Sidney Chambers (James Norton) goes for a run with Dickens. It becomes clear he is trying desperately to run off his frustrations. Leonard Finch (Al Weaver) heads into town with Hilary Franklin (Emily Bevan). Hilary wants to surprise Leonard with a gift, so they stop at the post office. Wendy Parker (Eve Ponsonby) greets the couple. She hangs a poster on the door, before heading behind the counter. A masked gunman storms the post office and holds everyone at gunpoint. Leonard pleads with the gunman to remain calm, while explaining that Wendy has a bad heart. The gunman smacks Leonard across the face. Then, the gunman aims the gun at Leonard and we heard it fire. Sidney returns home and plays with Grace, before Amanda (Morven Christie) and Mrs. Maguire (Tessa Peake-Jones) interrupt.

Amanda reveals she has found a job. Then, Maguire scolds Sidney for dropping sweat all over the floor. After Amanda leaves, Sidney receives a phone call about the robbery. Sidney, Geordie (Robson Green), and Phil (Lorne MacFadyen) rendezvous at the post office. They attempt to question Leonard, while simultaneously searching for evidence. Wendy’s father, Cyril (Charles Dale), enters and asks about his daughter’s heart. Wendy and Hilary make it clear that Leonard behaved heroically. Back at the station, Leonard speaks about his thoughts when the gun was fired into the ceiling, as he looks as pictures of potential suspects. Cyril tells the detectives how money is loaded into the banks. He suggests the till would’ve contained 20 pounds. Leonard spots a man wearing the same outfit as the robber. Geordie identifies the man as Walter Dunn.

After delving into the man’s criminal history, Geordie, Phil and others prepare to storm his garage. They run across Martha Bennett (Carlyss Peer) and manage to keep her quiet. Then, they come across Frank Camber (Tommy McDonnell), who points them upstairs. They proceed upstairs and find Walter sitting in a chair facing the window. His hand drops to his side and Phil fires his gun in the man’s direction. Sidney rushes inside and learns that Walter was already dead. Sidney chats with Martha, who is playing with a figurine of the Eiffel Tower. She admits she has never been to Paris or anywhere for that matter. Meanwhile, Amanda prepares the kitchen table. She opens the door to Guy Hopkins (Tom Austen). Phil tells Geordie about his upcoming interview for the sergeant’s job. Geordie insists he isn’t ready and his behavior earlier proved it.

Geordie pieces together the evidence and suggests Walter was likely dead for 12 hours before the robbery. He also finds that Walter’s gun has gone missing. Guy and Amanda discuss their future. She admits she would like Guy to see Grace as much as he likes. He tells her that he’ll book the guest house and that she shouldn’t be required to do so. Geordie speaks with Walter’s workers. He learns that the couple were at the garage for 3 hours and never checked on their boss. Martha explains that Walter liked to drink and would become angry when bothered. Walter’s wife, Alice (Holly Aird), calls the garage. Frank leads Sidney and Geordie to Alice’s place. They find her praying. She immediately realizes that her husband is dead. She also wonders whether god might be punishing her. After they leave, Geordie and Sidney ponder why Alice would believe she was being punished. A comment from Geordie leads Sidney to question him about his relationship with Margaret (Seline Hizli).

Sidney complains that they had a pact. Geordie defends himself by claiming he tried to end it, but couldn’t. Back at the station, Phil shows new evidence to Geordie. Cyril lied about the amount of money at the post office during the robbery. Cyril is transported to the station and question. He almost immediately admits to lying about the quantity for insurance purposes. He denies having anything to do with the robbery. Sidney goes for another run. This time, he spots Amanda with Guy. He watches from a distance and makes sure he isn’t noticed. At home, Leonard springs awake at the sound of gunfire. Hilary is there to comfort him. She finally gives him his gift, a book of Poems of William Shakespeare. She also reveals that the townsfolk haven’t stopped talking about Leonard’s bravery. Hilary admits she thinks of Leonard often. She wonders whether he does the same. Sidney interrupts, grabs the whiskey and leaves.

