For The Grace Of God –  The episode opens with a Bride To Be (Charlotte Ryder) discovering a man’s body near a dumpster.

DCI Vera Stanhope (Brenda Blethyn) arrives at the crime scene where she meets DS Aiden Healy (Kenny Doughty) and DC Mark Edwards (Riley Jones). Dr. Paula Bennett (Sarah Kameela Impey) suggests the time of death was between 11pm and 3am. There are two tattoos on his neck – First Northumberland Regiment and Bailey.

A homeless man tells Vera that he saw the man at The Civvy Centre. Finlay (Kevin Wathen) who works at Chez Lounge identifies the victim as 38-year-old Connail “Conn” Burns (Mark Armstrong). Aiden says a vet named Steve Wilson (Paul Thornley) operates The Civvy Centre which opened 18 months ago.

Vera informs Amanda “Mandy” Wilson (Rachel Denning) and Steve of Conn’s death. Mandy claims Conn did volunteer work for Steve.

DC Jacqueline “Jac” Williams (Ibinabo Jack) tells Vera that the crime scene isn’t under CCTV surveillance. The closest camera picks up about 100 meters away.  DC Kenny Lockhart (Jon Morrison) says Newcastle General’s records show Conn was treated for pneumonia three years ago. Teresa Burns is the next of kin.

Vera tells Teresa that Conn’s body was discovered in Newcastle. Teresa claims Conn visited the church at the beginning of each month. Conn’s daughter is Bailey Burns (Heidi Sellers) and his wife is Kate Burns (Joanna Horton). Vera questions why Conn listed her instead of Kate as his next of kin.

Conn was shot in the chest several years ago. Bennett tells Vera that someone held Conn while another person beat him. The impact from a shoe left a print on his back. She suggests the assailants forced him to drink alcohol. The first attack happened between 9pm and 11pm. After crawling about five meters, someone suffocated him with his own scarf between 11pm and 1am. Vera asks if both attacks were committed by the same people. Bennett says they’ll need to wait until the DNA report comes back. Vera says their job is to find the attacker(s) and the killer.

Lockhart tells Vera that Conn was seven when he went into the welfare system. Conn left the military in 2016. An ASBO prevented him from making contact with Kate.

When Vera informs Kate of Conn’s death, she asks if her being the next of kin means she needs to identify him. Vera says Teresa is his next of kin. Kate describes Teresa as “useless.” Olivia “Liv” Masters (Victoria Ekanoye) comforts Bailey. Vera questions why they didn’t divorce. Kate claims it was because there was no address on file to deliver the divorce paper.

Tony Castillo (Zak Douglas) denies knowing Conn. Steve claims he started coming to The Civvy Centre six months ago. Conn planned a speech for Saturday’s fundraiser but turned out to be a no-show. Steve says Conn and Tony were going to rent a flat together but he pulled out. Vera reenters the building to find Tony missing. Steve reminds her that she’s the police. Mandy confirms Steve’s story about Tony and Conn letting a flat. She tells them that a donation box was stolen. Aiden asks if theft is common in the center. She says it doesn’t happen often because they’re fearful of Steve.

Surveillance footage shows Conn in a verbal argument with someone who doesn’t appear in the video. Steve was at the fundraiser at a local hotel. Vera questions if Conn took the donation box.

Conn can be seen in CCTV footage chasing a mugger, yesterday at lunchtime. At 5pm, he visited Hawthorn and Son, an estate agent. Alexander Hawthorne (Tom Machell) and a woman are arguing about unpaid rent when Vera and Aiden arrive. He claims Conn demanded money in exchange for not camping outside his firm. They inform him that Conn was murdered.

Jac tells Vera that Steve utilized his grandmother’s inheritance to open The Civvy Centre.

After identifying Conn’s body, Kate admits she loved him. She met him after he’d been in the army two years. He drank heavily after leaving the military. Vera asks where she and Liv were at midnight. She claims to have picked up Bailey while Liv was on a security detail in Sunderland. She’s a care assistant at Dayton Hospice.

Vera and Aiden find Tony in the library. He claims Conn and Steve got into an argument when he returned from a weekend away. Vera asks how he feels about Steve. Tony says Conn had balls to argue with him before fleeing.

