The Woman In The Wall Series 1 Episode 2 Recap

Show Thyself – As the episode opens, Lorna Brady (Ruth Wilson) has a flashback of working at Magdalene Laundries. Young Lorna Cassidy (Abby Fitz) complains of being tired. Clemence Tooley (Caoimhe Farren) urges her to focus because their shift ends in a few hours. Sister Eileen (Frances Tomelty) orders the girls to move along past the crying babies.

Ignoring an incoming call from Dara O’Halloran  (Ardal O’Hanlon)  on the dead woman’s phone, Lorna sends Dara a text, “Can’t talk. Don’t know who’s listening.” Dara texts back demanding Aoife Cassidy answer her phone. Lorna suggests the dead woman is Aoife before sending a text suggesting they meet. The phone battery dies.

CCTV footage shows someone driving Father Percy Sheehan’s car last Thursday. Sergeant Aidan Massey (Simon Delaney) says the driver obeyed the speed limit and avoided the main highways from Dublin to Kilkinure.

Thomas Coughlan claims to have seen Amy Kane (Hilda Fay) near the garage after the fire started. Massey questions his claim. Thomas assures him that it is something Amy would do.

At a local store, Lorna is looking for a charging cable for Aoife’s phone when Clemence approaches. In a flashback, young Clemence Tooley (Clara Stell) tells young Lorna that she wants to leave Kilkinure Convent to be with her baby. Lorna admits to wanting the same thing.

Amy claims to have worked on the night of the fire. Massey informs her of the witness that seen her fleeing the burning garage. She calls the witness a “liar.” Detective Colman Akande (Daryl McCormack) asks if she saw anyone near Kilkinure Garda Station between 3am and 4am. Amy denies seeing anyone all night. He questions if the business’ CCTV picked up something. She tells him that the petrol pumps are only under surveillance. She says a man tried to buy vodka Friday night but when she saw his 5-year sobriety chip, she turned him away. She asks to speak with Colman alone when she asks if the witness with Thomas Coughlan.

At a local store, Damian (Ciaran McMahon) charges Aoife’s phone for Lorna when Massey and Colman enter. He shows them the store’s CCTV footage on Friday at 3:30am. Massey greets Lorna when Aoife’s phone starts ringing. When the footage picks up someone, she pours a cup of tea on the computer to kill the hard drive. Outside, she reads Dara’s texts.

O’Ruadhans – Lorna looks around before taking a seat.

Garda Conor Skelly (Cillian Lenaghan) informs Massey that the CCTV image match is Dara O’Halloran. He says Dara has a criminal record and spent time in Mountjoy Prison before joining AA. Massey points out that Dara does not live in Kilkinure. Skelly pulls up his address near Carrick.

O’Ruadhans – Dialing Dara’s number from Aoife’s phone, Lorna watches as a man answers his phone. Approaching Dara, she asks if the call was from Aoife. He demands she leave him before taking a booth. Joining him, she identifies herself as Grace. She claims to be a former Kilkinure Convent nun. She tells him that Aoife called her to set up a meeting there. He asks what did Aoife tell her. She says Aoife requested her help in locating a woman from the convent. He questions why Aoife never mentioned her. When he calls Aoife, her phone rings inside Lorna’s pocket. After asking if she is Clemence, he threatens her when Massey, Skelly, and Colman enter. He tries to flee but they restrain him. While reading his Miranda Rights, Colman looks back to see Lorna leaving. He follows her until a flashback of being chased through a tunnel by a man (Dominic Anglim) forces him to turn back. Later Lorna approaches Clemence when Amy tells her that she has her back.

Colman and Massey speak to a nun about Aoife who was at the convent between 1983 and 1987. The nun claims there is no record on file. Colman asks to speak to a nun who was there at the time. When the nun suggests it would not be possible. He threatens to question her at the police station.

Eadrom Group co-founder, James Coyle (Cillian Lenaghan) speaks to the Kilkinure women. Niamh (Philippa Dunne) encourages the women to tell their stories. Amy explains how a nun punished her by cutting her nails too short. She says the real punishment came when blood got on the sheets. Deidre (Anne Kent) claims to have sent her exam results to her mum to conceal the fact that she was working 16-hour days. Lorna says, “We don’t lock the doors. It isn’t a prison. You can leave any time you want but where would you go….” In a flashback, young Lorna and young Clemence are in the nursery when three nuns arrive. A nun restrains a distraught Clemence while the other takes her baby. A nun cuts Clemence’s hair while Mother Superior Sister Eileen (Frances Tomelty) awards Lorna. Back to the present, Lorna claims to have been forced to tell the nuns about their plan.

Sister Eileen asks Colman and Massey to not call Aoife “Sister” because she never made her final vows. She describes Aoife as “lovely” but “troubled.” She claims to last have seen her 30 years ago. Colman suggests it was around the time Father Percy worked at the convent. She questions if Aoife was linked to Father Percy’s murder. Colman asks if Aoife worked at the Mother and Baby home. She claims the Mother and Baby Home never existed, it was a training center. He asks how they helped the girls. She says the convent never received compensation and the laundry supported the girls. He asks how Father Percy was connected to the Sisters of the Seven Joys. She says he gave mass on Sunday. He asks what does “Monstra e esse matrem” mean. She says, “Show thyself a mother.”

Lorna asks Clemence what Aoife told her about their children. Clemence promise to tell her everything tomorrow.

Massey asks Colman why he is destined to connect Father Percy’s murder to Kilkinure Convent. Colman asks why he is determined to do the opposite. He questions how such a close-knit town knew nothing about the babies stolen from the mothers at the Mother and Baby Home. He has a panic attack. He admits to being born in a Mother and Baby Home.

At a local pub, Lorna tells Michael that she remembers him from the GAA Club. Michael recalls her being “funny” in school. In a flashback, young Michael and his friend invite young Lorna and her friend to go to the Wailing Woman’s house. Back to the present, they visit the Wailing Woman’s house. Lorna loves Declan is on a stairpost. She informs her of Declan O’Brien being married with kids. She voices concern about what Clemence will say about her child. Colman receives CCTV of Lorna walking toward the garage on Friday night. Walking away from the Wailing house, Lorna hears screams. David (Brendan McCormack) finds Clemence on the floor in her bedroom.

 

The Woman In The Wall Review

At the Kilkinure Mother and Baby Home, Lorna and Clemence plan to sneak away with their babies. Sister Eileen forced Lorna to tell her their plan. Clemence is in the nursery with her baby when the nuns arrive. Lorna later apologizes to Clemence who is seen later lying on the floor in her bedroom.

A former Magdalene Laundries worker, Aoife reaches out the Clemence about her infant. She was set to meet Lorna in a local pub but the incident with Michael derails their plan. Aoife takes Lorna home. The next morning, Lorna finds her dead in her flat. Dara calls Aoife’s phone. Believing he is texting Lorna, he schedules a meeting at O’Ruadhans where Lorna meets him. He says Aoife was doing what she thought was right. Massey and Colman arrest him.

Sister Eileen denies the Mother and Baby Home ever existed. She refers to it as a training center. She claims Magdalene Laundries supported the girls but was never intended for profit.

In a flashback, Colman is chased through a dark tunnel by a man. He was born in a Mother and Baby Home.

The episode deserves a 6. Get more The Woman In The Wall recaps here. Support our independent site by donating. Our onsite advertising builds brand awareness, click the link to learn more.