Seconds later, Geordie gets a surprise visit from Margaret. She reveals she thought she was pregnant. She suggests they’ll be forced to think about their future together sooner or later. Phil pushes his way inside. He announces that there is a robbery in progress at the Ellsworth Post Office. Geordie calls the post office, since he realizes police will never make it in time. He speaks with Cyril. After learning that there are two suspects, a man and a woman, he hears the man get shot by the robber. Sidney and Wendy arrive at the hospital together. Cyril is fine. He also admits he managed to hide most of the money in another safe. Back at the station, Geordie and the others realize they may be looking for their very own Bonnie and Clyde. Margaret enters with information about Frank. It turns out the man has a criminal record of his own. Sidney and Geordie arrive at Walter’s funeral.

Sidney keeps the group busy, while Geordie looks through Alice’s belongings. He finds a bloody shirt hidden in a chest. He confronts Alice with the evidence. Frank tries to flee, but is subsequently taken into custody. Alice denies having anything to do with her husband’s murder. She insists the shirt isn’t hers. Frank and Alice are asked about their relationship. Both claim that they’re only friends. Alice explains she was at the dentist when her husband was killed. Frank breaks down, while acknowledging that he has moved past his mistakes. After the interrogations end, Sidney and Geordie return to Alice’s punishment comment. At the church’s bingo event, Leonard tells everyone about the robbery. Jack Chapman (Nick Brimble) congratulates Leonard on the turnout. Leonard takes to the stage and begins calling out numbers. Amanda arrives and Sidney steps outside. Seconds later, we see Geordie at Margaret’s place. She pleads with him to stay at least one night with her, but he leaves.

Amanda speaks with Sidney outside. Sidney admits to seeing Guy earlier. He also implies that Amanda could return to her husband. Amanda reminds Sidney that she doesn’t want this either. Back at home, Leonard celebrates the bingo’s fundraisings. Then, Sidney rains on his parade by asking Leonard about his relationship with Hilary. He suggests Leonard is simply lying to himself. Leonard gives Sidney a mouthful. Sidney heads to the bar and drinks with Geordie. Sidney learns about Margaret’s pregnancy scare. Geordie acknowledges his lack of faith makes him weak and that is why he cannot deny Margaret. They chat about guilt and this leads them back to Alice. They check the receipt from Alice’s doctor visit and question why a tooth extraction would cost five pounds. Alice is forced to admit that she had an abortion.

She also confesses she didn’t want to have a baby with Walter. Alice and Frank admit Walter was abusive. Frank and Alice express their believe that the shirt could belong to Martha. We see the woman being abused by Walter, before grabbing his gun and shooting him dead. Next, Sidney and Geordie consult with Cyril in an attempt to figure out which post office will be hit next. Leonard walks Sidney and Geordie through the day of the robbery. Sidney finds an Eiffel Tower figurine in a drawer and Leonard tells the couple about Wendy hanging the advertisement on the door. This leads Sidney to believe that Wendy assisted the robber. We see Martha and Wendy stop the money truck. They take the money bag and prepare to flee. Before they can escape, they’re stopped by Sidney and Geordie. Both are taken into custody. At the station, Wendy explains that they both purchase Eiffel Tower figures for one another. Martha explains that Walter assaulted her on a regular basis.

Wendy insists Walter deserved to die. She also reveals she helped clean up the crime scene and stole Walter’s gun. Wendy also complains about her father’s rules. Martha confirms the couple were planning to run away to Paris. During this time, Leonard tells Hilary that he thinks about her too. He pulls out a wedding ring and asks Hilary to marry him. She immediately says yes. Sidney gives a sermon about letting life pass you by, while worrying too much about the future. He explains that they need to live in the now. After leaving the church, he visits Amanda and apparently makes love to her.

 

Grantchester Review

This episode of Grantchester was a hoot. Leonard Finch definitely stole the spotlight with his heroic actions at the post office and the humor that followed. Nevertheless, the episode was still very deep emotionally. Not only did Sidney fail to change Geordie’s mind about Margaret, he also took a leap of faith with Amanda. While Sidney rebelled against the Archdeacon, Leonard followed his advice. Is Sidney correct in assuming Leonard is lying to himself about his feelings for Hilary?

If so, Leonard has made a terrible mistake proposing to her. Our main characters have found themselves in precarious situations that could lead to devastating repercussions. Nevertheless, they took Sidney’s advice and lived in the present. The episode was great and possibly one of the best of the season. A 9 out of 10 is awarded to episode 3. Do not forget to check out our previous recaps of Grantchester!