In Episode 1 of the series, Inspector Morse, who never quite finds romance, thinks that at last things will turn out differently. He meets the beautiful Anne Stavely, but it is a love not destined to be when Anne is found hanging from a beam under mysterious circumstances. Morse suspects murder and sets out to discover the truth with the help of Sergeant Lewis.

The mystery of Morse looks back on many of the classic moments in the series on location in Oxford, the city made famous by Morse, Lewis and a host of murderers.