The Serial Killer’s Wife Series 1 Episode 1 Recap

The episode opens with a girl out for a jog. The show switches to a bar scene where Beth Fairchild (Annabel Scholey). The show continues to switch from the girl running to the bar scene. The runner spots a deceased female lying on the beach.

Beth and her guests jump out to surprise Tom Fairchild (Jack Farthing) when he opens the door. She greets him with a sensual kiss. Kiran (Shobna Gulati) compliments him for moving the ownership of his mother’s café to Beth. She tries to convince him to step in for his mother as a school board member. Beth turns around with two drinks in her hand to find Tom gone.

Superintendent Garland (Tim Daish) stresses the importance of a thorough investigation. DI Aline Edgeworth (Angela Griffin) reminds him of why he wants her to be part of the investigation team. Elsewhere, Ollie (Eben Figueiredo) frantically burns items. Back at Tom’s party, Jules (Morgana Robinson) informs Beth of Katy Asquith (Livvie May) being found strangled to death. She says Alison Mayhew went missing from the same beach. Maxwell Collins (Hari Dhillon) urges her to not assume a serial killer is responsible. Kiran claims Katy partook in risky behavior by hooking up with men in pubs.

Removing a set of blue earrings from a female’s wallet, Ollie stuffs them in his pocket. He tosses women’s accessories in the fire before hiding behind a wall as police cruisers with their sirens on pass the property. Back at Tom’s party, the guests are watching a photo slideshow. A photo of Adam (Luke Treadway), a woman, and a child pop up on the screen. Beth immediately apologizes for including the photo in the slide. Adam assures her that it is okay. The party is in full force when Aline arrives to arrest Tom in connection with Katy’s murder. Maxwell identifies himself as Tom’s attorney before insisting he is not in the condition to be questioned. DS Mike Pearson (Benjamin O’Mahony) escorts Tom away from the party. Officers execute a search warrant of the house. Beth asks if it is necessary. Aline stresses the importance of finding evidence to link Tom to Katy’s murder.

Beth tries to reassure Poppy Fairchild (Alara-Star Khan) about Tom’s absence.  Adam refuses to believe Tom had anything with Beth’s murder. Beth says Tom and Katy were co-workers but he barely knew her. He suggests it is a case of mistaken identity. She questions why the police needed to apprehend Tom in front of everyone. He assures her that none of them will believe Tom murdered Katy. Beth has trouble sleeping.

The next morning Adam finds Beth wearing clothes that belonged to a woman close to him. She escorts Poppy to school while everyone stares at her. She briefly speaks with Jules. Beth reminds her of their impending tennis match. Jules claims her father needs help in the garden. Beth arrives at Fairchild’s restaurant to find Libby (Elizabeth Roberts) and Ollie having a conversation. Ollie leaves when she approaches. Beth is cleaning the counter when a news report about Katy and Alison’s deaths being connected pops up on the radio. She rushes to turn off the radio when Maxwell calls to give her an update on Tom’s case. He tells her that Tom agreed to a DNA test. She questions why it is necessary. He says the results will hopefully clear Tom as the killer. He warns that the police will want to talk to her soon. When she asks about the DNA test, he hurriedly ends the call. Libby shows Beth a video of Tom’s arrest.

Police cleared the house for Beth to return home. While tidying up, she finds a card which she breaks. Documents reveal Katy filed an unfair employment dismissal claim against Tom. In an email, Tom calls Katy’s claim “ridiculous” and stresses the importance of Beth not finding out. Later, Beth accuses Jules of posting a video of Tom’s arrest on social media. Jules says people need to see how brutally the police treated Tom who has a clean record. As Jules is leaving, Clover (Julie Graham) pulls up in an RV. Having no knowledge of Tom’s arrest, Clover suggests Beth would not have let her in if he had been there. Beth asks how much money she wants. Clover claims she only wants to see her and Poppy before admitting she needs money. After finding a USB flash drive in a desk organizer, Beth goes outside to utilize Clover’s laptop. She sees damage on the left side of the RV. The USB stick reveals Tom and a female having sex that appears to turn violent.

Beth hands Clover an envelope with money. Clover assures her that she is not weak because she asks for money. Beth says she has always lived off handouts. Clover suggests she is living off Tom’s money. Tom calls Beth to ask for an alibi for the not Beth was murdered. She recalls going to the dentist and him being at his office. He stresses that they were together all night before abruptly ending the call.

