A prison ship on its way to a remote island prison runs aground on rocks and sinks. Mixed survivors of cons and prison guards struggle ashore, only to discover to their horror that another survivor got there first - the murderous & psychotic Leo Rook. Stranded, with no means of escape or call for help, the survivors must face a night of terror as they struggle to survive.

Set during the 1960s in the fictional North Yorkshire village of Aidensfield, this enduringly popular series interweaves crime and medical storylines.