Jac tells Vera that The Civvy Centre will close within the next two months due to lack of funding. Steve claims Conn was paranoid about everyone affiliated with the military. He tells her that several entrepreneurs are interested in investing in his nonprofit for tax purposes. Vera asks if he believes Conn could be an extortionist. He assures her that Conn wouldn’t do it.

Vera and Aiden find Benny (Francis Magee) in an abandoned building. He tells them that Conn was beaten by two guys. Vera asks if they frequented the area where Conn’s body was found. He says they slept there. He suggests they speak to Rae Jenson (Mary Malone) about Conn going away for the weekend.

Conn’s former staff sergeant, Dylan Sharpe (Denver-Isaac Kwashe) seems surprised by Conn being homeless. They served in Afghanistan between 2003 and 2010. He describes Conn as being “trustworthy” and loved being a soldier. Aiden asks what caused Conn to change. Sharpe says a suicide bomber blew up a busload of children before they Afghanistan. He says they called themselves “The Ten.”

Jac says CCTV footage shows Hawthorne and another man following Conn on the night he was murdered. Lockhart tells her that someone filed a harassment complaint against Hawthorne but ended up dropping it. Mark shows her images of Hawthorne with Shaun Kenny.

The Police arrest Hawthorne and Shaun on suspicion of murder. Shaun claims to have changed his shirt because it had beer on it. Vera asks if Hawthorne’s shirt had beer on it as well.

Rae is the one who claimed her landlord, Hawthorne harassed her and Conn witnessed it. Vera informs Rae of Conn’s murder. Vera asks how she got the black eye. Rae claims to walked into a door. When Vera asks if Hawthorne knows Conn, she says no.

Bennett informs Vera that Hawthorne and Shaun’s DNA were validated. The DNA on Conn’s scarf wasn’t theirs but on Conn’s body.

Vera asks Hawthorne and Shaun if they broke Conn’s tooth by pushing a bottle into his mouth. When he refuses to answer, she asks if the beating was after Conn confronted him about his girlfriend’s black eye. He assures her that Rae isn’t his girlfriend before admitting they left him alive. She suggests they beat him into unconsciousness. He admits to beating him. Benny validates they were at the crime scene but left at 10:30pm. Mark says they were at their flat at 10:45pm and left again at 12:50am. She doesn’t think they killed Conn.

Rae tells Vera that Conn protected her when she was forced to stay at a male hostel. She describes him as a “good man.” Vera asks if she loves Hawthorne. She admits to being in love with him before assuring her that he loves her as well. Vera informs her of Hawthorne’s admittance of guilt. Conn attended the funeral of a soldier, Jack, from “The Ten.”

L.C. Hillier (Tamzin Griffin) and Aiden discuss the accident that resulted in Conn leaving the army. Sharpe asks if there is any information on Private Sam Gastrell. She claims he committed suicide after taking a pair of sunglasses from a deceased soldier because of a potential sentence. She says Conn and Corporal Private Jack Swanson witnessed the incident. Aiden informs her of Conn struggling with PTSD after leaving the army. She tells him that the military cannot force the soldiers to get counseling. Aiden says it was never offered to him. When Sharpe offers to take his details, she abruptly ends the meeting. Before Aiden leaves, Sharpe informs him of his being listed as a subordinate.

Vera discovers Tony underneath the underpass where Conn was living before his death. Tony flees but Aiden arrives in time to catch him. They discover The Civvy Centre donation box in Tony’s belongings. Tony says when Conn changed his mind about sharing a flat, it took away his opportunity to attend culinary school and see his son. He denies harming Conn.

PC Billington (Jake Ashton-Nelson) tells Vera that Conn visited the police station Saturday to make a report about a theft that occurred a while back. He admits to telling Conn that he was wasting his time. She informs him of Conn’s death after leaving the police station.

Vera asks Teresa if she forwarded a letter from Conn to Kate. She claims the letter included money to cover the debt Conn left behind. The military issued him a 25,000-pound payout from the accident in which his gun misfired.

Mark tells Vera that Tony was in the hostel between 10:15pm and 8am. Lockhart validates Steve left the fundraiser at 1am. Jac says Kate hasn’t worked at Dayton Hospice for the last two months. Lockhart suggests as long Kate doesn’t remarry, she would be eligible for a portion of Conn’s military pension.

