As the ninth series of Grantchester begins, Geordie Keating (Robson Green), Will Davenport (Tom Brittney), and the others go to the carnival. Leonard Finch (Al Weaver) tells them a story about the dog. Sylvia Chapman (Tessa Peake-Jones) can’t believe Geordie doesn’t like the circus because she used to dream of going. In private, Geordie asks what he thinks about taking Cath and Bonnie on a big family holiday as a surprise. Nick Jeffries (Finnbar Hayman) serves Ernie (Isaac Highams) and Cathy (Kacey Ainsworth). Geordie doesn’t think the tax man will see a penny of Nick’s earnings. Nick gives the money to a woman who puts it under her chair. Pogo (Dan Mersh) welcomes everyone to Carson’s Circus.

Errol Macabre (Michael Golab) does a trick with help from Feathers (Cora Kirk). Feathers still has cuffs on so she gets help from Geordie, but ends up handcuffing herself to him. Geordie sits back down with the cuffs on. Then, Errol prepares for his most daunting trick. It goes off without a hitch. At the church, Will speaks to everyone about the circus. Sylvia and Jack (Nick Brimble) question where Leonard is. After the sermon, Sylvia and Jack accuse Leonard of skipping church. Later, Will speaks to Bishop Aubrey Gray (Stuart Bowman) who admits he doesn’t worry about Will anymore. Aubrey says the world is changing. People used to look to the church. Now, they’re turning to the television set. Aubrey says a boat rocker could make a difference in some areas.

He suggests going to another diocese in Newcastle. It’d be an inner city position with a bigger parish. Will says he can’t because he has a baby and they’re happy in Grantchester. At home, Cathy admits she believes hiring Mrs. C might’ve been a bad idea. Larry Peters (Bradley Hall) calls Geordie who visits Will to tell him there’s been trouble at the circus. They go to the circus where they find Errol dead. Larry says they were gone by eight and they had all dinner out in the field. Today was their one day off. A lot of them went into town. Errol, whose real name is Eric Mowbry, did not go with them. He was last seen before dinner. When they’re alone, Will tells Geordie about the job offer in Newcastle. Geordie doesn’t think he’d want to move when James is still a baby. Will admits everything is great in Grantchester.

They find two bus tickets to London for next Thursday and a vial containing some kind of drug. They speak to Pogo who reveals his real name is Jerry McAllister. He’s the ringmaster and head clown. Jerry insists they were responsible for Errol’s murder. He doesn’t know anything about the opium. Geordie says there will be no show until the murder is solved, but Jerry says they’re going to perform tomorrow anyway. Feathers, Anita Carson, admits she thought it was going to be a trick. The circus belongs to her Nanna. Anita goes on to say Nanna Carson (Melanie Kilburn) used to be queen of the high wire. Anita was as well until Errol saw her potential. She says Errol was kind but they weren’t together romantically. Anita felt sorry for him. She claims he was losing his edge because of alcohol.

Geordie asks her to explain something about his act. Anita eventually admits that the arrow never fires. Geordie notices that it’s not a trick gun. He worries someone has messed with it. Anita doesn’t know who’d do that because Errol was part of the family. Geordie suspects Errol was holding her back so she shot him. Anita denies that. Next, Will joins Leonard who is with Daniel Marlowe (Oliver Dimsdale). They’re busy listening to Sam White (Elliot Warren) complain about poverty and government waste. He says the people in power know they outnumber them so they stoke their fear of each other. They don’t think the people have enough hope to overcome those fears. Sam says he has hope. At the station, Miss Scott (Melissa Johns) tells Geordie the coroner’s report will be on his desk first thing tomorrow.

Another robbery has been reported in Little Shelford so it’s becoming a spree. Larry interrupts to say Nick Jeffries never came home last night and his parents are worried sick. Will is introduced to Sam White. Leonard apologizes for missing service. Will thinks this is better than listening to him though. At home, Geordie learns that Esme (Skye Lucia Degruttola) has been offered a job at Harrison and Sons doing office work. When they’re alone, Cathy complains that Esme applied behind their backs. Bonnie (Charlotte Ritchie) joins Will that night. Will tells her about the street preacher who is building a following and turning atheists into believers. He mentions the new job. Bonnie can’t believe Will just decided on his own. She wonders if they could both do more. Bonnie thinks Geordie could survive with them leaving. She asks if he wants to leave.

At the church, Will runs into a man who says something terrible has happened. In an interview room, Nick says Errol asked him to help him practice after the show. He admits he shot Errol. It happened after dinner around nine. Nick explains he has face paint on because he was going to audition for the circus. He finds it odd that Errol had two tickets to London and opium because none of the performers have money of their own. You have to petition Nanna to get money. If Nick hadn’t rehearsed with Errol, the trick would’ve been done during the next show. Anita is brought in for questioning. She’s surprised to learn she may have been the target. They learn she wants to run away from the circus. After she leaves, Will, Geordie, and Larry discuss the case.

