The Ruth Rendell Mysteries - Season 8

First aired: 3/24/1995 5 episodes

Episodes

1. Vanity Dies Hard: Part One

Aired: 3/24/1995

Andrew Fielding, a good-looking young teacher, marries Alice Whittaker, a rich woman in her late thirties, more than ten years older than he is. All seems well until Alice introduces Andrew to Nesta Drage, her best friend, who quickly vanishes without trace. Meanwhile, Alice more and more doubts whether Andrew loves her - and if he is just a gold-digger, might he have something to do with Nesta's disappearance? Alice begins a search for Nesta - but Andrew does his best to tie his wife to the house.

2. Vanity Dies Hard: Part Two

Aired: 3/31/1995

Part two of a moody whodunit from the pen of Britain's queen of crime fiction, starring Eleanor David as bride-to-be Alice Whittaker, whose marriage plans are thrown into turmoil by the disappearance of a close friend opposed to her impending nuptials. Disregarding assurances that there is nothing to worry about, Alice sets out to investigate - and soon uncovers evidence of foul play lurking just beneath the surface of local life.

3. Vanity Dies Hard: Part Three

Aired: 4/7/1995

Part three. The spinster's suspicions grow when her best friend mysteriously disappears, and as illness takes control she realises her ally was murdered.

4. The Strawberry Tree: Part One

Aired: 4/21/1995

Petra Summers is an attractive middle-aged woman with a past - and her past life is beginning to come back to haunt her. When Petra Sunderton's elder brother Piers falls in love with their Spanish cousin Rosario, the consequences are far-reaching.

5. The Strawberry Tree: Part Two

Aired: 4/28/1995

Continuing the drama about a wealthy widow who still grieves the loss of her brother.Petra is lonely. Will's constant attention is no consolation for the loss of her brother Piers. Then she receives a visit from two strangers claiming to be Piers and cousin Rosario, and her past begins to catch up with her.