Episode 3 Season 1 – Happy Valley Episode Summary 1.3

Episode 3 Season 1 Episode Summary: PC Kirsten McAskill inadvertently pulls over the van holding Ann resulting into a grave unexpected turn of events.  Recent developments cause the kidnappers to consider ending the abduction after the last ransom payment giving Nevison Gallagher hope of her daughter’s return.  Sgt. Catherine Cawood unlawfully breaks inside Tommy’s last known whereabouts and discovers probable criminal activity in the cellar.

Happy Valley Recap of Episode 3 Season 1: PC Kirsten McAskill is happily chatting with Sgt. Catherine Cawood on the radio about the odd affinity of sheep farmers towards their sheep when she comes across a speeding white van with a broken tail-light.  PC McAskill informs Sgt. Cawood of her plan to pull over the white van not knowing Ann Gallagher is hidden inside it, and Tommy Lee Royce is following behind in Ann’s yellow Mini Cooper.  Tommy Lee Royce pulls ahead of them watching closely as PC McAskill speaks to Lewis Whippey of his traffic violation including the broken tail-light, which she insists Lewis inspect with her.  PC McAskill is ready to let Lewis go when she hears Ann’s muffled screaming and banging on the door that grows louder causing her to insist on Lewis to open the van’s door.  Tommy Lee Royce drives the Mini Cooper behind the van, but PC McAskill thinks nothing of it until Tommy pins her into the van with the car and runs her over multiple times for good measure horrifying Lewis Whippey.  Tommy orders the shocked Lewis to drive away, while he follows him but not before running over the constable a few times more.

PC McAskill managed to call for help alerting Sgt. Cawood to send the police force to her aid, but unfortunately was unable to complete the PNC request denying the police identification of the white transit van.  Sgt. Catherine Cawood and PC Shafiq Shah followed by PC Twiggy arrive at the crime scene where the brutalized body of PC Kirsten McAskill lays motionless.  Sgt. Cawood initiates the investigation of PC McAskill’s murder and begins preserving evidence as PC Shah and Twiggy are still processing the death of their colleague.  CS Praveen Badal tells Sgt. Cawood to go home but she ends up being the one to tell and console PC McAskill’s husband, Ollie, the painful news of his wife’s murder.  Out of compassion for the distraught widower, Sgt. Cawood offers to deliver the heartbreaking news to the late constable’s parents.  Unlike Sgt. Cawood, CS Badal’s compassion does not go beyond instructing her to go home after she has completed the necessary paperwork, and callously questions Sgt. Cawood’s arrest of Councilor Marcus Gascoigne.  Sgt. Cawood leaves no doubt to the legitimacy of the councilor’s arrest, but CS Badal instructs her to prevent having the packet of cocaine sent to the lab and insists she obstruct justice when she refused to comply to his request.

At home, Catherine could no longer contain her emotions as she imparts to Clare the evening’s events including her guilt for her cruelty at letting PC McAskill feel incompetent following her failure to arrest Councilor Marcus Gascoigne herself.  She copes with her grief by contemplating the crime PC McAskill must have uncovered, which led to her violent death, but it’s not enough for the colleague’s murder had resurfaced the trauma of her daughter’s death causing Catherine to see images of her.  Catherine manages to function despite having anxiety attacks of her own, and reminds her team to do their jobs with compassion and respect for the people they serve will not know their grief.  Sgt. Cawood and Twiggy arrest a writhing, delusional addict convinced the government is spying on him when one of his neighbors starts singing a song disrespectfully alluding to the death of PC McAskill.  Sgt. Cawood does not tolerate the impudence, roughly arrests the insolent man, and in the privacy of the police car squeezes the man’s genitals leaving the man in tears, terrified, and apologetic.

Tommy and Lewis manage to bring Ann to Ashley’s caravan park where Ashley instructs Tommy to dump Ann in the middle of nowhere alive, but Tommy disagrees and directs Ashley to demand an even higher ransom informing him of Lewis’ mistakes which could almost certainly lead the police to them leaving Ashley to follow Tommy’s orders.  Ashley calls Nev to demand more money, sends proof of life as per Nev’s requirement, and informs the tormented father of possibly letting Ann go after the last ransom payment.

Jenny Weatherill notices Kevin’s distress, and becomes equally distressed upon learning he has taken part of the ransom that is now hidden in their car.  However, both of them have reservations parting with the money and after short deliberations both agree to keep and use the ransom money prudently to avoid suspicion.  Meanwhile, Helen Gallagher is watching the news of the police investigation surrounding PC McAskill’s murder, unware of her daughter’s kidnappers’ involvement.  She goes to her volunteer work at the mission where her friend Clare whom she helped through her addiction also volunteers, and confides her need to speak to a discreet police officer hoping Clare would connect her with Catherine.

