The WORST episodes of Taggart
Every episode of Taggart ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of Taggart!
In the early eighties, Robert Love, Controller of Drama at Scottish Television, and Glenn Chandler, pathologist turned writer, created a Glaswegian police detective named Jim Taggart. A creation which resulted in a world-wide successful television drama that has lasted for over twenty years. With over eighty episodes currently in the can the series, which follows the exploits of Maryhill CID, continues to win over viewers old and new despite major changes in the cast which caused most in the business to write it off. Since the pilot episode "Killer", the only installment to not carry the trade mark name, to the most recently aired episode, the show has presented more grizzly murders and plot twists than even the most ardent of fans can remember. Its film noir quality along with the stunning setting of Glasgow, the second city of the empire, that helps it remain a success even after all these years. The excellent cast, both present and past, have provided characters which have become much loved and remain in the hearts of fans even after their departure. This guide is dedicated to the memories of Mark McManus, Iain Anders, Robert Robertson, and Tom Watson. Taggart is now 20 years old becoming the longest running police drama on television the show is still as popular as it was when Mark McManus was at the helm. Taggart is made by SMG Productions and broadcast on the ITV network over the UK.
#1 - Bloodsport
Season 27 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/31/2010
The murder of a boxer leads the team into a murky world of cage fighting, illegal gambling and lap dancing. And Ross's own gambling addiction is exposed
#2 - Island
Season 24 - Episode 3 - Aired 2/27/2008
A mutilated body is discovered on a remote island, and Ross and Reid leave Glasgow to investigate, but find that the inhabitants are wary of outsiders and seem reluctant to assist them. They return to Glasgow with the body, while Burke and Fraser make some headway and manage to connect the victim to a drugs racket in South American. Then another person on the island goes missing, and the team has to consider how much the drug dealing has infiltrated the remote community.
#3 - Funeral Rites
Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/9/1987
The discovery of a charred corpse in a disused railway tunnel sets Taggart on the gruesome hunt for a ruthless killer in an investigation with sinister undertones of black magic and voodoo. The wife of an arthritic dentist narrowly escapes a series of murder attempts, adding to a complex case for Taggart and his team.
#4 - Forbidden Fruit
Season 10 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/1/1994
Joan Matheson arrives in Glasgow to be with her daughter who is expecting her first child. However, she reacts very badly when she learns the baby has been conceived by donor insemination. Shortly after she is found murdered and suspicion falls on her son in law whom she blamed and humiliated at a family meeting.
#5 - Fact and Fiction
Season 25 - Episode 5 - Aired 12/24/2009
When a new novel includes the detailed description of a murder the same of that which belongs to an unsolved case, the team start to think the story's writer could of been involved in the murder. Burke tries unsuccessfully to find evidence to link the author to the crime but remains determined to bring him down.
#6 - Dead Man's Chest
Season 13 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/19/1996
A 15-year-old gold bullion robbery leads DI Jardine and the team on a race against time as one by one the robbers are murdered. With pirates, treasure chests and secret maps to buried treasure muddying the waters, will the team be able to solve the murders and find the lost treasure before the last robber is murdered and buried with his secrets?
#7 - A Fistful of Chips
Season 16 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/7/1999
A delivery van is hijacked and its contents stolen. But there's more going on than meets the eye, and meanwhile, someone's knocking off anyone who knows about the hijack, which doesn't include the police! Once again Robbie's past catches up with him and he comes close to crossing the line.
#8 - Cold Blood
Season 3 - Episode 3 - Aired 12/31/1987
A woman shoots her husband dead after discovering that he has been having an affair. DCI Taggart thinks he has the easiest case of his career, however it soon becomes the complete opposite when the post mortem reveals that he was already dead before he was shot, and that his wife could not be responsible.
#9 - Murder in Season
Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 7/23/1985
Glamorous opera singer, Eleanor Samson, returns to Glasgow, her home town, to sing with Scottish Opera. She hopes to bring about a reconciliation with her estranged husband, John, but she is furious to discover that there is a new woman in John's life - blonde, attractive Kirsty King. When Kirsty's body is found in the burnt out shell of John's boat, Eleanor Samson is the prime suspect. Jim Taggart, tough Glasgow detective and his smooth assistant, Peter Livingstone, fall out over the case. Livingstone believes that Eleanor is guilty; Taggart cannot believe that a woman like Eleanor could be a murderess. Is Taggart allowing his judgement to be clouded by Eleanor's fame and beauty?
#10 - Double Jeopardy
Season 4 - Episode 3 - Aired 12/30/1988
Feature-length single episode. When the body of Rowena Bain is discovered in a wood, the forensic evidence suggests that Bain committed suicide, just as she was due to move to Germany with her family. DCI Taggart is suspicious, and he soon discovers that the victim's sister thinks that Rowena's husband, Maurice, is responsible for her murder.
#11 - Root Of Evil
Season 4 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/28/1988
Taggart and Jardine investigate when someone starts bumping off Glasgow's loan sharks.
