At the beginning of the 2nd episode, Clifford Bentley (Alun Armstrong) draws blueprints of the bank. He manages to get the plans out to his son, John (Lex Shrapnel). Seconds later, Jane Tennison (Stefanie Martini) meets with DI Len Bradfield (Sam Reid) at the bar. Jane tells her boss about her conversation with Suzy. Then, the couple shares a drink together. Len tells Jane about his partner, who was mowed down several years ago. It sounds like the perpetrator could be Clifford. After the fun ends, the couple heads back to the station. They end up sharing a few kisses outside, before Len stops himself and steps inside. In the morning, Jane lies to Kath (Jessica Gunning) by pretending she stayed the night in studying.

When Jane enters the office, she notices the others standing around laughing. Seconds later, Len interrupts and informs Kath he needs someone to accompany him to visit Julie’s parents. Kath confirms Sergeant Harris (Andrew Brooke) has her posted elsewhere. With that, Jane is assigned to ride along with Len. They visit George Collins (Geoffrey Streatfeild) and ask the man about the bracelet Julie was wearing. He admits it was a set. During the visit, Len tells the parents that Julie might’ve been fighting a drug problem. He admits she might have been pregnant. They speak about Eddie. Julie’s parents insist they read his name in the newspaper. Meanwhile, Renee Bentley (Ruth Sheen) wakes up John. Renee tells her son that the radio has been talking about the murdered girl again. John changes the subject by asking about David. David (Jay Taylor) visits Billy (Sam Adewunmi) and asks about Eddie.

Back at the station, Len ridicules Jane for leaving files on his desk, but not putting them in an envelope. Kate tells Spencer (Blake Harrison) about Doctor Hussein Pryor, who drives a red Jaguar. Spencer quickly rushes to the hospital to speak with the man. During this time, John and his colleague visit the café connected to the bank. The man behind the counter, Silas (Anthony Skordi), is asked about the work John and his colleague will be doing. He promises they’ll be quiet. Seconds later, John and David leave together. John admits he is going to use his share of the money to skip town. David repeats the same, but seems worried about his mother. John insists she’ll be fine with dad. Spencer speaks with the doctor and learns that his wife drives the Jag. Then, Spencer is told to speak with Teresa.

Len and Spencer meets with Teresa. The woman admits she let Julie use the phone in her office. However, she confirms she threw the phone number away afterwards. Eventually, Jane and the others arrive to collect evidence. Jane is ridiculed for trying to collect indent evidence on her own. The paper is bagged and transported away. David visits his father at the prison. This time, he asks for a larger share of the money. Clifford agrees to give David 5 percent of his cut. Afterwards, Clay’s comrade, Mikey (Liam Smith), confronts Clifford and makes a snide remark about David’s condition. The detectives speak with Billy and ask him about Eddie. They’re given the name of Dwayne Clarke (Thomas Coombes). Spencer meets up with the drug square and asks them about Dwayne. They agree to trade evidence.

Jane interrupts a meeting with the guys. She passes along an envelope full of evidence to Len. Clifford attacks Clay’s henchman at the prison. Seconds later, the detectives get a lead on Dwayne. He is chased down and trapped in a parking garage. When interviewed at the station, Dwayne denies knowing Eddie. Drugs are found in his car and this gives the cops enough evidence to hold him. They also find a notebook with transactions written down. One contains a large transaction with someone named Tod. Dwayne says nothing. We see a glimpse of a body floating in water. It looks like Eddie. Duke (George Maguire) confronts the detectives at the station and accuses them of blowing their drug operation. He gives them photographs of another drug dealer, who is somehow connected. Duke admits the man is a regular supplier for Eddie. The man is only known as Oz.

That night, David enters the parking garage and watches the bank. John and his colleague enter inside and begin dealing through one of the walls. The next day, Jane rushes to the church for the rehersal of Pam’s (Rosie Day) wedding. She rushes back to the station as soon as it ends. She runs into Harris, who mentions rumors going around about Jane looking for a boyfriend. Next, Len and Jane visit the ceremony for Julie. During the event, Jane notices the family’s phone number matches the number found on Teresa’s desk. She visits the family’s garage and finds a red Jaguar. Jane tells Len about the evidence outside. They wait until the others arrive with a warrant. Then, they tell George and order him to ask everyone to leave. He obeys their commands.

Back at the prison, Clifford is confronted by Clay (Dorian Lough). Clay admits Mikey lied to the warden about the accident. He also confirms he is thinking about removing Clifford from the picture. Nevertheless, Clifford convinces him to stick with the plan. Kath tells Jane about the rumors regarding her and Len. Then, George is interviewed. He admits to speaking with Julie on the day she was released from the hospital. In the garage, a fingerprint from Julie is found on the door handle of the Jaguar. Then, the detectives head upstairs and discover a possible cell. They immediately believe that Julie was held there against her will. George is transported down to the station.

 

Prime Suspect 1973 Review

The second episode of Prime Suspect 1973 pulled back the fabric ever so slightly and revealed a little more about Julie, Eddie, and Julie’s family. It was confirmed that Julie might’ve been pregnant and was probably trying to kick her drug habit. We learned that Eddie was involved in heavy drug dealing and may now be dead. Finally, the detectives learned that George had been lying about his daughter’s last days. While it is appears that Julie was held captive in her parent’s home, it is highly likely things are not as they appear.

Is George a sinister killer? I doubt it. Could they have been holding Julie against her will in hopes of helping her escape the clutches of addiction? This is the most likely scenario. Nevertheless, we’ll find out soon enough. The episode was great, although the Len and Jane romance was rushed along a little too quickly. A 7.5 out of 10 is awarded to this episode. Catch up with previous recaps of Prime Suspect 1973 now!