The show begins with a narration by author Alan Conway (Conleth Hill). Conway writes about the death of Sir Magnus Pye (Lorcan Cranitch) before suddenly changing his mind. He describes an English village as the most dangerous place. All citizens of Saxy on Avon wish Sir Magnus dead for one reason or another. He questions who is responsible for the fatal blow. Was it his gardener, Brent (Ian Lloyd Anderson) who was told by Sir Magnus he was useless? Brent asks detective Atticus Pund (Tim McMullan) if he is accusing him of cutting Sir Magnus’s head off to avoid being fired.

Allan suggests Sir Magnus’ death may be linked to a tragedy that took place three years prior at the lake. Pund asks Robert Blakiston (Harry Lawtey) if he blamed Sir Magnus for the tragedy. He asks Pund if he admitted to accusing him would he point the finger at him. Conway is satisfied with his work so far.

Conway addresses the death of Mary Blakiston (Karen Westwood) who was found at the bottom of a staircase in Sir Magnus’ home. It is questionable if Mary’s husband, Matthew Blakiston (David Herlihy) is responsible for Sir Magnus’s death. After all, Matthew blamed him for taking her away. There is also Sir Magnus’s sister, Clarissa Pye (Pippa Haywood) who held a grudge against her brother because he inherited Pye Hall. Conway describes Sir Magnus’s marriage as being worse than his own. One time, Lady Francis Pye (Dorothy Atkinson) threatened him with a knife.

Once Conway is satisfied, he delves deeper into what happed the night Sir Magnus died. He was alone at Pye Hall in Saxby on Avon. The author describes the lake as dark as death. Walking toward the entrance door, Sir Magnus suggests an unidentified individual leave. Instead, the individual picks up a sword. When he turns, the individual whacks him, causing blood to splatter everywhere. Conway sits back, looking satisfied with his work.

Pund is reading a newspaper when James Fraser (Matthew Beard) delivers his tea. As he prepares to leave, Pund asks if he has seen a newspaper article. James acknowledges he saw the article about Lady Mountbatten who had her vehicle stolen in Hyde Park. Pund assures him he wasn’t referring to that particular article. Getting a closer look, James sees an article about the murder of a wealthy landowner, Sir Magnus Pye. While they don’t know Sir Magnus, Pund recalls he’s from the same village as Joy Sanderling (Nia Deacon).  He reminds James about the death of Joy’s fiance’s mother, Mary who died at Pye Hall as well. Mary was Sir Magnus’s housekeeper. James describes the murder as “quite a coincidence.

Initially, Pund shrugged off the rumors of Robert killing his mother, Mary. Now, he is reconsidering his decision, saying, “This is murder and murder can be solved.”

James drives Pund to Saxby on Avon. During the ride, Pund explains how he believes everything is a pattern, not a coincidence. He wrote about the theory in his book, “The Landscape of Criminal Investigation.” When James expresses his excitement about reading the book, Pund says you may need to write it. James appears confused by the comment. Susan Ryeland (Lesley Manville) passes in front of them in her red convertible sports car. Agitated, she calls a highway worker over to ask what is going on. He assures her the red light works, just in time for it to turn green.

Susan pulls into the driveway of Katie Williams’ house. Katie (Claire Rushbrook) shows her to the guestroom before leaving to brew some tea. Katie tells Susan about her managerial promotion. Susan asks if she enjoys it. She admits it keeps her busy before reminding her how they were inseparable as children. Susan apologizes for not staying in touch, utilizing her career and Conway’s death as an excuse. Katie reminds her of how she didn’t like Conway. She calls him a “pain in the arse.” Susan explains the purpose of her visit, which is to search for the last chapter of Conway’s “Magpie Murders.” She believes without it their company may have to shutter its doors.

Susan meets with Sajid Khan (Sanjeev Kohli) to discuss the day he found Conway. Sajid was Conway’s solicitor when he acquired Abbey Grange and divorced his wife, Melissa. Conway called him to the house to make a new will. He denies knowing about his cancer diagnosis. Conway promised to make him a character in “Magpie Murders,” which wasn’t surprising to Susan since she read to the manuscript. He denies receiving a copy of the manuscript. She tries to convince him to give her access to Abbey Grange. He suggests she try Conway’s partner, James Taylor (Matthew Beard) to see if he has a key.

