Heartbeat - Season 16

After two months of travelling to mourn the loss of Helen, Rob returns to the village in spectacular style by saving a con-man after his car crashes into the river, prompting him to confess to a life of crime. Blaketon is excited as a Frenchwomen arrives to help with preparations for Aidensfield's twinning with her home town, but he is jealous when Lord Ashfordly takes a shine to her, and when she is left to the tender mercies of Peggy and David, she finds herself behind bars. Bellamy recuperates from his wife's departure, whilst new district nurse Carol Cassidy struggles to treat a woman with an over-protective husband.

A convicted rapist becomes the target of a hate campaign when he returns to Aidensfield as his victim committed suicide following her assault. Rob intervenes and finds himself siding with the ex-convict, and when a serious allegation is made against him, Rob's investigation reunites him with an old flame, DS Rachel Dawson, who is left with only Younger's help to recapture an escaped convict. Meanwhile, Peggy, David and Carol try to help a talented singer who has now become a drunk to get back on his feet, but the urge for dutch courage seems too strong to beat.

The Ashfordly team join forces with DS Dawson and a shady MI5 agent in the hunt for a Russian trawlerman suspected of being a spy, but Carol soon discovers the government worker has secrets of his own after witnessing a shocking stand-off at a railway station. Meanwhile, Aunt Peggy fancies herself as Aidensfield's very own Miss Marple after an old note among a dead friend's belonging raises questions about her cheating husband's disappearance, whilst Miller is suffering from a terrible toothache.

Rosie is troubled by the attentions of an ex-boyfriend who won't leave her alone. When it escalates into a full-blow stalking case, Rob and Carol become concerned when they discover the obsessive has a history of violence against his ex-girlfriends, bringing out a darker side of Younger when he tries to protect his friend and pushing the plucky young mechanic over the edge. Meanwhile, Peggy's car is stolen - with David's dog Deefer in the boot! A series of other car thefts and a number of other dog disappearances leaves the Miller and his men baffled. Elsewhere, Gina tries to encourage Bellamy to open up about his feelings in the wake of his marriage, only for the full extend of his heartache to come spilling out when she suggests they give their chaotic romance another go.

Rob clashes with Blaketon when he struggles to decide whether an ex-Army major is guilty of murder after shooting a youth who broke into his home. Meanwhile, a struggling father asks Carol to try to get through to his pregnant teenager daughter who has shut herself off from the rest of the world, whilst Peggy incurs Bernie's wraith when she, Rosie and David try to save the garage from a financial crisis by giving it a modern makeover.

Rob and Rosie try to protect a beauty queen who is targeted by mysterious attackers ahead of the Miss Yorkshire contest, which attracts more than the usual share of attention when busloads of female protesters turn up to picket the event, but Rob soon discovers the threat lies much closer to home. Meanwhile, Miller is unimpressed when Younger's bicycle is stolen from under his nose and orders the hapless officer to boost his arrest record. After a few words of wisdom from Ventress, Younger finds a novel way of raising the village's crime rate, while Bellamy spies an opportunity to get closer to Gina when the pub landlady is injured in an explosion, and Peggy is asked to put on a bet for a dying friend, who subsequently dies before he can collect his winnings.

A sting operation goes horribly wrong, leaving three armed robbers on the run, one in the cell and a con-turned-informant fearing for his life. Rob's victorious capture leads him into dangerous territory when he is taken hostage by a ruthless robber and his conflicted girlfriend, leaving Miller, Rachel and Bellamy with their toughest deadline yet. Meanwhile, Blaketon is determined to win the annual cricket match against Scarsdale and teach the cocky cricketers a lesson, but assembling a team proves hectic when Ventress calls off and Bernie struggles to grasp the sport. Rosie is incensed when Blaketon refuses to allow her onto the team, even though everyone else can see she's the best talent, whilst David becomes the team's secret weapon and finds himself the source of sabotage by the rival team.

