A bookseller turns P. I. in this intriguing five-part BBC radio thriller

Grahame Mayer specialises in selling books, not solving mysteries. So when he’s asked to play private investigator and track down a soldier from the Spanish Civil War, he wonders if it’s some sort of test – and if so, what will happen if he fails...

Armed with fresh information, he is sent to Glasgow on the trail of Jock Cameron, and a meeting with a former nurse who knew him back in Spain furnishes Grahame with further clues. But despite these new leads, the elusive Jock remains tantalisingly out of reach.

Will a series of postcards, some holy pictures and an encounter with a pop star enable the reluctant sleuth to hunt Cameron down – or will it take a man’s death to release Mayer from his quest?

Created by Edward Boyd, who wrote for a number of BBC TV shows including Z-Cars, this enthralling crime drama stars Ray Brooks, with a supporting cast including Garard Green, John Hannah and Alexandra Mathie.


Written by Edward Boyd
Produced at BBC Scotland by Patrick Rayner

Cast

Grahame Mayer……………………Ray Brooks
Coleman……………………John Westbrook
Teresa……………………Alexandra Mathie
Forrest……………………Garard Green
Hemingway……………………William Hope
Cameron……………………John Hannah/Joseph Greig
Rainsford……………………Jonathan Tafler
Inspector McNeill……………………Carey Wilson
Norah McGill……………………Sybil Wintrope
Henderson……………………Joseph Brady
Arnold……………………Ian Thompson
Receptionist……………………Jennifer Piercey
Man on plane/Millhouse……………………William Hope
Miss McLauchlan……………………Yvonne Gilan
Pat……………………Richard Jamieson
Paula……………………Caroline Guthrie
Waiter/Taxi driver……………………Gordon Reid
Nuke……………………John McGlynn
Apollyon……………………Billy McColl
Dr Lovat……………………Roy Hanlon

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 25 October-20 November 1987