first series, after which she is replaced by Paula McIntyre (Emma Handy) (Series 2–6). Dr. Ashley Vernon (Mark Penfold) (Series 1–5) is the police medical examiner. Dr. Liam Kerwin (Michael Smiley) (Series 6) replaces Ashley Vernon in the sixth and final series. Tim Eccles (Jethro Skinner) (Series 3–5) is the police's resident IT expert. Episodes Only the first two episodes of the first series, "The Mermaids Singing" and "Shadows Rising", the second episode of series four, "Torment", and the second episode of series six, "Falls the Shadow", are based on McDermid's books; the rest are original plots written by others. Series overview Series 1 (2002) Filming took place from 22 October 2001 to 14 February 2002 in various locations around Newcastle upon Tyne, Durham and Northumberland, including Bollyhope Quarry (Durham), Chopwell Woods (Gateshead) and Eshott Hall (Northumberland) which was used for the Vance residence. Series 2 (2004) The series was filmed in locations in and around Newcastle including the main location of the old Bank of England building in Pilgrim Street, Newcastle. Also used: Finchale Priory, Durham Cathedral, Calder's Brewery near the Newcastle Arena plus various temporary (daily) locations. Every episode of series two was the leader in its time slot. Series 3 (2005) Series 4 (2006) Hermione Norris does not return as D.C.I. Carol Jordan, having accepted the role of Ros Myers in Spooks. Simone Lahbib joins the cast as her replacement, D.I. Alex Fielding. Jordan is explained as having emigrated to South Africa. Series 5 (2007) Filming for this series took place between January 15 and April 20, 2007. Prayer of the Bone was filmed in and around Austin and La Grange, Texas. Series 6 (2008) Series six began filming in early 2008 and wrapped on 30 March. International airings The series has appeared in the United States on the cable channel BBC America, in Australia on the public channel ABC, and in New Zealand on TV 1. As of May 2014, the show is screening on British televisions on the channel ITV3. The show is currently available on the Hulu Streaming service in the U.S. It began running on Acorn TV in 2018. The show is also now available on the streaming service BritBox. Home releases Region 2 is distributed by Revelation Films, Region 1 by Koch Vision and Region 4 by Magna. In 2019, Via Vision Entertainment obtained the rights to the series in Australia, Region