed. The case gets its dark edge from one of the men and his daughter: Gil Rogers's relationship with Sonja is the twisted thing at the centre of the story, casting a shadow over her life. And it is that thread that hands Ash the clue she needs, a discovery that turns the whole operation around.

Steve Griffiths wrote it, Colin Gregg directed, and it first aired on 8 February 1996. Lynda Steadman's Ash is the heart of the episode. Glyn Grimstead's David is the real villain of her domestic scenes, jealous and petty, using the children as bargaining chips. Richard Graham plays Gil Rogers and Siobhan Stanley plays his daughter Sonja. Reece Dinsdale's Scott, Brendan Coyle's Tate, Robert Willox's Donachie, Gary McDonald's Oxford, Pooky Quesnel's Harris and David Sterne's Uttley fill out the squad.

Whispers in the Dark gives the domestic trouble as much weight as the robbery, which is rare and welcome. David Ash is the genuine obstacle here; the crime itself almost comes second. That imbalance is what makes the episode worth watching. The armed robbers are efficient. The husband is the one you want to see lose.