The Scold's Bridle, a medieval device of repression, used to silence nagging women. When Detective Sgt. Cooper is called to the scene of the death of Mathilda Gillespie, although bizarre in a bath of blood wearing the Scold' Bridle, it seems like a simple, open and shut case of suicide. However, after speaking with Dr. Sarah Blakeney, Mathilda's physician, Cooper realizes that this is a murder investigation as Mathilda suffered from Arthritis. As Cooper investigates further into the life and background of Mathilda he discovers that she was almost universally hated. The only exceptions to this appear to be Dr. Blakeney and her husband Jack who painted a portrait of Mathilda wearing the Scold's Bridle. The case takes many weird twists and many dark secrets, past and present, are exposed as Cooper tenaciously attempts to discover the murderer. Written by Mark Smith <msmith@osi.co.uk>
Having read the book and seen the TV series several times I'm still amazed as to how close to the characters in the book this adaptation gets. Miranda Richardson as the unbridled (pardon the pun) and headstrong GP and Trudie Styler (Sting's wife I've been told) as the troubled Joanna are the two actors and characters that will stay with me for a while, but this is an all around top notch cast they're all brilliant.