Men on the Hill

This is a story of turbulent relationships within the micro-community of two families living cheek by jowl on a remote hill-top in open country. Their sensitive and often intimidating circumstances are reflective of a wider and confused regional disorder around them.

The English Lake District is in social and economic turmoil. Tourism is collapsing and with it many businesses and livelihoods. People are angry and agitating for restorative action from a range of lacklustre local authorities in denial. Local communities are in trauma, rent asunder by an incessant wave of mindless violence and vandalism which has polarised different social groups divided by antagonism and belligerence. Vigilante groups are forming. Vengeful reprisals are multiplying and the chaos remains as yet unchecked.

Hidden within this widespread rural anarchy, and manipulating the apparent unrest to their advantage, are criminals of a more sinister calibre. Running their covert operations behind the camouflage of a regional crime wave, they reach out to the big cities to the south hoping to turn high risk into handsome rewards. In so doing they invite interest from ruthless crime syndicates who don’t take too kindly to damaging interference from the sticks.

DCI David Lehrer is an experienced copper who has spent years campaigning against sophisticated narcotics networks, people traffickers, child abusers and outright brutal murderers. His career move to pastures new was supposed to be a deliberate step down on his path towards retirement. What better place to be than in his much loved Lake District with his much loved new wife, in a beautiful house overlooking Windermere, the mountains and Lakeland fells calling them to the great outdoors. Hitherto it had always been one of his favourite holiday locations, but now, well…just to be living there was something of a dream come true. He had longed to escape the dangerous intensity of it all, and finally he’d managed to pull it off – his very own great escape! If only he’d realised just what he was getting himself into…..