Sgt. Cawood returns to the police station, begins cleaning up PC McAskill’s locker resurfacing her grief, and triggers morbid hallucinations of her deceased daughter.  Ollie’s visit adds to her sorrow when the grieving husband blames Catherine for Kirsten’s death attributing her recent harsh treatment of the fallen police officer as the reason for Kirsten’s need to prove herself.  Catherine once again finds diversion in Richard who she was ignoring following his refusal to acknowledge Ryan as his grandson, and surprisingly learns Richard has had a change of heart.  Their date is cut short when she remembers needing to be home to speak with Clare’s friend, Helen, only to learn the woman did not show up causing her to worry and to demand Clare call her friend.  Catherine speaks with Helen, senses her reticence, and begins to suspect her husband’s presence as the cause, which in fact is the case after Nev prevented Helen from going to Catherine’s house to speak to her believing the kidnappers will let Ann go after the last ransom payment.  Although Helen agreed to forego speaking with Catherine, she remains unconvinced of her husband’s belief and refusal to involve the police.

Kevin agrees to make the last drop despite his initial reluctance to do so, and goes to the caravan park to hand Ashley the ransom money learning from past experience to bypass specific drop-off instructions.  Kevin once again receives his cut of the ransom money, and comes across an upset Lewis who blames him for everything that has happened revealing the murder of the policewoman as a tragic consequence of the kidnapping.

Sgt. Cawood illegally breaks into the house where Tommy was last seen, finds it suspiciously empty despite signs of habitation, leading her to explore further resulting in her discovery of blood and signs of other criminal activity in the cellar.  Catherine calls Clare confiding her discovery, and the problem of reporting it given its unlawful attainment.  Clare is more concerned with Catherine’s plans with Tommy, which is the reason why she kept secret seeing Tommy at the mission, and remains worried upon hearing Catherine’s need to prevent Tommy from hurting anyone else.

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Episode 2 Season 1 – Happy Valley Episode Summary 1.2

 Episode 2 Season 1 Episode Summary: Kevin Weatherill confesses to his wife of his involvement in Ann Gallagher’s kidnapping, becomes entangled when Ashley Cowgill explicitly asks for him to make the drop of the deposit, and secures his undeniable involvement after receiving a portion of the ransom.  Meanwhile, Catherine Cawood’s dogged determination to uncover Tommy Lee Royce’s whereabouts leads her to the kidnapper’s hideout.

Happy Valley Recap of Episode 2 Season 1: Sgt. Catherine Cawood initiates Operation Greensleeves and pursues drug dealers selling drugs in an ice cream van playing Greensleeves alone and on foot.  The drug dealers see her and escape easily insolent of the helpless police officer.  She returns to the police station and calls Clare revealing having seen Tommy in their district worrying her sister after sensing Catherine’s resumed obsession in proving Tommy is a rapist.  Later, she receives information about the drug dealing ice cream van while in the police station affording her a team to conduct Operation Greensleeves properly leading to the arrest of the drug dealers.

Catherine arrives home with the black eye she received from the foot of one of the drug dealers she arrested, and recounts the day’s events to her sister including her annoyance with the drug squad’s reluctance to share information with her team.  Clare is relieved to hear the incident has preoccupied her sister only to learn that Catherine had brought a mugshot of Tommy to the curry house where she last saw him.  In fact, Catherine had asked the proprietor to call her when he sees Tommy, but cautions him not to alarm the criminal.  Catherine suddenly remembers to call Richard to ask him about Kevin Weatherill having noticed him residing on the same street as her husband.  Richard knows him as a pleasant, quiet, ordinary father of two girls, a caring husband to a wife in the early stages of multiple sclerosis working as an accountant for Nevison Gallagher.

Kevin arrives home and confides to his wife, Jenny, the disturbing news of Ann’s kidnapping and Helen’s terminal illness.  He is surprised to hear Ashley had called him after the man had dismissed and explicitly instructed him not to contact him, but Ashley wants verification that Nev had not gone to the police and more importantly has started to raise the million pound ransom.  Kevin has regained his confidence, scolds Ashley for doubling the ransom, instructs him to accept a smaller ransom, and insists they not hurt Ann, but Ashley could not guarantee Ann’s safety.  Kevin is overcome with guilt once again, and divulges his involvement with the kidnapping to Jenny who comforts her fearful husband with the rationalization that Ann will be unscathed, and Kevin’s involvement can be denied as long as they don’t take the money.