Pund and James arrive at Pye Hall, where they run into detective Chubb (Daniel Mays). He is intrigued with how Pund was able to solve a murder they worked on before. He asks what brings him to Pye Hall. Pund tells him about Mary. Chubb calls her death an “unfortunate accident.” Pund suggests there may be more to her death than they think. Chubb isn’t having it as it gives an outline of what occurred. She accidentally fell down the steps while vacuuming. When Pund asks about Sir Magnus’ murder, Chubb invites him inside. Brent (Lloyd Anderson) stops working to watch them from the lawn.

Chubb explains how Sir Magnus was decapitated, last night at about 9pm. The suspect utilized a sword from a soldier monument to murder Sir Magnus. Pund asks Chubb would he go back to Mary’s death, at which time Sir Magnus was away with his wife, Henrietta. As Chubb tells Pund what happened when Sir Magnus and Henrietta arrived home, they appear on the screen. When they walk through the door, Sir Magnus says I need a drink. They discover their collection of antiques from Rome is missing. Chubb says Pye Hall was burglarized. Henrietta questions how the burglars gained access to the house. He doesn’t know but suggests Mary should have been there. Snarky, she reminds him of saying they should have returned home. He asks where Brent was before calling him “bloody useless.”

Pund asks Chubb what the burglars took. He says, “A collection of Roman silver coins and jewelry.” He tells him it was a family heirloom.” Pund says Sir Magnus didn’t attend Mary’s funeral. James suggests they weren’t close. Chubb interjects, explaining how Sir Magnus was fond of her and her sons. He stops talking to watch Pund walk around the room as if he is acting out the murder. When he asks James what Pund is doing, he says, “What he does.” Pund believes Sir Magnus knew his killer. Shocked, Chubb questions how he figured it out. The position of the armor and door prove Sir Magnus was escorting someone out of the house when he was attacked.

Chubb leads them to what looks like Sir Magnus’s study, where he entertained someone the night before he was killed. Lady Francis discovered Sir Magnus’s body when she returned home at 10:45. The safe is filled with money, bonds, and certificates. Chubb describes it as looking like nothing was stolen. Pund finds a blank piece of paper lying in the fireplace. He points out that the paper has an interesting stain on it. The stain may be coffee or blood. Chubb gives him a letter that reads, “You won’t get away with it, the village was here before you and it will be here after you’ve gone. Think again if you want to live here, think again if you want to live.” The letter is typed and unsigned while the envelope is written. Pund hands the letter to a stunned Chubb.

Chubb asks Pund if he would like to talk to Lady Francis who he describes as “not the grieving widow.”

Frederick Pye (Nathan Clarke) asks Francis when he will return to school. She says after Sir Magnus’ funeral. Pouting, he reminds her about not being fond of funerals. She says nobody likes them when Chubb, Pund, and James enter the room. He asks if they can speak with her. She reminds him they have spoken before. When the phone rings, she asks Frederick to tell whoever it is she is unwell. Rolling his eyes, he does as she bids. She complains about the phone not working upstairs. Pund asks her to tell him what happened last night. She says I was in London. He reminds her about being away when Mary died. Snarky, she says Mary’s death was not a murder.

He describes their deaths as being “violent” and in the same home. He questions if she ever thought there was a connection. She denies the thought ever crossed her mind. He asks her about Mary and Sir Magnus’ relationship. She describes Mary as being “obsessed” with Sir Magnus.

Susan visits James to talk about Conway. He tells her about Conway talking about her, not in a nice way. Conway described Susan as the “editor who stood between him and his genius.” Flamboyant, James explains how Conway paid him 100 quid an hour for his time. Conway was still married to Melissa when they started meeting. Susan assumes Conway left his estate to James. She tells him Sajid told her about Conway contemplating changing his will. He questions if she believes he pushed Conway to his death to keep him from signing a new will. He offers to show her the tower. She assumes he doesn’t like living at Abbey Grange. He swears it will go on the market as soon as it is his.

She asks who lives in the large estate next door. He says the owner is a property developer who Conway detested. Susan looks over the tower down below, where Sajid discovered Conway’s body. James says Conway likes the view from the tower. She explains how the wall is low. Approaching her, he says too low. As she turns, they bump into each other. He grabs her shoulders to steady her. He describes her as lucky because he was there. Conway chose him to be Pund’s “thick assistant,” James Fraser. She tells him about the missing chapter of the “Magpie Murders,” which claims to know nothing about.

He gives her the password to Conway’s computer. He opens the drawers, where Conway stored his notebooks to find them empty. His computer is also empty. James suggests her speaking with Conway’s sister, Claire Jenkins (Pippa Haywood) who helped him with his manuscripts. He tells them about their falling out. As Susan prepares to pull out of the driveway, something catches her eye. She sees what looks like tire tracks while two magpies sit in the tree above. Pund is staring out the window at her.

