she’s A Workaholic Lawyer With A Conscience And A Messy Personal Life. As A Crown Prosecutor, Helen West Deals With Domestic Abuse, Sexual Molestation, And Murder. Driven By A Strong Sense Of Justice And Compassion, She Pursues Cases Even When Her Boss Insists She Drop Them And Goes Out Of Her Way To Offer Victims A Helping Hand. Although She’s Determined To Right The Wrongs In Others’ Lives, Her Own Personal Affairs Could Use Some Work, Particularly Her Relationship With Handsome Policeman Geoffrey Bailey (conor Mullen, reckless, Holby City).

amanda Burton (the Commander, Silent Witness) Stars In Three Suspenseful, Sophisticated Feature-length Dramas Based On The Acclaimed Novels By Former Crown Prosecutor Frances Fyfield.

also Starring Nicholas Woodeson (rome), Anthony Howell (foyle’s War), Dermot Crowley (bleak House), And Rita Tushingham (the Knack, Dr. Zhivago).

dvd Features Include Biographies Of Star Amanda Burton And Author Frances Fyfield.

Steely-eyed Amanda Burton, star of Silent Witness and The Commander, also takes the lead in Helen West as a prosecuting attorney juggling emotionally draining cases and a tension-filled relationship with policeman Geoffrey Bailey (Conor Mullen, Island at War). Though it’s easy to see why this series only ran for three roughly 90-minute episodes--West lacks the quirks or the private crises that make for a distinctive character--it’s a shame these intriguingly plotted stories didn’t strike more of a nerve. Each episode skips lightly through a variety of seemingly incidental characters, gradually drawing the threads together into a compelling climactic knot. In the first, Deep Sleep, West finds the presence of chloroform in a dead woman’s bloodstream reason enough to buck her superior’s instruction to lay the case to rest--particularly since the woman’s husband is a pharmacist. Just as significant as the murder is the custody struggle between the pharmacist’s assistant and a hot-tempered cop. Shadow Play follows a man seemingly cursed by his creepy appearance, West’s promiscuous young clerk Rose, missing files at the law office, and Bailey’s flirtation with another woman; in fact, it’s not until over an hour into the episode that it’s even clear what mystery is being solved. Yet, the well-written and well-acted story is completely engaging. The final episode, A Clear Conscience, weaves in a buried knife, an eccentric young girl, a murdered boxer, domestic abuse, and the possible collapse of West and Bailey’s relationship. Again, the murder almost seems like a subplot until the script skillfully pulls everything together in the end. The excellent supporting cast includes Martin Freeman (the British version of The Office) and Nicholas Woodeson (Rome). Based on the novels of practicing attorney Frances Fyfield. --Bret Fetzer