Lewis Whippey checks on Ann to offer her food and a chance to relieve herself, and is startled to find her underwear on the ground.  He calls Ashley to inform him of his discovery, and to establish if Ashley had ordered the rape only to learn Tommy had done it on his own initiative.  Lewis makes it clear of his refusal to perform sexual assault on their abductee, and becomes protective of Ann when Tommy returns to the hideout insisting he forego raping Ann again reasoning with him of the consequences, but Tommy is unafraid certain Ann will not be returned to her parents alive.  Tommy goes down to the garage to take Ann’s photo as per Ashley’s instructions, a proof of life and Ann’s distress to be sent to her father, and is about to violate Ann again until Lewis intervenes forcing him to beat Lewis instead.

Sgt. Cawood arrives at a traffic collision after PC Kirsten McAskill calls for her help following Councilman Marcus Gascoigne’s vehement refusal to take a breathalyzer, which he continues to refuse despite Sgt. Cawood’s insistence.  Sgt. Cawood confiscates Marcus’ car keys as per protocol ensuring the man suspected under the influence does not drive away, and finds a packet of illegal substance in his vehicle causing her to arrest the furious councilman for suspicion of drunk driving and possession of an illegal substance despite his threats against her.  Sgt. Cawood returns to the police station and chastises mortified PC McAskill for allowing the councilman to intimidate her causing the constable to seek Sgt. Cawood’s assistance, but the constable’s remorse is unappreciated.

Catherine and Clare with Ryan arrive at Daniel’s house for dinner where the child is clearly unwelcome setting the tone for an awkward dinner made even more uncomfortable by Richard and his new wife, Ros’ bickering over the woman’s desire to purchase a more expensive house despite Richard’s job loss.  To alleviate the tension, Daniel delivers the news that brought them all together, and announces his wife, Lucy, is pregnant, but Ros unwittingly curtails the felicity with her comment of Catherine and Richard becoming grandparents causing Catherine to remind everyone they already are.  Later that evening, Ryan begins to wonder and asks his relationship with Richard who he learns is his grandfather, and expresses his wish to spend time with him.

Anguished Nevison unburdens to Helen their daughter’s kidnapping, but he remains determined not to involve the police until they have retrieved their daughter.  He receives another call from Ashley wanting to receive a deposit of the ransom, explicitly instructing Nev to have Kevin make the drop at McDonald’s.  Kevin acquiesces, drives to the farm after receiving a call from Ashley reminding him the superfluity of going to the drop off point, and receives his portion of the deposit.

Catherine visits Richard at his house and is brought to tears in relaying Ryan’s request to spend time with him, but Richard is unmoved and is loathed to admit Ryan’s kinship blaming the child for their daughter’s suicide.  Catherine comes across Kevin as he arrives home, and checks on him but their conversation is interrupted by a call from the proprietor of the curry house informing her of having served Tommy and seeing the house where he’s staying.  Catherine knocks on the door of the house, alarming Tommy and causing him to call Ashley who sets in motion an inchoate plan of moving Ann involving the reluctant Lewis Whippey.  Unable to hear Ann’s muffled screams, Sgt. Cawood walks away, but it is enough to unnerve the perpetrators causing them to speculate the police have been alerted.

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Episode 1 Season 1 – Happy Valley Episode Summary 1.1

Episode 1 Season 1 Episode Summary: Sergeant Catherine Cawood copes with the news of  Tommy Lee Royce’s release from prison, while dealing with her troubled grandson’s disturbing behavior, and the numerous drug-related cases in her district.  Unbeknownst to her, she has also come across a kidnapping on its outset and has the identity of its mastermind.

Happy Valley Recap of Episode 1 Season 1: Sergeant Catherine Cawood, a 47-year-old divorcee, arrives at a convenience store, buys a fire extinguisher and a pair of sunglasses.  She meets PC Kirsten McAskill at a nearby playground hauling the fire extinguisher while donning her newly bought sunglasses for protection.  They are attending to Liam Hughes, a 23-year-old unemployed heroin addict who has doused himself in gasoline and threatening self-immolation after learning his ex-girlfriend has started sleeping with his best friend.

Sgt. Cawood keeps Liam engaged while waiting for the high-ranking, highly trained specialist expert negotiator to arrive.  She introduces herself as a 47-year-old divorcee living with her recovering heroin addict sister.  Moreover, Catherine has two adult children, one estranged, the other deceased and had left her with a grandson.  Later, Richard Cawood, Catherine’s journalist ex-husband, catches her on her way home from work and asks about the incident at the playground hoping to get details to write for his newspaper.  He invites her to dinner adding he is about to lose his job.  Although sympathetic, Catherine makes her leave as she is to fetch her grandson, Ryan.  Richard, however, shares the devastating news of Tommy Lee Royce’s release from prison.  The news gnaws at her mind as she waits for her grandson at the schoolyard when another unpleasant news greets her.  Ryan lost his temper at school and threw chairs across the room hurting himself in the process.  Catherine arrives home and updates her sister, Clare, of Ryan’s disturbing behavior along with the upsetting news of Tommy Lee Royce’s discharge only to learn Clare already knew about Tommy but kept it from her to spare her grief.

