This isn’t a new show, but it might be new to you. I’m always looking for TV show recommendations, so here’s my recommendation for you.
Filmed in Somerset and Dorset, but set in the fictional town of Broadchurch, Detective Inspector Alec Hardy is brought to the sleepy seaside town to investigate the murder of 11-year-old Danny Latimer. From the looks of things, Danny jumped off a cliff to his death, but evidence soon transpires that Danny was not alone the night he died. DI Hardy is paired with Detective Sergeant Ellie Miller, also a close family friend to the Latimers, to investigate the murder. The two have impeccable chemistry on screen (unromantic, I might add).
Season 1 of Broadchurch is entirely about Danny’s murder. Each of the eight episodes takes a closer look at a possible suspect: the sketchy convenient store owner, the attractive hotel manager, the town vicar, etc. At the end of the season, someone is finally arrested in what seems like a lock-tight case.
Then comes Season 2 when said suspect pleads not guilty and everything gets unearthed – including Danny’s body. Also in Season 2 is a re-examination of one of DI Hardy’s former cases, the one that went awry and left him on the brink of exhaustion and delusion. Both Danny’s murder case and the disappearance of two girls in Sandbrook draw to a close at the end.
Three things I love:
- Binge quality. It’s infinitely difficult to watch one episode and not press play on the next one because the cliffhangers are unreal.
- On top of keeping viewers on edge, the filming of this show caused “The Broadchurch Effect” in southwestern England. So beautiful is the cinematography that people want to travel there and see the cliffs for themselves.
- True suspense. Until the very end, you have no clue who killed Danny. Even my former police officer husband didn’t piece the whole thing together until the end – and that’s saying something. This is the guy who ruins almost every mystery movie I’ve seen because he figures it out in the first five minutes.
Broadchurch is currently available on Amazon and some OnDemand cable/satellite plans.