Silk - Season 1 (2011)

With female Q.Cs or 'silks' in a tiny minority, barrister Martha Costello of the Shoe Lane chambers, is anxious to join that elite number by progressing through the courts. Following a successful acquittal in a murder trial, she is given two cases to defend at short notice--One is Mercedes Cordoba, a pregnant drugs mule for whom she pleads for mercy, based on Mercedes' poverty-stricken background. However, smooth fellow barrister Clive Reader, representing Mercedes's co-defendant, points to her previous, of which Martha was unaware, and she is sent down--though she is...

Martha's day begins badly when she discovers that she is pregnant and gets worse when she finds that scheming Billy has her down to defend Alan Bradley,accused of raping ex-girlfriend Annie with Reader - who has just bedded Niamh,his junior - prosecuting. In court Reader plays to the gallery,Annie appears fragile and Bradley accuses Martha of being too soft on her. After she has warned Niamh about Reader's bed-hopping the junior gives her some information which tips the case in her favour though she still wonders who was telling the truth. Niamh gets bail for Gary ...

Martha defends homeless teen-aged rent boy Mark Draper,charged with indecency in a public lavatory with two others,one of whom is Reader's client. Niamh and Nick separately represent a warring couple charged with owning dangerous dogs. Bumbling Nick wins his case by a fluke whilst the more competent Niamh loses. Reader nonetheless ensures she gets the next brief but Nick has to represent the third defendant in the indecency charge when his barrister falls ill. Thanks to information from Mark's solicitor Reader's client is exposed as a party to entrapment by the police...