Vera confronts Kate about the 25,000-pound payout from Conn. Kate denies receiving any money or letter. She admits to losing her job before saying her marriage to Conn was to secure his pension.

Swanson’s wife, Lindsay Green (Rosalyn Wright) tells Vera that Swanson and Dominic Charlton Adams (Harry Long) got into an argument about Gastrell committing suicide in Afghanistan. She claims Swanson and Conn never believed Gastrell took the deceased soldier’s sunglasses. Dominic convinced them he took them. A social media image shows Dominic wearing the same sunglasses.

Vera and Aiden question Dominic about witnessing Gastrell take the sunglasses. He claims Swanson witnessed the incident and asked him to file the report. He admits to being wrong about Gastrell stealing the sunglasses which is why Conn was angry at the funeral.

Lockhart discovers Dominic left Newcastle soon after Conn was murdered. Aiden warns that Dominic may have landed in Colchester if he was found guilty of theft. The 25,000-pound payout was deposited into an account registered to Conn and a third-party address. Someone made a withdrawal of 200 pounds on the day of his death.

Aiden and Vera confront Dominic with the social media image of him in the deceased soldier’s sunglasses. He denies murdering Conn before informing them of his alibi.

Lockhart validates Dominic’s alibi. Mark says the fundraiser wasn’t far from the crime scene. CCTV footage shows a reflection of Benny’s dog, Gary at The Civvy Centre when Conn was involved in a verbal dispute. Benny admits that it was he who Conn was arguing with. He claims Conn accused someone of stealing from him.

The address on the bank account set up for Conn was The Civvy Centre. CCTV footage shows Mandy withdrawing money from Conn’s account. Aiden arrests her on fraud charges. She admits to stealing Conn’s money. She tells them that her grandmother’s inheritance was invested in the center.

Mark tells Vera that Liv’s alibi doesn’t check out because the club had recently been flooded. Her vehicle pinged about 300 meters from where Conn was murdered. Vera suggests Liv knew where the CCTV camera was located because of her security job. Findlay claims Liv was at Chez Lounge on Friday night, not Saturday night. Liv informed Conn of Kate not receiving the payout.

Liv admits to not telling Kate about Teresa’s letter. Aiden suggests she did it because Kate still loved Conn. She describes the payout as a “fairytale.” Vera tells her that Conn was issued a payout from the military. She asks if she told him that Kate didn’t get the money before or after he witnessed her being intimate with someone. She claims it was only a one-night stand. The forensic test detected her DNA on the scarf utilized to kill Conn. She admits to suffocating him in less than a minute. Vera accuses her of being jealous of Conn who was on the straight and narrow.

Vera and Aiden donate about 500 quid to The Civvy Centre.

Vera and Rae watch Bailey and Kate embrace Teresa. Rae greets them before the service begins. Vera exits the church as the episode closes.

 

Vera Review

Army vet, Conn is found murdered underneath an underpass. He is severely beaten by two assailants before being suffocated. He and his wife, Kate are estranged. Kate is living with her girlfriend, Liv, and daughter, Bailey.

Conn fell on the bandwagon after leaving the military following an accident caused by a weapon misfiring. Before his death, he had stopped drinking in hopes of rekindling his relationship with Bailey.

The military issued him a 25,000-pound accident payout which he realized had been intercepted by someone at The Civvy Centre. Steve, the founder, was at a fundraiser when Conn was murdered.

A homeless man named Benny identifies an estate agent, Hawthorne and Shaun as the men who beat Conn. Hawthorne punched Conn’s friend, Rae in the eye. Conn confronted him before his death. They admit to beating Conn but not killing him.

Mandy opened a bank account in Conn’s name. She was withdrawing money from the payout without his authorization.

Rae’s DNA is found on the scarf utilized to kill Conn. Knowing Kate still had feelings for him, she wanted him out of the way.

A heartfelt episode involving a homeless vet down on his luck. Thousands of vets, many of which suffer from untreated PTSD, are living on the streets. Homeless vets oftentimes do not have a support network which makes them the target of dangerous predators. Those who do not take their own lives fall victim to homicide, cancer, or heart disease. Something needs to be done to ensure the protectors of our country live a more fulfilling life after the military.

The episode deserves an 7.8. Get more Vera recaps here. Support Reel Mockery by clicking on the link. Do not forget to ask about our onsite advertising.