As the second episode of Showtrial begins, DC Andy Lowell (Christopher Hatherall) and DI Paula Cassidy (Sinead Keenan) walk along a bridge that Talitha and Dhillon walked on the night of the ball. We also see that Hannah Ellis (Abra Thompson) walked home on the same path. A flashback shows that Dhillon Harwood (Joseph Payne) had a bottle of vodka in his hand. The guard opens the cell to tell Talitha Campbell (Celine Buckens) her solicitor is there. When Talitha steps out of the cell, she talks to the guard about singing to herself. The guard says she does that when she is nervous, but Talitha insists she isn’t nervous and only wants out of this crap hole. After the intro, James Thornley (Kerr Logan) and Paula Cassidy go to the last stop where Hannah was picked up on CCTV footage and where Talitha and her roommate were picked up later. Her roommate has gone back to London so they haven’t had time to talk to him yet.

James warns her she’ll have to come down hard on this because it is all over social media. Then, Cassidy explains it only takes a few minutes to walk from Hannah’s to Talitha’s. Andy calls to inform his boss that they haven’t found any fabrics or scarves yet and even the clothes Talitha wore to the ball are missing. James argues the scarf brings up a lot of questions since Talitha likely wouldn’t give it to someone to carry out a premeditated attack. Although the forensics evidence has been a mixed bag due to Andrea Ellis cleaning, they have found something on the vodka bottle but there isn’t a match yet. Then, Cassidy reveals forensics have been testing the disposal method. They think the body was put inside the sleeping bag while the killer wore the rucksack with the kettlebell inside. Once he gets outside, he puts the rucksack on Hannah and puts her in the trash bin.

Then, he managed to drag the bin down to the boatyard without being spotted since it was so early in the morning. They walk down to the spot where it was likely tossed in the water before James says they’ll need to place Talitha at the crime scene if Troy is the culprit. Virginia Hoult (Sharon Clarke) says the scarf suggests Talitha was the killer unless she was there too and they’d need evidence of that. They have DNA evidence on the neck of the vodka bottle though. They’re also testing Hannah’s body for semen and performing a toxicology test on her. Hoult admits they don’t have a lot of evidence or time to get it because Talitha has to be released. Cleo Roberts (Tracy Ifeachor) tells Talitha they’ve extended her stay for 36 hours. She tells Talitha how the police like to annoy her since she lashes out. Cleo explains Damian (James Frain) came to see her and wants to be involved, but Talitha says it is too late. Damian talks on the phone about not building enough housing before Seb arrives.

Seb says Brian spoke to his source and they believe the girl was strangled and put in a wheelie bin. The detectives are in an adjustment stage because the evidence doesn’t match their original theory. Before the next interview, Cleo makes it clear that she won’t put up with oppressive questions and tactics this time. Meanwhile, Dhillon hangs out at his cottage and watches the footage he recorded of Hannah. He only stops when Talitha convinces him to come and dance with her. Talitha tells the detectives she doesn’t remember much about the ball because she had been drinking. She says she mainly hung out with Dhillon until she got wobbly and he left. When she learns they’re going to question him, she laughs and says she doubts his memory will be any better than hers. Talitha didn’t stay for the survivor’s photo and isn’t sure what time she left.

She says they went back and did the usual, but sex with Dhillon doesn’t fall into that category. Cleo stops the interview so she can tell her client the detectives are going to hit her with something big. She also warns her to stop the silly backchat before Talitha asks Cleo what usual sex for her is like. When they return to the interview room, Talitha takes off her coat and gets comfortable. She is asked about the clothes she wore to the ball and gets upset when she finds out they searched her home. Talitha admits she took the items to the drycleaners because they had been covered in vodka and other stuff. Mustafa took them and since she knows him, she didn’t need a ticket.

