The time has come. We’ve arrived at the finale, of this third series of the coastal whodunnit, and of the wider phenomenon of ‘Broadchurch’ in general.
Tonight at 10pm, we’ll know who attacked Trish Winterman at her best friend’s birthday party, and we might have learned the other mysteries still clouding the scenic spot.
We still have these questions that need answering in the final episode, but Detectives Alec Hardy and Ellie Miller had a breakthrough in the final moments of the penultimate episode - another sock found in the grounds of Axehampton House, containing the DNA of one of their suspects yet to be revealed to us. It’s just as well - DI Hardy is becoming ever more Taggart-like in his frustration at not solving the case at hand, as well as dealing with the oafs making his daughter’s life a misery.
So, in the absence of the DNA being revealed, what other clues do we have as to the crime’s culprit? Well...
Ian Winterman
Reasons for thinking:
He’s admitted to spying on his wife via her computer.
He also clearly still has complicated feelings for Trish.
Was washing his dirty laundry frantically. Had a row with her on the night in question, before claiming he blacked out.
Reasons against:
Precisely all of the above.
He’s got secrets, which would make him perfectly suspicious fodder. But it all seems a bit obvious, and now he’s fessed up to most of it.
Finally, he was drinking tequila that night, not the vodka which Trish said she could smell.
Jim Atwood
Reasons for thinking:
Everything Detective Inspector Hardy threw at him - the same brand of condoms as the attacker used, bought on the night of the party, used with a waitress who left him frustrated, possibly on the prowl.
He admitted Trish turned him down at that point, despite their liaison earlier that day.
Might have been angered if Trish thought better of it, and rejected him.
The silly taxi driver saw him with Trish on the night of the party.
Has got fishing stuff in his garage.
Has connections with the previous attacks - admitted he remembered the pretty lady with the red Renault Clio. His wife Cath has admitted she was away on all the relevant dates.
Reasons against:
Again, it’s all a bit obvious now the police has all that against him. We’ll ignore the line “If I wanted to have sex with Trish, I could,” but he clearly wants the police to believe he doesn’t need to force a woman into his arms. What a gent.
Ed Burnett
Reasons for thinking:
Showed he was capable of great rage and sudden violence in his treatment of Jim in the garage.
Admitted a longtime secret love for Trish, backed up by sending the flowers and taking hundreds of secret photographs of her.
He was desperate to find out how she is, following her attack.
We don’t know what happened to his first wife, except that he assaulted her.
Had a fight with Jim Atwood at the party, so we know he’s capable of more conflict than he appears.
He explained away the mud and the grass stains on his party clothes, but what about the twine in his jacket pocket?
Reasons against:
Doesn’t drink, so no vodka breath.
Seems very upset about the whole thing.
Has given a DNA swab and nothing’s come back - yet, unless his is the remaining sock.
Taxi driver Clive Lucas
Reasons for thinking:
A cheating bad ‘un.
Went on a date with Trish before, “sort of”, before she rejected him.
Went off track on the night of the party, and lied about his radio not working.
Said he picked up a strange man, but another cabbie reported seeing his car in the environs, with no one in it.
Implicated in the stash of online porn that’s causing everyone such distress in the town, especially a laptop-bashing Elle Miller.
Has Trish’s keys. Repeat. HAS TRISH’S KEYS!
Reasons against:
So many clues must surely make him our primary red herring.
He took pleasure in telling Jim he’d seen him with Trish. Would he have done this if he were the culprit?
Rope and twine supplier, Leo
Reasons for thinking:
Told his girlfriend to lie about his alibi that night.
Has easy access to exactly the sort of stuff used to tie up Trish.
He knows the Wintermans through his connection to Ian.
Has computer knowledge that we need to learn more about.
Was strangely cocky when answering police questions. What does he know?
Reasons against:
Seen playing football wearing the socks of the type found by the posh gentry up at Axehampton. So, possibly too obvious.
Has explained the construction of a false alibi, by admitting he was actually at the party. This obviously raises more questions, but he has apologised for lying, so that’s all right, then.
Convicted sex offender Aaron Mayford
Reasons for thinking:
Lied about the mackerel in his freezer.
Done it before, convinced he was innocent then, but happy to play games with the police, especially the female officers.
“Went fishing” on the night in question, so more twine and stuff in his man-cave too.
Reasons for not:
He wasn’t at the party.
He’s not one of the locals, so it would be a let-down if he were Trish’s attacker.
He’s kind of disappeared from their inquiries. For now?
Who do you think it will turn out to be? Let us know by tweeting to @FrostReporter, and I’ll be sure to include in our round-up next week.
‘Broadchurch’ Series 3 concludes tonight Monday at 9pm on ITV.