The first of the REBUS programmes introduces the Scottish Detective Inspector John Rebus as he untangles the various strands of the interwoven web of criminal intrigues from Leith, Edinburgh to Aberdeen and Glasgow and points between. A serial killer of young women of the past, known as 'The Preacher' appears to have a copycat murderer dubbed 'The Disciple', who is repeating the modus operandi. But is it 'The Preacher' who has returned to continue his work of death? Or it is truly another serial killer at work? Intermingled with the workings of the CID Edinburgh to solve these problems, Rebus is pulled off the case to pursue a strange death of what appears to be unintentional suicide. This strand of the web takes Rebus through more suicides, murders, drug trafficking, money laundering, exposure of dirty cops and questionable liasons between a couple of the suspects. The stressed out Rebus manages to reach the center of the web and skillfully gets the tangles sorted out in this fast
Drugs, gang warfare, bombings, prostitution and white slavery are just some of the activities which two gang leaders have in common. And Rebus hits the streets to sort out the conflicts and bring justice to the city. A pharmaceutical factory appears to be the major supply source of cocaine over which a gun battle is being planned by the upstart gang leader and his group of thugs. Rebus' old friend and workmate, DI Jack Morton is on an undercover assignment at the drugs plant when the attack is made, and he receives fatal gunshot wounds. Another victim of these criminals is a young mother, Candice, who was kidnapped from Cosovo to work as a prostitute, and time is of the essence if Rebus going to help her see her young son again. Sammy, Rebus' 19-year-old daughter, provides a safe-house for Candice. Then shortly after the young refugee moves in, Sammy becomes the victim of a hit-and-run accident and is in a coma in hospital. Her father is convinced that she was a deliberate target.
Rebus is confronted with baffling questions of paedophiles, child abuse, missing persons, a former sweetheart, firebombs, mobs, a gay cross-dresser, and all amid the personal loss of an excellent friend and co-officer, to what? Suicide? Or murder? Detective Inspector John Rebus has his plate filled, again, with the evils of human misdeeds and personal trials. His emotions are drawn like a tightrope over the death of a man he most admired and respected, counterbalanced by the arrival on the scene of old friends seeking his assistance in finding their missing adolescent son. The old sparks catch fire with the woman he loved 20 years before, but he manages to keep all of the pressures of his work sorted out and resolves the multitude of issues facing him. But where will his reclaimed love leave him?
The motto of the Scottish kings - Nemo mi impune lacessit ("Don't Mess With Me") sets the tone for this story. It's payback time for DI John Rebus in his pact with the crime underlord Morris Gerald Cafferty for his finding the person who put Rebus' daughter in a life-threatening coma, the result of a hit-and-run accident. This time, it's Cafferty's illegitimate son who was "six-packed" and killed, and Cafferty is calling in his chips from Rebus. Rebus has to cope with a backdrop of gun running, jailbreaks, left- and right-wing extremists, nationalists and other splinter groups who are spouting racist philosophies, and imported white-power fanatics who are perpetrating hate crimes.
Rebus investigates a series of murders where the killer leaves distinctive clues by the butchered bodies of his victims.
A Kurdish asylum seeker is murdered on a notorious Edinburgh estate in an apparent race-hate attack, but Rebus suspects there's more to it. A local MSP reports a missing Kosovan girl, last seen with a known criminal, who also seems to have vanished.
The body of a missing prostitute is found, and the circumstances recall an unsolved murder from twenty years before. Rebus is convinced that the prime suspect from the earlier case has struck again.
The detective angers his superiors when he tries to connect a member of Edinburgh's criminal fraternity to the shooting of two boys and a teacher at a local college. One of the victims turns out to be the son of Rebus's cousin, giving Templar the perfect reason to take him off the case. However, the copper is determined to trace a schoolgirl he is certain holds the key to the mystery.
A charity campaigner is caught with a prostitute during a raid on a brothel. Rebus heads a double murder enquiry when the man's wife and another woman are found dead in connected incidents.
A man shoots himself in the offices of an investment bank. Rebus is tipped off to a possible financial scandal, but his investigation is frustrated by powerful vested interests.
The body of an art gallery owner is found dumped on Calton Hill. DS Clarke is put in charge of the investigation, while Rebus is sent back on an occupational therapy course. Far from being redeemed, Rebus falls in with two corrupt officers, who may have been involved in the murder…
The moderator elect of the Scottish church is found with his throat cut, naked in a car, next to a female passenger in a similar state - and in an area notorious for being used by lovers. The woman's jealous husband is initially considered the prime suspect, but when one of the rival candidates for the moderator position is also found, the plot thickens. Rebus investigates and discovers that the church's tendency to deal with matters internally and protect its own soon comes back to haunt them.
An unidentified body is found at the Macintosh House Hotel, venue for the World Trade Summit. Later, the body of a Scottish Executive minister is found beneath Edinburgh Castle. Rebus investigates, but soon finds himself at loggerheads with the commander of SO12, in charge of security for the summit.
A murder trial is abandoned when Rebus is accused of obtaining a wrongful confession by coercion, leaving him facing an internal investigation and the wrath of the victim's father. Then the accused is found murdered at the same spot as his alleged victim…
A 50-minute documentary, featuring interviews with Ian Rankin, Ken Stott, Claire Price, Jennifer Black, and more.
Scotland's greatest detectives from the TV series Taggart and Rebus will battle it out against one another. The sketch will pitch tough-talking DCI Matt Burke against hard-man DI John Rebus for the first time ever. But who will be victorious?