Eventually, Paula pulls out a photo of Talitha wearing the scarf before asking her about it. She claims she got it in a charity shop and might’ve lost it somewhere. Paula reminds her that she hasn’t asked how Hannah died so she goes ahead and tells her she was strangled. Talitha denies getting Troy to strangle Hannah with her scarf and doing it herself because that would be mental. Again, she argues the scarf must’ve fallen off somewhere or someone stole it. She screams she doesn’t have a clue where it is. Cleo questions their evidence and encourages them to charge Talitha or let her go. Once they leave the interview room, Cassidy and Lowell learn that Troy was at home around the time of the murder, so he likely wasn’t involved. Cassidy realizes she has to let Talitha go. Seconds later, Brian Reeves (Rupert Holliday-Evans) gets a message from his source telling him what is going on with Talitha. He informs Seb that she is released under investigation.

While getting her stuff, Troy (Angus Castle-Doughty) steps out so Cleo tells Talitha they set this up to see how she’d react. With Troy’s help, they put on a show for the detectives and insult Cassidy. Outside, Talitha believes it is over and she is going to get to go to her favorite city Paris. Talitha learns she can’t go home because the press will be waiting for her. While dancing and singing, she nearly faints before explaining she has an iron deficiency. Cleo decides to do something she never does, take Talitha to her flat because her father is at the office. As they drive away, a news report discusses the two suspects being released. Paula and Andy meet with Virginia and James. Paula explains they’re going to London so they can talk to Dhillon Harwood. Virginia warns them to tread carefully since Meera (Lolita Chakrabarti) is a powerful woman. Then, James admits he is going to visit Andrea to let her know what is going on.

When Andy tells him to make himself useful, they get into a brief argument and James reminds him he has to convince him they have enough evidence. He goes to Andrea immediately and admits he wouldn’t convict Talitha if he was on the jury with the current evidence although she doesn’t care about jurors. Andrea Ellis (Claire Lams) reveals she bought the sleeping bag for her daughter. Andrea is adamant that she won’t sleep again until the person responsible is locked behind bars. James promises he’ll do everything he can to make that happen. Next, Paula learns Hannah had a small amount of GHB in her system, and the vaginal swab doesn’t belong to Troy or anyone in the database. It matches the sample from the vodka bottle so Hannah had intercourse with the vodka drinker. The dress and jacket were at the drycleaners and had already been cleaned.

Andy gets excited when he learns they got the mini lop rabbit that Amy has wanted for her birthday. Talitha eats multinational processed crap at Cleo’s home and looks at a picture of Cleo’s brother and niece. They talk about her niece named Kim before Talitha makes a racist comment about the name. She promises she was only kidding before she is taken to bed and told to get some rest. She almost thanks Cleo but instead asks her to get her passport. Cleo tells her she is funny sometimes and she thanks her. Brian talks to Alice and a guy who knows Hannah and Talitha. They were friends but had a falling out that likely had something to do with Dhillon who has a politician mother and a historian father. They discuss Talitha’s sex work hustle and the fact that she lived with Dhillon although everyone thought they were just buddies.

Cassidy and Lowell meet Meera and learn Dhillon has gone to the cottage in New Forest. Paula won’t tell her who was involved in Hannah’s death, but Meera agrees to them the address to the cottage. Dhillon soon gets a call from his mother although he ignores it. As they drive to the cottage, Cassidy gets a call from Mac confirming the mystery man’s DNA was found in Talitha’s room. Paula nearly hits the donkeys in the road before complaining about the little horses. Andy enjoys that. They catch Dhillon by surprise and invite themselves in. Cassidy notices Dhillon is burning some type of fabric so she pulls it out and stops it from being further damaged. She asks him for a DNA sample. Next, Brian breaks into the school’s database and learns Dhillon was accused of harassment by a girl named Lucinda Bright.