The team search for a young boy who goes missing after discovering his mother is having an affair with a family friend, who is later seriously injured in a road accident. Meanwhile, Younger strikes up a friendship with a bullied young boy when he fills in for the lollipop lady, Gina and Bellamy set Rob up on a date with a hairdresser, but the date doesn't go according to plan after Rob realises he still hasn't grieved for his late wife, Miller is outraged when a nits investigation grips the Ashfordly station, Carol is delighted when her fiancé gets leave from the Navy and visits her, whilst Peggy and David experience a slight cash flow problem.

Chaos reigns after an unknown sniper kills Joyce Jowett's sister as she leaves a meeting of the flower show committee at the pub. Rachel and Rob's enquiries reveal the gunman may have missed his intended target - and when Blaketon spots an article in the local paper, he realises the target may be him or Joyce herself, which pushes the scared publican and the grief-stricken councillor closer together. Meanwhile, Peggy buys an ice-cream van to take advantage of the hot weather and leaves David in charge of the venture whilst she attends a Redcoat reunion, but his home-made ice cream produces some interesting results.

The constabulary are called to subdue anti-war protesters at a disused airfield, but the event has serious repercussions for Rob when one of the protesters accuses him of police brutality, whilst Miller is horrified when he discovers the "victim" is the boyfriend of his estranged daughter Jo and finds himself forced to arrest his own child. Meanwhile, Younger is gutted to when Rosie begins a new romance with new vet Fergus, who is the indirect cause of chaos when a snake escapes from his car at the garage. Irritated that nobody's taking her snake-catching suggestions seriously, Peggy refuses to help with the hunt and heads off with David for the day - straight into danger.

A trio of young joyriders steal Carol's car while she is attending to a patient and experiment with the drugs in her medical bag as well as selling them to interested parties. Miller and Rob come up against a formidable lawyer who tries to besmirch Carol's reputation in order to clear her wayward son's name. Meanwhile, David agrees to store a coffin for a Swedish sailor with his late father inside, but he and Aunt Peggy learn the newcomer may not be telling them the whole truth about the contents of the coffin. Elsewhere, Rosie and Fergus struggle to get their fledgling relationship off the ground as a series of interruptions plague their dates, while Bellamy starts to wonder whether rekindling his relationship with Gina is really such a good idea.

Blaketon offers to help a guest at the pub find her missing son, but as his search progresses, the former sergeant is targeted by a mysterious assailant whose vendetta against him bears no boundaries. Meanwhile, David is left out in the cold on Peggy's birthday when she rejects his offer of a dinner party in favour of a date with an old flame who suddenly re-appears in her life after 20 years, Younger is delighted when he finally gets his driving licence, and Bellamy makes a shock admission to Rob when Gina asks the village bobby to get to the bottom of his strange behaviour after their break-up.

When Bernie's rich sister dies, he stands to inherit a fortune. The inheritance brings more trouble that it's worth when a face from the past returns to Aidensfield - the supposedly dead Vernon Scripps! David is delighted by his old friend's return, putting Aunt Peggy in a panic when Vernon asks David to accompany him to Spain to share his newfound wealth. However, Bernie is aghast by his brother's return when they both end up behind bars on suspicion of murder. Meanwhile, Rob and Carol deal with a religious man who uses a "fist first, talk later" policy to deal with his 16-year old daughter's pregnancy, Bellamy fears his family's history of heart failure is too blame when he ends up in hospital after collapsing whilst making an arrest and instructs everyone not to alert Gina, but when she does find out, she declares her feelings for him in a spontaneous way.

Rosie, Carol, Rob and Lord Ashfordly all make a stand against an arrogant farmer who shoots a dog and is suspected of abusing his wife, who has a 6 months old baby boy. Meanwhile, Younger is led on a wild goose chase by a group of wayward children who keep releasing livestock from the local farms, whilst Blaketon is exasperated when Gina and Bellamy announce their engagement for the second time.

Younger's career is on the line when a retired Major dies in police custody after he unofficially gives him some of Ventress' painkillers after being heckled by complaints of back pains, but Carol soon discovers something sinister could be afoot when she learns a freelance herbalist is treating some of her patients. Meanwhile, a BBC journalist arrives in Aidensfield for a documentary about village life and is driven mad by the excited residents, especially Peggy, who tries to impress by giving him "the full Yorkshire experience", whilst Gina proves she is serious about marrying Bellamy by signing over the licence of the Aidensfield Arms to Blaketon.