Will says someone must’ve tampered with the rifle between eight and nine. Around that time, Jerry was entertaining the younger kids and Feathers was on her own. No opium was found in Errol’s system. Larry confirms they still haven’t been able to get in touch with Nanna. They go to the circus where they find Jerry looking through Errol’s things. Geordie suggests Errol or Feathers found out he was using and threatened to expose him. Jerry reveals that Errol supplied him. A couple of years ago, he put his back out. Jerry almost went to the Olympics until they were canceled by the war. Now, he can’t do anything unless he has opium. Jerry insists he wouldn’t kill Errol because he was his only connection. Geordie and Will approach Nanna next. She has a collection of clowns to represent every Carson clown.

Nanna admits times are tough and audiences are small. Geordie alleges she wanted to punish Errol and Feathers when she learned they were auditioning elsewhere. Nanna insists she wished them no harm. She wanted them there so they could bow out on top since she’s retiring this year. She’s selling the circus to someone who will likely strip it for parts. Later, Will asks Geordie how he’d feel if someone was leaving his circus. Geordie was upset that Esme grew up while he wasn’t looking. He thinks Cathy feels betrayed though. Larry interrupts before Will can say anything else. Larry says a woman reported that her husband’s ashes were in a locket that was stolen. She was at the circus on Friday. Miss Scott, Geordie, and Will talk about the recent robberies. Geordie suspects there’s a bag full of loot at the circus somewhere.

Larry brings Miss Scott flowers when they go undercover together at the circus. Will and Geordie search for the loot. Miss Scott ends up helping Feathers with her performance. Will finds a bag full of money and a pawn shop receipt. At home, Geordie and Cathy talk about Sylvia who wants to schedule prayer time. Cathy is going to write to Harrison and Sons pretending to be Esme and saying she can’t take the job. Geordie doesn’t think they can control her. Will asks Leonard why he started this place. Leonard says stability isn’t always happiness or fulfillment. Leonard tells him how he felt when he left Grantchester. He found people who needed him more. Next, Will visits Feathers to ask for answers. Miss Scott tells Geordie that Feathers was fine last night so they went home. When Larry arrives, Geordie asks him to take her to Newnham.

Geordie realizes something is awkward between them. Miss Scott tells him that it was a mistake and Larry will understand. Will arrives and tells Geordie that Feathers knew Nanna was selling. He wonders how good Jerry’s alibi actually is. They bring in Nick to speak to him again. Nick admits Jerry gave him the chance to entertain the kids during dinner. Nick shows them the clown doll he was meant to copy with his face paint. Jerry is asked about getting Nick to copy his look while he sabotaged Errol’s rifle. They allege he was bitter because he knew Nanna was selling the circus. Will says a young woman is going to escape his fate and do better. Jerry argues she’s a thief. He admits he doesn’t trust her because she always thought she was better than the rest of them.

Jerry admits he swapped the handcuffs, but she turned it around. He gets upset and says someone had to stop her. He admits it was meant to be her. Later, Geordie tells Will they should make the most of the summer. Larry tells Geordie the money is fake and he couldn’t find the pawn shop. He says it was like an illusion. Will speaks to the group in his church about serving others and having a duty. He visits Bishop Aubrey Gray to talk about the position.

 

Grantchester Review

The opening episode of Grantchester’s ninth series really didn’t miss a beat. Not much has changed at this point as the series sets up Will’s departure and the eventual introduction of a new vicar. The first investigation of the season wasn’t particularly thrilling, but it was interesting enough and moved at a decent pace.

The best bits of the episode are those focusing on the main characters and their personal dramas. Larry has finally managed to score with Miss Scott, but she may not be interested in a relationship. Cathy and Geordie are shocked and a bit upset that Esme applied for a job without their permission. Cathy seems more willing to put her foot down than Geordie though.

They’re also having difficulty with Sylvia who is working for them now. Leonard is doing something different while Will is contemplating leaving Grantchester. The episode was mostly sufficient although it’ll likely get more emotional when Will leaves. The side stories have the potential to be very interesting in future episodes.

Leonard still seems to be stuck in limbo as if the writers don’t really know what to do with the character anymore. With so much going on here, it’s questionable if a new vicar was even needed. There was plenty to keep viewers interested even after Will leaves. Overall, this was a decent episode that really didn’t do anything out of the ordinary.

The episode scores a 6.5 out of 10. Recaps of Grantchester can be found on Reel Mockery here. Find out how to support our independent site at this link. Learn more about advertising with us here. See what others are saying about Grantchester here.