While police search the cottage, Andy jokes with someone on the phone about Paula’s near-crash with the donkeys or little horses. James and Virginia talk about Dhillon being brought in and the fact it is already all over social media. Although they don’t have DNA evidence against Talitha, James doesn’t believe Cassidy will drop her in a hurry. We hear a news report about the third arrest before Meera calls Stephen Vendler (Alec Newman) at the school. She wants to discuss the previous issue but doesn’t want to do it over the phone. She also says she wants to make sure they’re singing from the same hymn sheet. Cleo gets a call and agrees to meet with Damian in 15 minutes. She meets him and Heidi there moments later. Damian wants to help financially but he isn’t willing to do it unless Talitha agrees to talk to him. They also discuss why Cleo decided to take Talitha to her flat.

She agrees to talk to Talitha about it although she is adamant she isn’t going to lie about it. Once Damian leaves, Heidi reminds Cleo she became unemployed for a long time when she got uncomfortable last. Next, Cassidy tells James about the fire and fabric before getting the DNA results confirming Dhillon is the vodka drink. Andy meets with Brian and we learn he is the one responsible for leaking information about the investigation. He confirms Dhillon will likely be charged soon because of the DNA evidence. As for Talitha, her attitude isn’t helping her case any and Cassidy isn’t going to let her go easily. Brian asks him about Lucinda Bright. We see flashbacks to the ball and Hannah talking to Talitha. Talitha and Dhillon walk away concerned when Hannah goes in the opposite direction. Dhillon agrees to be interviewed without a solicitor. He admits to having sex with Hannah before the ball and only saw her handing out drinks during the ball.

He didn’t tell police because he was shocked and went into a fugue state that his mom can tell them about. It is caused by anxiety and didn’t get spotted sooner because he is a very high achiever educationally. As for the fire, he insists he was burning some old clothes that he was sick of. He somewhat knows why Talitha and Hannah had a falling out, but his explanation doesn’t satisfy Paula. He says he didn’t kill Hannah and that is the truth. Cassidy gets a message and suspends the interview. Cleo returns to Talitha to tell her about her father’s offer. She immediately turns it down and is warned that she could be arrested again if new evidence comes to light. Cleo also warns her that there is no guarantee she’ll be appointed. Talitha seems surprised when she learns Dhillon has been arrested and asks if that means she is in the clear. She asks to use the phone, but Cleo refuses to let her.

A flashback shows Talitha looking distraught as she leaves the ball with Dhillon. Meera meets with Stephen who insists there is no issue with the prior case because the committee dismissed it on legitimate grounds. He doesn’t know if it can be used in court and says he was colleagues with Paul. He believes her main concern should be that Talitha knows Hannah was also considering filing a complaint against Dhillon because he kept filming her and giving her gifts. Meera believes he knows because he has been up to his old tricks and likely getting down with Lady Tease. Cassidy tells James they found a microscopic DNA sample on the zipper that matches Dhillon. Back in the interview room, she tells Dhillon it is over, and they have all the forensics evidence they need. He says he wants to make it easier on himself and Hannah’s mom.

He agrees to tell them what happened before saying it was an accident. They didn’t go there with any intention of hurting Hannah. They ask who is we. A flashback shows Talitha with Dhillon. Several squad cars arrive outside Cleo’s house before Cassidy leaves them upstairs. Before long, Talitha is arrested again.

 

Showtrial Review

The second episode of Showtrial was better than the first although it was plagued by many of the same issues, including unlikeable characters, childish conflicts between investigators, and cheesy revelation methods. Nevertheless, it is getting better now that the evidence is being collected and detectives are finding out more about Hannah’s murder. Showtrial is mind-boggling since there is no defined objective.

What does it want us to believe? What is the show trying to tell us about the criminal justice system? If there is a purpose, it is not transparent in the least. It still isn’t bad although it could’ve been significantly better. At the very least, Kerr Logan is good as James Thornley who is probably the only relatable character right now.

In the next episode, we’re likely going to learn about Dhillon’s history of harassing women and Stephen’s affair with Lady Tease aka Talitha Campbell. I hope it gets better from here on out. The episode scores a 7 out of 10. All Showtrial episode recaps will be available on Reel Mockery here.