The WORST episodes of Waking the Dead

Every episode of Waking the Dead ever, ranked from worst to best by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The worst episodes of Waking the Dead!

Led by Detective Superintendent Peter Boyd (Trevor Eve) the Cold Case Squad investigates serious crimes which have gone unsolved. Armed with the latest technological advances and old fashioned hard work, Psychological Profiler Grace Foley (Sue Johnston), Forensic Pathologist Frankie Wharton (Holly Aird), Detective Constable Mel Silver (Claire Goose) and Detective Sergeant Spencer Jordan (Wil Johnson) wake the dead for clues and answers.

Last Updated: 4/2/2024Network: BBC OneStatus: Ended
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Wounds (2)
star
6.28
85 votes

#1 - Wounds (2)

Season 7 - Episode 10 - Aired 5/13/2008

Directors: Sam Miller
Writer: Paul Farrell
Watch Now:Amazon
Towers of Silence (2)
star
6.35
82 votes

#2 - Towers of Silence (2)

Season 5 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/19/2005

Spencer goes undercover as a prison inmate to investigate the possible reasons for the murders from the man convicted of committing the crimes. To Spence's dismay, the man (who is too scared to say anything about what happened) commits suicide before he can be coerced into revealing who the real killer is.

Writer: Joe Cozens
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Black Run (1)
star
6.44
79 votes

#3 - Black Run (1)

Season 5 - Episode 3 - Aired 9/25/2005

Under the impression that he may receive a confession, Boyd accepts the invite for a visit to the prison from former police officer Eddie Vine, who is serving a life sentence for murdering his friend and former fellow officer, Tom Pallisser.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Towers of Silence (1)
star
6.49
94 votes

#4 - Towers of Silence (1)

Season 5 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/18/2005

A mummified body is discovered in a disused airliner that has been parked in the desert for 6 years. There are indications of a link to an armed robbery at Heathrow Airport six years earlier, and a murder at around the same time. Our team gains two new members. DS Andrea Stephenson takes over for DS Mel Silver, and the new mad scientist is Dr Felix Gibson.

Writer: Joe Cozens
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Black Run (2)
star
6.50
78 votes

#5 - Black Run (2)

Season 5 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/26/2005

Boyd is suspended from work after being involved in a hit and run accident while possibly under the influence. While also trying to find out who framed Boyd, the team continue trying to find out if Vine is innocent or not.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Subterraneans (2)
star
6.56
54 votes

#6 - Subterraneans (2)

Season 5 - Episode 6 - Aired 10/3/2005

The team discover the brutally murdered body of a man in the same cellar that the businessman was held hostage in. While investigating the two victims, the team find an unlikely suspect. They're positive of his connection to the murders, but need to collect the evidence to prove it.

Writer: Ed Whitmore
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Shadowplay (1)
star
6.58
57 votes

#7 - Shadowplay (1)

Season 4 - Episode 11 - Aired 8/15/2004

A young woman with a history of psychiatric problems kills her family by setting the family home on fire. She admits to the crime, but claims that she was coerced in to doing it by a mysterious character known only by the name 'The Shepherd'. Her psychiartrist links her case to similar cases and gets the Cold Case Squad involved.

Directors: Andy Hay
Writer: Ed Whitmore
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Straw Dog (1)
star
6.64
59 votes

#8 - Straw Dog (1)

Season 5 - Episode 7 - Aired 10/9/2005

Grace is haunted by an old case that she assisted on at the beginning of her career when she is asked to give evidence at the assailant's appeal hearing.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Undertow (2)
star
6.70
61 votes

#9 - Undertow (2)

Season 5 - Episode 10 - Aired 10/17/2005

A criminal is about to be released, the team is sure he is a serial killer. They enter in a race against the clock to prove their suspicions and prevent his upcoming release.

Writer: Oliver Brown
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Shadowplay (2)
star
6.72
54 votes

#10 - Shadowplay (2)

Season 4 - Episode 12 - Aired 8/16/2004

Boyd and the team continue to investigate the arson case and the other two other possible crime connections to 'The Shepherd'. Will the team discover this person's true identity or will it all turn out to be a part of the imagination of a mentally ill woman?

Directors: Andy Hay
Writer: Ed Whitmore
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Substitute (2)
star
6.74
85 votes

#11 - Substitute (2)

Season 8 - Episode 6 - Aired 9/21/2009

Eve's trust in her boyfriend proves unfounded as he turns out to be worst then even Boyd expected. Fortunately she is able to escape from the location where she is being held, but Stefan isn't going to let her go that easily.

Watch Now:Amazon
Burn Out (2)
star
6.75
126 votes

#12 - Burn Out (2)

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 6/19/2001

Boyd has Marinas uncle, Mike Coleman and her mother Gwen brought in for questioning while Frankie searches the house. The team find the items that were recovered from the car nine years ago and suspect that Perry Coleman was being blackmailed by Rod Brogan, a friend of Perry's. Boyd has the body exhumed and the DNA results suprise everyone

Directors: Edward Bennett
Writer: Peter Jukes
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Wounds (1)
star
6.78
90 votes

#13 - Wounds (1)

Season 7 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/12/2008

The team find out that a body discovered in a disused tunnel is that of salesman Chris Dearden, who went missing in 1996. He was on a self-empowerment weekend with his colleagues when he died.Could one of them be responsible?

