Heartbeat Books - The Constable Series
Constable at the Fair
As Constable Nick awaits news of his future, he reminisces about times gone by in Aidensfield and recalls the variety of fairs he has attended; mop fairs, country fairs, game fairs, fun fairs, horse fairs, Scarborough Fair and even a mock old-fashioned fayre have all formed part of the rich pageant of history on his patch.
The arrival of a noisy fun fair sparked off a hunt for a missing schoolgirl thought to have run away with a fairground worker; but her father had also vanished, and the discovery of a treasure trove and a long-dead body on the moors revived ancient memories of a mystery person going to Scarborough Fair. The Crampton mop fair was used as a cover for burglaries, the revival of St Aidan's Fair in Aidensfield created problems when the carefully planned advertisements were all removed, whilst a continuing worry was that the lovely Charlotte, a girl born on Monday and therefore fair of face, could not find romance.
Dealing with these dilemmas, and more, was all part of Constable Nick's duty as the village constable.
Constable at the Fair is by Robert Hale (May 2010); it is available for order from Amazon, or from your local bookshop, quoting the ISBN: 978-0-7090-9041-0.
Critical acclaim for previous Constable titles:
"Stories of a constable on his village beat in North Yorkshire. All very gentle and far, far removed from the hurly burly of modern day city policing."
Daily Telegraph"Rhea's real strengths are his sharp portraits of people. The best humour comes from the author's close understanding and affectionate portrayals of the character of Yorkshire country folk."
Northern Echo
Constable on the Hill
Nicholas Rhea's Constable books, from the very first (Constable on the Hill, now back in print after many years) to the most recent (see above), all have the flavour of the author's own experiences as a local bobby for a small Yorkshire village in the 1960s. As he explains:
"The concept of the Constable books arose because I wanted to write a book which showed that the police undertook much work which was not associated with crime or detective investigations. As I had served as a village constable in a delightful part of the North York Moors, it seemed logical to use that experience as a background to the stories, and to add a touch of humour which is always present in police work."
"The result was Constable on the Hill: The success of that book led to what has now become the Constable series which in turn inspired Heartbeat. I think Constable on the Hill is my favourite because it was the beginning of something rather special - and it was written while I was a serving policeman."
The book was a success, and many other Constable books followed it. One of their many admirers was the Head of Drama at Yorkshire Television. As his colleague, Carol Williams, explained in an interview:
"In the early 1980s, our then head of drama, David Cunliffe, was very keen on the series of Constable books written by Nicholas Rhea and bought the television rights from his agent. We held on to those rights for about ten years before being able to go ahead."It was not until 1992 that the first episode of Heartbeat was screened. The early series not only used the location and many of the major characters of Nicholas Rhea's books, they also drew on his storylines. As series follows series and Heartbeat continues to be popular around the world, the connection between the books and the drama works both ways: the TV series has given many of the characters a clear visual identity and the new Constable books are more strongly based on the characterisation of the TV series. Nicholas Rhea plays an active part in the storyline process and his advice on police procedure and Yorkshire life in the sixties is highly appreciated by the programme makers.
"These books... do for the police service in North Yorkshire what James Herriot did for the vets there... very relaxing, very readable"
Manchester Evening News"Recommended if it's laughter you're after"
Bolton Evening News"Richly entertaining"
Yorkshire Evening Post
Constable on the Hill was followed by:
- Constable on the Prowl (original edition 1980)
subsequently reissued in a Black Dagger edition; further reissue from Áccent Press. - Constable around the Village (original edition 1982)
reissued by Áccent Press. - Constable across the Moors (original edition 1982)
reissued by Áccent Press. - Constable in the Dale (original edition 1983)
reissued by Áccent Press. - Constable by the Sea (original edition 1985)
reissued by Áccent Press. - Constable along the Lane (original edition 1986)
reissued by Áccent Press. - Constable at the Double (1988)
- Constable in Disguise (original edition 1989)
reissued by Áccent Press. - Constable among the Heather (1990)
In this delightful collection of tales, PC Rhea's duties on the North Yorkshire moors are as varied and humorous as ever. When a farmer fits an ejector seat to his tractor, Constable Rhea is forced to cope with rumours of Roman soldiers racing their chariots across the moors. With mysterious moorland graves to uncover and the illicit romances of visitors to cover up, with motor accidents involving goats, peat bogs and his little police van, PC Rhea continues his fascinating and hilarious career.
Available as an unabridged Soundings audio edition (cassette) - Constable by the Stream (1991)
- Constable around the Green (1993)
This is another collection of stories from the constable whose work on the windswept moors of North Yorkshire has inspired the television series Heartbeat. We share the joys and humour of the work of the village bobby as he copes with a bizarre range of duties. We meet yet more Yorkshire characters, including Sergeant Blaketon's wife who won't let him watch the Cup Final on television, and a wealthy. socialite who stocked her handbag with freebies.
Constable around the Green (both the printed text and the audio book) was issued in two versions, the original edition and the Heartbeat TV tie-In edition. - Constable beneath the Trees (1994) - More about Constable beneath the Trees »
- Constable in Control (1994)
- Constable in the Shrubbery (1995)
- Constable versus Greengrass (1995) - More about Constable versus Greengrass »
- Constable about the Parish (1996) - More about Constable about the Parish »
- Constable at the Gate (1997) - More about Constable at the Gate »
- Constable at the Dam (1997) - More about Constable at the Dam »
- Constable over the Stile (1998) - More about Constable over the Stile »
- Constable under the Gooseberry Bush (1999)
- Constable in the Farmyard (1999)
- Constable around the Houses (2000)
There are problems with Greengrass's goat which loves butting motor vehicle headlights and even attacks the police constable's official transport, while Claude Jeremiah himself decides to establish the Greengrass School of Motoring, an ideal means of coping with egg deliveries. Aidensfield isn't free from crime, however. Geoffrey Cunningham reports the theft of his famous art collection of red-headed nudes. Meanwhile a burglar breaks into an isolated house and leaves something behind and a builder discovers a human skeleton under the property he is renovating.
Constable around the Houses is also available as an audio CD or cassette, read by Graham Roberts. - Constable along the Highway (2001)
Elderly Casper Netherton is advised to give up driving after knocking down his gatepost with his open-top Rolls. Resorting to using his wife's old bicycle, Casper soon finds himself being taken to court by a fuming magistrate from Middlesborough. PC Rhea has to deal with a growing number of motorists on the roads as the townies of the 1960s take their caravans to the country or go on day trips. Meanwhile he has to try to discover the cause of an accident black-spot outside Field House, home of attractive Helen Newcombe. And how will Ashfordly's new Welsh sergeant Craddock fit in, especially after it is discovered that he and his wife love ballroom dancing?
Available from Amazon in the original hardback edition, a Magna Large Print edition, on audio CD and audio cassette. - Constable over the Bridge
- Constable goes to Market (2002) - also available in a large print edition from Magna Large Print
- Constable Along the River-bank (2002) - read more about Constable Along the River-bank »
- Constable in the Wilderness (2003) - read more about Constable in the Wilderness »
- Constable around the Park (2004) - read more about Constable Around the Park »
Recent additions to the Constable series
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Constable Along the Trail (2005) - read more about Constable Along the Trail »
Constable in the Country (2005) - read more about Constable in the Country »
Constable on the Coast (2006) - read more about Constable on the Coast ».
Constable on View (2007) - read more about Constable on View »
Constable Beats the Bounds (2009) - read more about Constable Beats the Bounds »