Nature had not dealt kindly with Little Willie. In his stunted body, half the size of normal men, is packed all the emotions of others about him. The strange affection that grows between Willie and a woman criminal leads him to the half-world of robbery, violence and eventually death.

By The Book

Gerard Kennedy

Chuck Faulkner

Frank Taylor

Patricia Smith

Ted Hamilton

Terence Donovan

It's A Mans Life

We'll Get Him One Day

Yarra Central police battle a crime wave of thuggery, hold-ups and the theft of $20,000 worth of goods by a mystery gang. Investigations reveal the culprits as 'The Soldiers', a re-united former teenage gang whose members have just finished serving jail terms. Sen. Det. Banner's pregnant wife, Joy, dies during premature child-birth brought on after being terrorised by a member of the gang.

The Soldiers

Yarra Central police are confronted with a series of reports about a bad detective. Their investigations lead to an impostor, a former policeman, who is blackmailing a solid citizen caught in the office secretary trap, belting people around with unrestrained sadism, and leading two romantic lives.

Once A Cop

19-year-old Kay Dixon is attracted by the glamorous life of big-spending racketeer Max Foley, who tries to set up a floating cabaret. Kay finds herself in the ugly world of prostitution, exploitation and violence with no apparent way out. Police investigate Foley when a criminal associate of his is bashed.

The Big Spender

Three salesmen from a country town decide on a night out after attending a Melbourne convention. For two of the three, the night turns into a disaster when they become involved with a truck driver who is the apparent victim of a robbery and two girls who 'roll' unsuspecting males.

Night Out

A little Italian girl is missing. While investigating her disappearance, Yarra Central police discover a kidnapping, a burglary, an alcoholic mother, and an attempted suicide.

The Sunday Mother

A city night club serves as a front for vice and crime. As Yarra Central police investigate a number of seemingly unrelated matters, they uncover alarming facts about one of the district's most respected citizens.

Not Valentine's Day

Celebrating St. Patrick's Day with rather more enthusiasm than caution, the O'Connell family decides to start its own crime wave in the district, resulting in a sequence of events which causes a lot of hard work for the Yarra Central police.

It's A Great Day!

Pop singer John Noble, whose popularity has slumped, is too proud to take ordinary work. When he starts chasing easy money to maintain his lifestyle he becomes involved with drugs and the police of Yarra Central.

The Swinger

A deserted wife, Irene Kemp, successfully raises her daughter Thea by running a sly grog house, but when she becomes involved in robbery and blackmail the whole structure of her life is threatened.

The Puritan

An expert safe cracker comes out of prison to find his younger brother eager to follow in his footsteps. These two, plus a shifty billiards-room proprietor with a fondness for stolen property pose problems for Sen. Det. Banner.

Big Brother

A con-man is troubling the police of Yarra Central, but when the search for him begins, Sen. Det. Banner cannot foresee the serious consequences for an old man and his daughter.

The Angry Man

Det. Sgt. Vicker's son Jamie becomes caught in the activities of some demonstrators who attack a policeman. Jamie is innocent of complicity, but he is unwilling to inform about the offenders to his father. Jamie finds himself in a difficult position - between Vickers and his son lie the years that separate the generations and brought new attitudes and values. A group of car thieves operating in the area complicates matters for the police, in particular for Det. Peters.

Information For An Offence

A little girl fails to arrive at school one morning, a factory worker lies about his reasons for being late for work, and the Yarra Central police probe a case which may end in murder.

A Mug's Game

A down-and-out ex-test cricketer, whose days of glory are long gone, is given an opportunity to make a comeback. Police are concerned when his son is connected to a pornography racket.

The Legend

An Hungarian architect finds himself working as a quarry labourer after settling in Australia. An argument with his foreman sparks off a crisis in his life and a major emergency for the police of Yarra Central.

Not At Home

A neglected child is taken from a woman involved with payroll bandits. Their attempt to steal a firm's payroll uncovers a secret held by an employee of the company.

The Takings

Yarra Central police are faced with unexpected obstacles when they investigate a fatal hit-and-run accident.

