When Arthur and Emily Jacobs return home from a trip to Scarborough they find their house burgled and their cattle on the loose even though they had asked his brother Darcy to keep an eye on the place. PC Rowan soon discovers that there is bad blood between the Jacobs brothers. Gina gets a visit from her old boyfriend Billy from Liverpool. But Billy has some problems with honesty. First he steals 5£ from the till in the pub and then he tries to give Gina a record player that stems from the burglary at the Jacobs farm. The latter, he claims, he bought from Greengrass - much to the delight of sergeant Blaketon.

PC Walker and PC Bellamy are investigating a break-in at Lionel Morris' off license and general store when they spot an old friend of the police, Colin Sneddon. Sneddon has a history of confessing to just about every crime in town and soon he is at the police station to confess to this one too. When the police do not believe him he confesses to the unsolved murder of a little girl eleven years back. His confession makes quite a stir in Aidensfield and this time he is harder to dismiss, because human remains are found at the spot where he said he buried the girl's body. Aunt Peggy learns that the unfortunate store owner Mr. Morris is a wealthy widower and decides to make at move on him - and his wallet.

Major Beecham gets arrested for disturbing the peace. During the night he complains about back pains and PC Younger gives him some of Alf's painkillers. But Younger may have given him the wrong pills because the next morning PC Bellamy finds him dead in his cell. Tristram Johnston is researching for the BBC programme "Down Your Way" and he has lots of likely prospects because everybody in Aidensfield wants to get on the radio. Aunt Peggy even gives him a tour of some of the sights of the area. Nurse Cassidy discovers that some of her patients have seen the herbalist Stephen Lansbury and decides to have a talk with him. Gina is busy organizing her wedding to Phil and persuades Oscar to take over the licence for the Aidensfield Arms.