Based on the eighth novel in Ann Cleeves' DCI Stanhope series, The Seagull sees Vera (Brenda Blethyn) opening up a cold case when a skeleton is discovered buried in Whitley Bay. Robbie Marshburn was a notorious criminal who went missing over 20 years ago never to be seen again.

But this isn't a typical case for Vera as Robbie, and those connected to him, were friends of her father. And to make matters worse, Robbie's remains are found underneath the burnt-out site of the infamous nightclub where they all used to meet. But, just as Robbie's remains are identified, the team come across another murder nearby. Vera investigates the possibility of the victim's connections to a local crime family and whether this led to the brutal killing. Elaine and Leonard Sidden (Claire Higgins and Michael Feast) ran The Seagull in its heyday and Vera learns that they haven't quite severed ties with the past as their son Alec (Daniel Ryan) is now developing the site where the burnt-out nightclub stands.

In a case that's often too close to home, Vera must uncover a web of secrets and corruption to understand the circumstances that led to both murders.

Successful business-woman Lisa Varsey throws a lavish boat party for her family and friends on the River Tyne. But it goes horribly wrong when her sister Dani is found dead in the water. Lisa has an empire of beauty salons in Newcastle and a caring family in husband, Ross, and sister Sadie. At first the family believe that Dani's death was an accident but DCI Vera Stanhope and pathologist Malcolm Donahue (Paul Kaye) know that the forensics point to murder.

Vera and the team alight on concerning rumours that Dani could have been in an abusive relationship and questions whether this could have led to her death. But, the investigation takes a turn when evidence points to the fact that something was rotten in another area of Dani's life. Vera begins to believe that Dani was going to expose an unpalatable truth. Vera must unpick the tightly-woven threads that hold the family together to discover who killed an innocent woman.

Vera is confronted with the tragic scene of a teenage boy's murder. His body is found in a shipyard in the sleepy coastal town of Peyton-by-the-Sea. As he isn't recognised locally, it's not immediately apparent who he is. Eventually, Missing Persons records reveal that troubled Caden Lennon had absconded from the care of his support worker six weeks previously.

With few leads thrown up by the Newcastle estate where Caden came from, Vera looks to the Peyton locals to throw some light on the investigation. Beneath the quaint facade she discovers that there is a growing drugs problem. But, with local dealer Tony Briggs now apparently going straight, it's not clear why. Vera begins to question whether Caden's connections to Newcastle and Peyton run deeper, and whether the lack of leads points to a ring of silence with darker forces at play. Vera must uncover the missing link to find Caden's ruthless killer.

DCI Vera Stanhope investigates the murder of a trainee forensic psychologist found dead on a Northumberland landfill site.