#12 - Prayer for the Dead
Season 11 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/11/1995
Supt McVitie is taken to hospital with a heart attack after a heated argument with Taggart. His wife reacts very badly to Taggart's temporary promotion to Acting Superintendent, and takes it out on the whole team. Meanwhile, Reid and Jardine begin investigating the death of drug addict, Scott Graham, who fell from a balcony during a drug fueled party.
#13 - Killer (Pilot)
Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/6/1983
A series of young blonde women are found strangled and left near water. Maryhill CID launch an investigation to find the person responsible for the murders. DCI Jim Taggart is asked to head up the investigation, alongside newly graduated sergeant Peter Livingstone. Despite their differences, they must uncover the killer's identity before he strikes again.
#14 - Judgement Day
Season 24 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/15/2008
Murder strikes close to home for the team when DCI Matt Burke's elderly father is found dead in suspicious circumstances. What appears to be a straightforward case of liver failure takes a sinister turn when it's discovered Andrew Burke died of a heroin overdose. Against police regulations, DCI Burke is determined to solve the case. But then some difficult questions arise - what is the significance of a two hundred thousand pound savings plan? And could Andrew's friends be in danger too?
Watch Now:Amazon
#15 - Blood Money
Season 19 - Episode 3 - Aired 12/28/2002
A boxing promoter is found strangled, and while Ross breaks the news to his widow, Burke and Reid interview the previous night's fighters. The winning boxer, Corbett, turns out to be more than good friends with the widow, and the ringside doctor has attempted to destroy medical files. An old friend of the promoters is also called in and soon more information is found which leads to a chase in order to prevent any further deaths.
Watch Now:Amazon#16 - Death Without Dishonour
Season 9 - Episode 3 - Aired 5/11/1993
The Taggart team are responsible for protecting witnesses involved in a "cab war" trial. It seems there may be a hidden agenda when the prosecuting barrister is found murdered.
#17 - Dead Ringer
Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 7/2/1985
The skeletal remains of a dismembered body are discovered beneath the floorboards of a house in Glasgow. The drama takes an unexpected twist when a nine-month-old toddler is kidnapped from a multi-storey car park, followed by a ransom demand of £50,000.
#18 - Hellfire
Season 11 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/27/1994
James Martin is murdered on Walpurgis night with a chainsaw that involves witch-craft and Satanism. Detective Scott investigates his last case, but is unsuccessful in catching the prime suspect. At his retirement party, he collapses and asks Taggart bring those responsible to justice. Reid, working undercover, becomes convinced of her target's innocence.
#19 - Fearful Lightning
Season 16 - Episode 3 - Aired 10/21/1999
A string of people are murdered by electrocution. All of these people are in some way connected to with a local (and popular) spiritualist, who claims he can speak with the dead. When the Taggart team disbelieve the man's powers, the clairvoyant gives them frighteningly accurate messages from a man very dear to their hearts--Jim Taggart! Meanwhile, the murders begin to pile up, and Taggart team race to find the murderer, this time aided by Jim Taggart himself.
Watch Now:Amazon
#20 - Mind Over Matter
Season 21 - Episode 5 - Aired 2/3/2005
After the murder of a teenager, DS Reid joins a therapy group undercover to try and find the killer, but as more people are discovered, she realises the case is having an impact on her personal life as well as her professional one and her colleagues aren't making her life any easier. But can DS Reid manage to put all her troubles to one side and with the help of her colleagues, find the killer?
Watch Now:Amazon#21 - Falling in Love
Season 17 - Episode 5 - Aired 1/10/2001
Davie O'Connor is taking his first parachute jump with members from his local tango club. When the chute fails to open, he plummets to a grisly death. DCI Jardine discovers the line was cut, but also that the victim had terminal cancer. Suspicion immediately falls on Marie Doherty, his fiancée who now stands to inherit a lot of money.
Watch Now:Amazon#23 - Bloodlines
Season 16 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/16/1999
Susan Keller is released to howls of protest after serving a life sentence for the murder of an entire family when she was just a teenager. Forced into hiding she accepts an offer of a country retreat. Fearing that it may be a trap the Taggart team are assigned as protection. When members of Kellars are murdered one by one it is clear that someone is taking revenge. The team begin the hunt for the killer - is it Kellers annonymous benefactor or someone closer to home?
Watch Now:Amazon#24 - Bad Medicine
Season 27 - Episode 1 - Aired 10/3/2010
When a newly-qualified doctor is found tortured and mutilated in a vacant warehouse, the team discover connections with a drug-trafficking case.
#25 - Dead Giveaway
Season 4 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/7/1988
A young boy staggers home from a youth club after boxing practice, only to fall into a creek and drown. The grieving father is called in to identify the body and when he is driven home the police find his wife slumped in the hallway. Dr. Stephen Andrews discovers both victims died of rat poisoning and suspicion immediately falls on the husband.