Claude Greengrass is the new lollipop man outside the village school, and PC Rowan gets a complaint from Walter Pettigrew that he suddenly and without warning jumped out onto the street just in front of Pettigrew's car. But Greengrass claims that it was Pettigrew who nearly caused the accident and he is backed up by the new school teacher Jo Weston. Jo Weston is concerned about one of her students, Lizzy McGowan, who is late almost every day. Lizzy's mother lives with her boyfriend Derek Ramsey, who is sent to prison for attacking PCs Rowan, Bellamy and Ventress in a fight at the Aidensfield Arms, but he escapes on the way to the prison. And with good reason too, because the next morning Dorothy McGowan is attacked and badly injured in her home. PC Rowan thinks a mysterious man, who showed up in court, has something to do with it.

Someone has let Bill Ruane's horses out, but he manages to catch them with the help of Jo Weston, who is on an outing with her students. Ruane has financial troubles because nobody has money to pay him. He is suspected to be behind a series of burglaries in the area including one at Ashfordly Hall in which his lordship's game keeper Gillies is knocked down, and part of the loot from that burglary is found at Ruane's stables. Greengrass has a flat tyre, but luckily his is picked up by his nephew Norman and Jeb, Norman's new friend from the American air force. They have a business proposition for him. The have started an import business and need storage space.

Alan Davies reports strange noises from his neighbour Adrian Shaw's house, but Shaw claims that there were no noises. The same night Davies is frightened out of his home by an intruder and when he returns with PC Rowan they find an envelope with a picture of a little girl. A copy of the same photo is sent to him at his workplace. Trying to make ends meet after Lord Ashfordly has increased the rent for the Aidensfield Arms George starts to serve food at the pub, and Greengrass suggests he adds pheasants to the menu. Pellet free guaranteed! Gina returns from a trip to Liverpool and brings back a new boyfriend Anton, who is a cook. Things are also developing between Nick Rowan and Jo Weston who have become very friendly lately.

Harry Schofield's great ambition is that his son Len becomes a professional cricket player, but when Len is not accepted at cricket training, he runs away from home. Joss Harrop has a couple of mares he wants covered, but stud fees have risen and he cannot afford it. Greengrass has a perfect solution to that. They "borrow" lord Ashfordly's race horse Ashfordly Lad for a couple of hours and return the stud before anybody notices it is missing. That is a lot easier said than done. Not getting hold of the horse that is, but returning it!

A large quantity of fine wine has been stolen from a wholesaler's warehouse and the police think it is an inside job, because the burglar alarm was switched off. The prime suspect is the haulier Charlie Wallace. PC Rowan finds out that Alf Ventress has lost a lot of money at cards to Wallace and cannot settle his debts. Rowan decides to help his friend and colleague and trap Wallace at the same time. Lord Ashfordly has had intruders on his estate and when he catches Greengrass red-handed at poaching he hires the old scoundrel as a guard to keep off the intruders - unpaid of course.

Michael Harvey is mortally ill and his son Ronnie and his girlfriend Susan is preparing a surprise party to celebrate his birthday, which he knows will be his last. During the party Michael Harvey asks Susan to be his wife. Shocked the young woman rushes out of the house and rides away on her bicycle. On her way home she has an accident and nurse Bolton is suspected of causing it, but PC Rowan thinks that something is not quite right, and Susan's bike is missing. Greengrass buys a rare samovar from a family of Russian gypsies, but discovers that there are more "rare" Russian samovars around. PC Rowan is thinking of getting a promotion and wants to take his sergeant's exams.

A fire breaks out at Webster's Hotel. Fortunately the fire is discovered in time and damages are limited to a work shop. The manager Ralph Webster is not satisfied that it was caused by faulty wiring and asks PC Rowan to look into it and especially Brian Rogers. When Webster sacks Rogers he gets drunk and threatens a taxi driver. Rogers even points a gun at PC Rowan, who has come to investigate, and barricades himself in his flat. Posh fashion photographer Jansson is scouting for locations and also wants to hire both Gina and Greengrass in addition to his regular models Michelle and Sylvie. Nick Rowan and Jo Weston are planning on going away on a romantic weekend together.

Reggie Rawlins has a business proposition for George and Gina that will boost trade in the Aidensfield Arms - he will lease a jukebox to them. Rawlins also enters into partnership with his old friend Greengrass, who will collect the takings from the jukeboxes. A couple of bullies have been smashing up jukeboxes all over North Riding and soon the one at the Aidensfield Arms is targeted too. Only jukeboxes leased from the company L.E.W. are not destroyed, and PC Rowan thinks it will be worthwhile to look into the company and its owners Anita Setters and Andy Farley. Things have cooled off between Nick and Jo after he had to cancel their romantic weekend due to his police duties.