Suspicion falls on Gina's new cellar man when a valuable pendant is stolen from Emily Forster, a guest at the Aidensfield Arms. A search into the barman's past reveals a history of crime, but Emily appears more disturbed by the presence of a pub comedian. Meanwhile, Younger want to buy a car now that he can drive, but he soon regrets asking Peggy to help him purchase a cheap vehicle, whilst love blossoms for Gina and Bellamy as they plan their honeymoon.

Rob is called out to investigate a series of vandalisms against Lord Ashfordly's new estate manager after he angers the tenants when he employs the hard-line methods he learned in South Africa and raises their rents. Meanwhile, Peggy believes she has found the explanation for David's recent behaviour when she uncovers his strange new addiction.

It's make or break time for Gina and Bellamy as they finish the final preparations for their big day and are delighted when Lord Ashfordly loans them Asfordly Hall, but the groom's uneventful stag night stirs up some pre-wedding nerves, especially when Gina's old flame Jack returns to Aidensfield. Will the lovestruck couple ever make it down the aisle? Whilst the couple make the biggest decision of their lives, the rest of Ashfordly station look into the disappearance of an elderly resident who has recently put his cottage up for sale, whilst Rob and Peggy team up to prepare an extravagant surprise for the soon-to-be married couple.

Rosie is viciously attacked while attending a broken-down vehicle stranded on the moors. When the murdered driver is discovered nearby, Rob and Rachel are determined to solve the mystery when it becomes apparent that the driver was a retired cop turned private detective. Their investigation leads to a chilling discovery linking the case to a religious cult near Aidensfield. Meanwhile, Aunt Peggy buys a flock of turkey's off an old friend, but fails to make any money from them when David grows attached, whilst Carol isn't happy when Rob cancels their first date.

When a reverend's wife is murdered, a psychic convention in Ashfordly seems to hold the key to solving the case, whilst Rachel becomes suspicious of the reverend's alibi. Meanwhile, Bellamy arrests a drunken tramp - PC Geoff Younger's father, whilst Peggy devises a plan to sell trout to a hotel in Scarborough that lands her and David in trouble with Miller.

Bellamy, Miller and Younger's lives are all in grave danger when the Ashfordly station comes under attack from a professional gang after two of their associates wind up in the cells. At the Aidensfield Arms, oblivious to the events in Ashfordly, Rob, Rachel, Ventress and the other residents gather to watch the moon landing, but Blaketon and Peggy get into a debate when Peggy becomes convinced the event is a con and sets out to prove it, whilst one guest at the pub gives Gina and Bernie cause for concern when she appears unusually agitated by the historic event.

Carol is consumed by guilt and regret when a newborn baby dies in her care, causing the baby's father to return to his criminal ways after a run-in with Rob and Blaketon at the pub. Meanwhile, Peggy hatches a plan to rescue Bernie when he becomes the object of a predatory widow's affections.

Miller seems to have a personal vendetta against a criminal called Kenny Dekin, who is running an illegal gambling club and instructs Bellamy and Younger to undertake a surveillance operation against him, but the sergeant isn't the only one with a grudge against Dekin when his plans to sail off into the sunset with his mistress suffers a few hurdles. Rob eagerly awaits the results of his sergeant's exam and finds himself caught in a love-triangle between new girlfriend Carol and former lover Rachel. Meanwhile, David uses Hugh Hefner as his inspiration by setting up a den and throwing wild parties at the farm, incurring Peggy's wrath but bringing about a new romance with one of Rosie's friends.

Intrigue spreads among the residents of Aidensfield as a new resident causes havoc and alienates villagers with her unlikeable and secretive personality. A snooping Joyce Jowett decides to investigate the rumours about the newcomer and discovers she is harbouring a shocking companion. As the annual village fete approaches, Peggy begins a new scheme when she is put in charge of the jumble sale. Back at the Ashfordly station, Rob receives good news and is offered a place on a course away from Aidensfield, but he is conflict on whether to accept as it would mean leaving his colleagues at Ashfordly, not to mention Carol Cassidy!