At the police station, Pearson informs Aline that the toxicology report reveals cocaine and Diazepam in Katy’s system. When Maxwell offers to be Beth’s attorney, she mentions Katy’s unfair dismissal claim. Aline directs Beth to the interrogation room. Maxwell warns that she needs him to represent her. She tells him to “f**k off” before leaving to join Aline. During the interrogation, Beth explains how she met Tom at a pub. Aline asks if Tom ever showed any type of violence toward her. Beth says no. Pearson shows her a ring with a TJF engraving. Beth identifies the ring as belonging to Tom. Aline questions why Katy had Tom’s ring. Beth suggests Katy stole it to revenge Tom for terminating her. Aline asks if she knew about Katy’s lawsuit. Beth denies she and Tom keep secrets from each other. Pearson asks for her account of the night Katy was murdered. She says when Tom came home around 5pm, he went to his office where he stayed all night. She claims to have put Poppy to bed and watched TV. Aline warns against making false statements. Beth suggests they worry about finding Katy’s killer. Aline asks if she or Tom knew Alison Mayhew. Beth says no. When Beth leaves, Pearson says they have no evidence to connect Tom to Katy’s murder.

Libby picks up Ollie’s pants when a pair of blue earrings fall on the floor. Believing they are a gift, she shows them to him. He says there was no time to wrap them. She tells him that she loves them before they kiss.

At the police station, Tom claims to have kept Katie’s complaint a secret so as to not worry Beth. She tells him about finding his sex videos which were rougher than usual. He says Katy was terminated because of her drug addiction. Grabbing his hand, she confesses to loving him. Later, they get intimate.

Garland scolds Aline for Tom’s arrest with nothing to show for it. She tries to explain but he tells her she can go.

Beth is turning out the lights when she finds Tom’s hidden phone. There are dozens of messages from different women, including Katy. A sex video reveals Tom choking Katy during sexual intercourse. The episode ends.

 

The Serial Killer’s Wife Cast

• Beth Fairchild (Annabel Scholey)
• Tom Fairchild (Jack Farthing)
• Adam (Luke Treadway)
• Clover (Julie Graham)
• Maxwell Collins (Hari Dhillon)
• DI Aline Edgeworth (Angela Griffin)
• Jules (Morgana Robinson)
• Kiran (Shobna Gulati)
• Katy Asquith (Livvie May)
• Ollie Fairchild (Eben Figueiredo)
• Poppy (Alara-Star Khan)
• Libby (Elizabeth Roberts)
• Superintendent Garland (Tim Daish)
• Michael Alderton (Peter Polycarpou)
• DS Mike Pearson (Benjamin O’Mahony)
• Jess (Freya Duffy-Allain)

The Serial Killer’s Wife Synopsis

On the outside, Beth and Tom appear to be the perfect couple. On the inside, Tom has heinous secrets that Beth is soon to discover. Beth surprised Tom with a surprise birthday party. Beth learns about the murder of Katie Asquith, Tom’s co-worker. Alison Mayhew was reported missing four weeks ago. Tom gets a surprise that no one is expecting. DI Aline arrests him on suspicion of Katie’s murder.

Beth feels like people are judging her after Tom’s arrest. She finds a USB stick containing Tom’s sex tapes with different women. She also finds an unfair dismissal complaint that Katie filed against Tom.

Beth’s mum, Clover shows up unexpectedly wanting money.

Beth gives Tom an alibi for the night Katie was murdered. She lies to the police about him being in his home office all night. She confronts Tom about his sex videos but she appears to be more concerned about him not telling her about Katie’s complaint.

Beth finds a hidden phone belonging to Tom. The phone contains dozens of female contacts and a sex video of him and Katie. Tom violently strangles Katie during sex.

Ollie burns a woman’s purse, wallet, and other accessories. He keeps a pair of blue earrings that Libby later discovers in his pants pocket. She believes they are a gift for her. He plays along with it.

The Serial Killer’s Wife Review

The story lacks character development and backstories. The pilot episode jumps forward to Tom’s arrest on suspicion of Katy’s murder. Viewers are expected to know the woman in the photo with Adam.

The cinematography is subpar. The spinning is nauseating. Some scenes appear to have been filmed utilizing a drone. The zoom is off by a mile. It doesn’t help that the pace is oftentimes too fast. It is nearly impossible to identify some characters, props, and other details. I found myself constantly rewinding just to figure out what was going on.

The editing is terrible. The dialogue is shallow. While the cast is not oversaturated, many actors will luckily get five minutes of screen time.

The acting is good for the most part. Jack Farthing’s performance is superb as expected. Annabel Scholey is ideal for the role of Beth.

The series already has a lot going against it. With only four episodes, there is little room for improvement.

The pilot episode deserves a 5 out of 10. Get more The Serial Killer’s Wife recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by donating. Our onsite advertising can help build online awareness, click the link to reach our staff. Join our newly established forum to discuss the newest movie and TV releases.