24 October 1997 (1997-10-24) – 16 May 2001 (2001-05-16)
An Unsuitable Job for a Woman is a British television mystery drama series, based upon the 1972 novel of the same name by P.D. James, that starred Helen Baxendale and Annette Crosbie.[1] Two series were produced, each focusing on two separate feature-length dramas, each based in part upon the book of the same name and its 1982 sequel, The Skull Beneath the Skin.[2] These aired on ITV between 24 October 1997 and 16 May 2001, also airing in the United States on PBS as part of their Mystery! series.[3]
Baxendale stars as Cordelia Gray, a young, aspiring private detective learning the ropes from her mentor, disgraced ex-policeman Bernie Pryde (Jeff Nuttall). But when Pryde's sudden suicide leaves Cordelia the sole proprietor of his ramshackle agency, she is forced to continue her education on the job. With only Mrs Sparshott (Annette Crosbie), the agency's longtime secretary and her new assistant on the team, Cordelia finds herself thrust headfirst into unfamiliar waters. The complete series was released on DVD in the United States on 8 January 2008.[4]
Cordelia Gray inherits the detective agency she works for, after the death of her boss. Her first case comes when she is hired by Ronald Callender, an eminent scientist, to investigate why his son, Cambridge University student Mark Callender, has committed suicide. She soon discovers the case is more dangerous and complex than it at first appeared.
Cordelia moves into the summer house where Mark Callender was found hanged, and finds herself threatened. Mark's friends also seem determined to deflect her investigation into his suicide. Cordelia then discovers that Ronald stands to benefit from his son's death.
Cordelia uncovers the mysterious circumstances relating to the discovery of Mark's body. As she gets closer to the truth, there is a further twist as the investigation ends in nightmarish fashion.
Cordelia goes undercover as a holiday relief at the Claircourt Park Hotel when the proprietor is accused by his wife of sexually harassing female staff. But when she arrives, the woman has disappeared.
With the agency struggling, and now pregnant, Cordelia welcomes a seemingly straightforward job. But is the man she is hired to follow a killer or a victim?
Now heavily pregnant, and facing an uncertain future, Cordelia accepts a job from her an adversary, DCS Fergusson, who hires her to spy on his daughter's boyfriend, Tim Bolton, but then abruptly breaks the job off.
4
"Playing God: Part 2"
Mary McMurray
Barbara Machin
4 November 1999 (PBS) 16 May 2001 (2001-05-16) (ITV)
6.57
Cordelia is hired by Tim's daughter, Laura, to resume the investigation.