Jeb Hunter is attacked and robbed in his own home and suspicion falls on Errol Jones, an old acquaintance of PC Rowan from London, when a ballpoint pen belonging to him is found on the scene of the crime. It does not do any good to Jones' case that he is black. The talk of the village is the annual cricket match between Aidensfield and Whitby, and Greengrass is of course accepting bets on the outcome in addition to selling pesticides and fertilizers. He gets a special interest in Jones when he learns that he is good at playing cricket. And he is not the only one, but for quite another reason. Nicks mother Ruby is back in Aidensfield much to the dismay of sergeant Blaketon.

It is time for the annual match for the coits championship between Aidensfield and Holinsby. Jack Abbott is playing for the Holinsby team and at the same time having an affair with his team captain's wife Annie. When his own pregnant wife Jean finds out by accident, she drives off in their car, and Jack has to go home on the team bus. Donald Smethwick loses control of the bus, which runs off the road and down a slope. Ruby has managed to patch up the relationship between Nick and Jo, and Jo has decided it is time to introduce him to her parents. Jo's mother is not pleased to learn that Nick is a village bobby and a widower with a daughter.

Billy and Timmy earn a little extra pocket money by collecting golf balls. One day Billy finds his friend assaulted in the woods by the golf course. Jimmy says he was attacked by a man sitting in a grey Jaguar with another man and a lot of papers. He even identifies the man from a photograph that PC Rowan has borrowed from the club secretary Harry Fell. Severe stomach pains prevent Greengrass from placing a bet for a "friend", and the old scoundrel wishes he could disappear. Changes are on the way within the police and Inspector Barry commandeers sergeant Blaketon's office while he makes his report. Blaketon fears for his position and starts looking for another job.

Thanks to Claude Greengrass the famous wrestler The Masked Marvel is coming to Aidensfield and as usual he challenges all locals to a match with a prize to anyone who can unmask him. Alfred is afraid of the wrestler and bites him so that he cannot wrestle. Since nobody knows what he looks like without the mask, Greengrass and his manager Pat Starr makes The Masked Marvel train one of the locals, Ken Fairbrother, to fight instead of him. But Starr plans to make the switch a bit more permanent than that. Tim Phillips makes trouble because his mother Sylvia is leaving his father for the pub owner Mike Scott and PC Rowan is called to deal with domestic disputes in the family. The next morning Sylvia Phillips is found dead on the moors. Murdered!

Sandra Croft gets drunk because her boyfriend has left her and accidentally sets fire to her apartment. Luckily she is saved without any injuries by PC Rowan. The incident makes Sandra fall in love with Nick, but she turns resentful and revengeful when he does not return her affection. Greengrass has a new scheme: guided tours and bird watching! But he soon finds out that there is more to it than just setting up a shelter as a hide, handing out copied old maps and then collect the money.

Susannah Temple-Richards is back in Aidensfield after serving her prison sentence. One day an old "friend" from prison, Maureen Bristow, is on her doorstep and asks if she could stay for a couple of days. But Susannah does not know that Maureen has broken out of prison and needs a place to stay until she can get out of the country with her boyfriend. When she finds out she gets into real danger. Gina has a new boyfriend, and she gets really sad when he leaves her for an older woman. Claude Greengrass has bought an old bureau at an auction believing it to be full of valuables. It is not - or at least he cannot find any.

Joyce Jowett has just lost her husband when a stranger called Nigel Wheeler turns up in Aidensfield asking for him. He is a financial advisor and while he is in the area he might as well visit other potential customers. One of them is Jo Weston and PC Rowan decides to take a closer look at him. George Ward and other villagers have received malicious letters. The only lead is that they are all written on the same typewriter.

Ronnie Savage escapes during transport from one prison to another, and the Ashfordly police is asked to assist Inspector Jennings from CID catching him again. They discover that Savage will be leaving the country on a trawler from Whitby and PC Rowan goes undercover at the local fish market to find out when Savage will be leaving. While he is there he finds out that the foreman Penrice has a sideline selling fish undeclared. Unfortunately Greengrass is one of his customers and he may blow Nick's cover by accident. Aunt Eileen gets a surprise visit by and old, dear friend, Antonin Clarion, who asks her to marry him and go with him back to France. And PC Rowan has passed his sergeants exam.

Christmas is near and there is the traditional nativity play at the village hall with PC Ventress as Santa Claus. Greengrass is supplying half the village with geese, but demand has been higher than expected and he is four birds short. He sends David to pick them up, but the snow causes him to drive off the road and he has to continue on foot to get help. David is not the only one in trouble because of the weather. A bus full of old people from Elsinby gets lost, and Phil Bellamy, who is giving Ventress a lift to Aidensfield, gets stuck in the snow. The falling snow also causes a small plane to crash not far from the police house and Nick and Jo go to see if they can be of any help. They find a very pregnant woman, Sophie, in the plane and tracks in the snow indicate that she was not alone.