The Protest

A merchant seaman jumps ship and becomes the only witness to a 'smash-and-grab' raid. Because of personal problems he refuses to identify the criminals, who then carry out other violent crimes.

A Stitch In Time

Investigating an apparently routine case of child neglect, WPC Margaret Stewart stumbles into the nightmare world of schizophrenic Janie Mitchell. Every ounce of Margaret's training, human understanding and bravery is called upon in her desperate struggle to save the life of a baby that Janie has abducted.

Janie and Janie

A released prisoner with a violent criminal record has two scores to settle, one with his unfaithful wife and the other with Sen. Det. Banner.

The Threat

An interstate gang launches a campaign of terror in an attempt to takeover local crime. Kenny Kent, a professional burglar, stands up to them alone, and in so doing he unwittingly gives the police their chance to smash the gang.

Takeover

When detectives first come across the mysterious Faith Cameron, they suspect she is a call girl, then it seems she could be passing dud cheques. But what is she really up to? Police then link Faith to a jewel thief who switched a paste reproduction for an expensive ring before crashing his getaway car.

The Girlfriend

The death of a call girl helps Yarra Central police in the investigation of a robbery apparently committed by the trusted employee of a finance company.

First Offender

Lesley Fisher is a hardened criminal who specialises in planning robberies, and has returned to Melbourne from Adelaide with a respectable front. With his two accomplices he plans a robbery being careful not to be involved in its execution. He escapes capture by informing on his two henchmen, and detectives fail to find any hard evidence against the shrewd gang leader.

When Dave Smyth leaves the wharves to join the police force, his father accuses him of becoming a 'lackey of the capitalist classes'. Dave's loyalties are soon put to the test, and the resulting conflict brings trouble for himself and his colleagues at Yarra Central.

The wayward son of a wealthy man is told that he will have to make his own way in the world. He responds by going into business as a thief. Executing a warehouse robbery, he seems to have been successful until he has to dispose of the goods.

Plumage

Policewoman Margaret Stewart tries to help a young woman who is emotionally disturbed as a result of being criminally assaulted by a prowler, and has received no understanding from her boyfriend.

The Victim

Ricky Peel escapes from jail and, with the help of some criminal associates, threatens a private detective. Sen. Det. Banner is reunited with a girl he once loved who has returned to Melbourne.

The Price

A man who has publicly criticised the Yarra Central police is charged with an offence. He then alleges that one of the detectives has bribed a key witness in the case.

Farewell Little Chicago

Sgt. Macleod is offered a well paid job back in Scotland. He is considering the offer when Vickers asks him to stand in for a bank manager in a police trap for a group of vicious bank robbers.

Decoy

Life for Vic Tomasetti is hard, frustrating and lightened only by the love of his retarded daughter, Lisa, a girl totally misunderstood by her stepmother and others. Her testimony about the shooting of a policeman is not believed due to the contrary evidence given by adults.

It's The Little Things

Rod Irving, just released from prison, is confronted by Ike Vaughan, the criminal who helped put him there. Rod wants to go straight, but Vaughan tries to involve him in crime, and has already caused his wife Belle to become a drug addict.

The Losers

Vince Perry thinks his jokes are funny, but he cannot see that they often cause a great deal of trouble and distress. Yarra Central police are not amused when they find he has returned to the area.

The Comedian

Tim Gardner has had all the advantages; rich parents, good school, the lot. But he has chosen a life of crime. His young wife, Meg, does not suspect him but things soon get complicated when a former accomplice targets Gardner's operations.

The Colonel's Boy

An assault between two girls on a street leads to the Yarra Central police unravelling a tangled web when a middle-aged businessman becomes involved with a girl younger than his own daughter.

The Web

Two young baby-sitters throw a party in a rich client's home. They strike trouble, but in doing so they give the Yarra Central police a new line of inquiry into a puzzling series of jewel thefts.

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A police drama based on the fictional Melbourne suburb of Yarra Central.

By The Book

Seasons8

Season 1 Episodes37

Cast6

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