Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

Cast: David Tennant, Olivia Coleman, Andrew Buchan, Jodie Whittaker, Arthur Darvill, Simone McAullay, Peter De Jersey, Tanya Franks, Jonathon Bailey, Vicky McClure, Charlotte Beaumont, Joe Simms, Carolyn Pickles, Pauline Quirke.

The newspapers and media have hounded one man to his death and now they appear to want to find the next scapegoat, that man unfortunately seems to be the detective in charge of the case, Alec Hardy. For the people of Broadchurch, confidence in their police has hit rock bottom and for Alec Hardy his life seems to be spiraling downwards as his health issues are becoming too obvious for him to be an effective investigator.

The sixth episode of Broadchurch starts with the detective battling against dreams and demons as four men with shaky lives are seen side by side at the place where the young lad was found. Of course it is a dream but it shows her perilously close to the edge of his own sanity Hardy is. The case is crippling him mentally and physically and it is no wonder when the town’s people are becoming more adept at keeping secrets from him and those with seemingly nothing to hide are becoming more and more suspicious.

With the Latimers trying to get their family unit back together, the mother has a meeting with the woman who lost her daughter in the town where Hardy was before and no punches were pulled on her assessment of the way Hardy handled the case.
Whereas she has not found the energy to get back to any type of routine and who can blame her, Beth Latimer, portrayed by the superb Jodie Whittaker, on the other hand has found some much needed courage and is a testament to life and the writing of the team behind this excellent series that they have shown this happen.

Two great confrontations that have been simmering away in the back ground for a few weeks is the animosity that has built up between Hardy and the Reverend Paul Coates, a performance by Arthur Darvill that just oozed distinction and that between local news editor Carolyn Pickles’ character Maggie Radcliffe and the deeply unsettling Susan Wright, portrayed by the brilliant Pauline Quirke. The tension between these four people threatens to blow everything viewers know about the series out of the water and its focus and attention is riveting.

The penultimate episode of Broadchurch is on next Monday.

Ian D. Hall