Directors: Sam Miller
Writer: Paul Farrell
Watch Now:Amazon
Pilot (1)
star
6.78
154 votes

#14 - Pilot (1)

Season 1 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/4/2000

A new team of detectives, the Cold Case Squad, is put together to re-examine evidence of unsolved murders using advanced technology. In their first investigation DCI Peter Boyd has a second go at nailing the murderer of Alice Miller, a young girl who disappeared five years ago. Trouble is, the perpetrator is as keen as Boyd to act again, and abducts another girl.

Directors: Martin Hutchings
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Straw Dog (2)
star
6.81
57 votes

#15 - Straw Dog (2)

Season 5 - Episode 8 - Aired 10/10/2005

Someone possibly copying the past crimes begins harassing Grace about her testimony against Tony Greene. If she doesn't admit that she was wrong about him, the assailant promises to murder the victim he/she is holding hostage.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Thin Air (1)
star
6.83
87 votes

#16 - Thin Air (1)

Season 2 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/3/2002

Twelve years after Joanna Gold famously disappeared in broad daylight on Hampstead Heath, the dress she was wearing is found in a lock-up. The team begin the hunt for her killer.

Directors: Edward Bennett
Writer: Ed Whitmore
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Multistorey (2)
star
6.83
64 votes

#17 - Multistorey (2)

Season 3 - Episode 2 - Aired 9/15/2003

Boyd struggles with his past while continuing the investigation on a mass murderer who was also guilty of killing his close friend. Are the Gunman's claims of innocence true? As the team investigate it looks as if someone else may have been involved.

Directors: Robert Bierman
Writer: Ed Whitmore
Watch Now:Apple TV
Pieta (1)
star
6.83
82 votes

#18 - Pieta (1)

Season 7 - Episode 11 - Aired 5/19/2008

At the scene of a road accident, a DNA link is found that goes back to a horrific murder in the Bosnia / Serbia conflict, which Eve had to deal with when working on mass war graves.

Watch Now:Amazon
Subterraneans (1)
star
6.84
57 votes

#19 - Subterraneans (1)

Season 5 - Episode 5 - Aired 10/2/2005

A millionaire businessman is found dead, a year after he dissapeared. It appears that during the time he was missing he was being held prisoner. But why...

Writer: Ed Whitmore
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Special Relationship (2)
star
6.85
84 votes

#20 - Special Relationship (2)

Season 2 - Episode 6 - Aired 9/17/2002

Whle facing a surprise audit from the Home Office, DCI Boyd (Trevor Eve) and the team try to continue their investigation into the murder ... but as they go on with their inquiries at Whitehall, they quickly discover the atmosphere to be very dark and secretive.

Directors: David Thacker
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Breaking Glass (1)
star
6.85
114 votes

#21 - Breaking Glass (1)

Season 3 - Episode 5 - Aired 9/27/2003

A recovered memory therapist alerts the CCS to a care home regime of sexual abuse of young boys and a suspected murder. Her client who revealed all this in a therapy session goes missing and the team strongly suspect he has gone on the hunt for the man who abused him and murdered his friend.

Directors: Andy Hay
Writer: Simon Mirren
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Duty and Honour(1)
star
6.86
84 votes

#22 - Duty and Honour(1)

Season 7 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/28/2008

The accidental excavation of a human hand leads the cold case squad to the cover-up of a major incident.

Directors: Robert Bierman
Writer: Adrian Mead
Watch Now:Amazon
Deathwatch (2)
star
6.87
83 votes

#23 - Deathwatch (2)

Season 2 - Episode 4 - Aired 9/10/2002

The postliminary inquiries into Harry Newman's past and the identities of the possible twelve murder victims uncover a connection to the infamous trial and execution of a well known gangster.

Directors: Maurice Phillips
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
A Simple Sacrifice (1)
star
6.88
94 votes

#24 - A Simple Sacrifice (1)

Season 1 - Episode 7 - Aired 7/2/2001

Boyd and the team decide to reopen the 25 year old case of Annie Keel, a woman who was tried and convicted of a double homicide solely based upon her own confession. Boyd doubts the validity of the conviction, and decides to dig deeper to possibly discover what really happened. Why did Annie confess? Did she really commit murder, or was she covering for someone else?

Writer: Simon Mirren
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Magdalene 26 (1)
star
6.89
90 votes

#25 - Magdalene 26 (1)

Season 8 - Episode 1 - Aired 9/6/2009

After a women running naked along a country way is picked up there are two cases to solve. The first one is to find out how she got there, a complicated task because she suffers from memory loss. The second case goes back quite some years as her DNA was found in a strange cold case with two bodies and a sword.

Watch Now:Amazon