Behind Closed Doors: Series 1-4

The complete BBC Radio 4 legal drama, starring Claire Rushbrook and Clare Corbett.

Behind Closed Doors is a courtroom drama with a difference - it centres around civil law, not criminal. In these nine plays, London barrister Rebecca Nyman takes on cases ranging from workplace harassment to the sensitive, secret trial of a terrorist and a morally complex ''right to die'' hearing.

In Series 1, Nyman represents a senior policewoman in a case of sexist bullying at work in ''One of the Lads'', while ''Tilting the Odds'' sees her helping an equine vet accused of serious professional misconduct. In ''Safe House'', a suspected terrorist has his movement and activities severely restricted by the security services - can Nyman clear his name so he can get his life back?

Series 2 features ''A Bad Night Out'', in which a man claiming wrongful arrest seeks police compensation; ''Excluded'', which sees a teenager facing permanent exclusion from school; and ''Catastrophic Injury'', in which a mother claims her baby''s cerebral palsy is due to medical negligence and is fighting the hospital for compensation.

In Series 3''s ''Contact'', a sperm donor is trying to get a court order to allow him to see ''his'' daughter, but Nyman''s client, the mother, wants him to keep his distance. In ''Section'', the barrister hopes to convince a tribunal that a patient who has spent seven years in a secure mental hospital is fit to be released. And in ''Protection'', Rebecca represents a man whose wife has been in a minimally conscious state for over three years - should she be allowed to die?

Series 4 includes ''Life Chances'', in which Emily has a history of anorexia but is refusing treatment. Should she be force fed? In ''Best Interests'', a divorced Charedi Jewish mother has come to the Family Courts to stop her ex-husband changing their children''s schools. ''More than Kissing'', sees The Court of Protection decide if an 18-year-old with learning difficulties should be allowed to have sex; and in ''Mediation'', Maud and Martin''s father has died and left his whole estate to a 22-year-old dog walker. Can they challenge the will? Finally, in ''The Balance of Probabilities'', a couple fight to get their baby daughter back following the death of their baby son.

Written by award-winning dramatist Clara Glynn, these compelling dramas provide an intriguing glimpse into the little-known world of civil litigation, with all its challenges, complexities and controversies.

Producer/director: David Ian Neville

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