Francis describes Sir Magnus’s behavior toward the servants as “scandalous.” Chubb has is their marriage was a happy one. She doesn’t think happiness and marriage belong in the same sentence. Pund asks about the safe. She believes he opened it. James asks who else has the combination to the safe. She says no one. Chubb hands her the letter they found on Sir Magnus’s desk. She connects the letter to Dingle Dell, a meadow that was going to be utilized for the new construction of houses. The villagers were not happy with his plans. She claims to have received several similar letters. He asks if she knows anyone who would write the letters. She suggests he speak with Clarissa Pye (Pippa Haywood).

Pund and James arrive at Clarissa’s house. She describes Dingle Dell as being a nature area for birds, butterflies, and wildflowers. She claims to have told Sir Magnus his plan to utilize Dingle Dell for new construction would be an “act of vandalism.” She and Sir Magnus were twins. Since he was born five minutes before her, the family estate was awarded to him.

Susan meets Reverend Osborne (Chukwuma Omambala) while walking in a meadow. She inquires if the land has a name. He doesn’t think so. She visits Claire to discuss the missing chapter of the manuscript. Susan asks if she saw the manuscript for “Magpie Murders”. She denies ever seeing it. Susan tells her about Clarissa Pye, which is named after her. She isn’t surprised because Conway was cruel. Susan describes the novel as “humorous.” She assures her Conway didn’t mean anything by it. Claire believes Conway committed suicide because he had cancer like Pund. She tells Susan Conway never wanted to write about Pund. His money and success drove him made.

As Susan leaves Claire’s, Detective Locke (Daniel Mays) pulls up. He demands to know what she is doing there. When he threatens her with obstruction charges, snarky, she asks if he is investigating Conway’s death. He assures her that isn’t what he said. She tells him about the missing chapter, which could damage their company. He admits his visit is related to Claire’s previous job at Ipswich Constabulary in human resources. He admits to meeting Conway on another occasion. She believes Detective Chubb was based on him. Irate, he orders to find her lost chapter and stay out of his way.

Susan tells Andreas Pataki (Alexandros Logothetis) about Locke’s aggressive behavior toward her. She thinks his anger has something to do with Chubb. She repeats what Claire said about Conway being unhappy with his work. He reminds her that Pund made him wealthy. Katie calls Susan to dinner. Sajid asks Andreas if Susan knows. He denies her knowing anything. As he stuffs some documents in an envelope, he says Conway’s death was the perfect time for him. He describes himself as lucky.

James delivers Pund a drink to his table. He complains a bit about his room. Pund questions if he agreed to help Joy could it have saved Sir Magnus. He explains three crimes that took place at Pye Hall. Mary and Sir Magnus’s deaths, and burglary. He is amazed at how evil finds its way into an English village.

Susan and Katie have dinner. Katie says Conway’s students weren’t fond of him. She asks about her relationship with Andreas.  She denies them being together because they live apart before telling her about his plan to move back to Crete. Katie is surprised. She accuses Susan of refusing to talk about herself. Susan’s dad wants to see her. Katie says he is unwell. Susan refuses to talk about it.

Susan imagines Pund visiting her while she is in bed. She orders him to go away. He tells her there are three possibilities to consider. Conway may have slipped, but what about his missing notebooks and files. He doesn’t believe Conway would commit suicide by jumping off the tower when he had access to pills and alcohol. She informs him about the letter, which he suggests rereading. He reminds her of how Conway’s acquaintances felt about him. Before disappearing, he suggests she consider the third possibility, murder. Susan has a flashback of what Pund told her about the three possibilities on her ride home. She replays all her past conversations through her mind as she drives back to London.

Susan arrives at her company, where she meets with Charles Clover (Michael Maloney). She immediately tells him Conway was murdered. They read Conway’s suicide note together. He believes the note is because it is over, but she disagrees. She says he didn’t need to commit suicide because he was already dead. She believes someone took the last chapter because he held a revealing secret. She says, “The answer is in the book,” as the episode comes to an end.

 

Magpie Murders Review

The constant flashbacks and scene changes make this a tiresome show to watch. I found myself continuously pushing replay to work my way through the episode. I believe this is just a way to confuse viewers, but I may be wrong.

Many of the lines are repeated and events rehashed when switching from the real world to the book. I feel a bit stressed out after spending several hours recapping a 45-minute show, ridiculous.

The show deserves a 6. Get more Magpie Murders here. Support the ReelMockery team by clicking here.