Kevin Weatherill speaks with Nevison Gallagher, the owner of Nevison Gallagher Associates Industrial Refrigeration, about his daughter’s acceptance at a prestigious school and asks for a raise.  Nevison condescendingly alludes to rejecting Kevin’s request, but informs him of considering his request.  Kevin becomes upset over dinner as he and his wife discuss Nevison’s decision to reject his pay raise request.  The Gallagher’s dinner conversation is about Kevin’s request as well for he is a friend of the family.  Both Nevison’s wife and daughter disagree with his decision, and his daughter walks out after he bluntly expresses his disappointment for not seeing the fruits of her expensive college education.

Catherine has accepted Richard’s dinner invitation after all, and she listens patiently as he casually complains about his new wife’s inconsiderate desire to buy a new house despite his job loss.  His new wife is confident of him finding another job, a confidence he, a middle-aged man, doesn’t share.  Richard presses Catherine again on the incident on the playground, one people have been gossiping about and have blown out of proportion.  As it turns out, Catherine had sprayed Liam with the fire extinguisher the moment he decided to smoke a cigarette unaware it would unwittingly ignite him.  Catherine becomes annoyed when Richard continues to press her of the uninteresting domestic case with the heroin addict and irritably recommends he write about a more substantial article on the proliferation of drugs in their district.  She then moves on to the most likely reason for her accepting the dinner invitation, Tommy Lee Royce.  Catherine presses Richard for information about Tommy, but he doesn’t have much to share.  She knows more about Tommy than Richard having done her research after learning the news of his release.  Catherine has learned of his release address, but is doubtful he is actually living with his mother while on probation.  Richard drives Catherine home, and finds her desirously gazing at him.  They kiss passionately and decide to continue their tryst in the house.  The next morning, Catherine visits the grave of her deceased eighteen-year-old daughter with Clare and Ryan, and confides her preoccupation with Tommy Lee Royce whose whereabouts is unknown but whom she believes is close.

Kevin brings his family to the caravan park they frequent, and continues to be resentful of Nev.  He has deluded himself of deserving half of Nev’s company, believing his father and Nev conceived the industrial refrigeration business together.  Kevin’s father instead ended up working for Nev when he returned home from college.  The sight of the caravan park’s owner’s expensive vehicles fills him with envy.  Kevin brings his caravan rental payment to Ashley Cowgill, the proprietor, while Ashley and his men are unloading bags of sand.  One of the bags rips revealing cannabis packets hidden in the sand.  Ashley forces Kevin to join him inside his house through threats despite Kevin’s assurances of silence, and is astounded with the man’s proposal; one Kevin had clearly already deliberated.  Kevin proposes working together to kidnap Ann, Nev’s daughter, for a half a million pound ransom.  Ashley releases Kevin while he considers the proposal.  Jittery Lewis Whippey confronts Ashley after seeing Kevin leaving the house unafraid and even confident, and conveys of his unease of the new hire whose bag of sand ripped.  Ashley is unconcerned of a recently released ex-convict who served eight years in prison.  In fact, he trusts Tommy enough to discuss Kevin’s proposal with him and Lewis.  Later that evening, Ashley calls for Kevin to inform him of his decision.  He and his men will proceed with the kidnapping and offers Kevin only ten percent of the ransom upsetting Kevin enough to threaten squealing to the authorities Ashley’s side business.  Ashley expresses his indifference having already removed the evidence from his property, and reminds Kevin of his ability to accomplish the kidnapping without his help.  Powerless Kevin instead negotiates a twenty percent cut leveraging both his daughters’ education.  The next day, Nev calls Kevin to his office to inform him of his decision to pay for Kevin’s daughters’ school fees following Nev’s wife and daughter’s badgering.  Moreover, Nev offers him a deputy managing director role revealing his need to take leave given his wife’s dismal liver cancer prognosis.

Sgt. Catherine Cawood and PC Shafiq Shah enters a flat after receiving a 999 call of suspected distress, and finds two drug addicts in bed.  They arrest the man who still has a syringe in his foot without complications unlike Liam Hughes who Sgt. Cawood reveals has threatened charges against her for assault.  Moreover, the newsagent who sold her the fire extinguisher decided to charge her personally for the item.  To add to Catherine’s misfortunes, she is once again summoned at the school due to Ryan’s bouts of anger.  The principal informs Catherine of having an educational psychologist spend time with Ryan to uncover the cause of his repeated misconduct especially after receiving complaints from other parents.  She believes the psychologist can help Ryan manage his anger.  Catherine breaks down in tears and reveals Ryan is the product of the brutal rape of her daughter, Becky, who took her life six weeks after giving birth to Ryan.  Catherine does her best to care for the unwanted child so undesired for being the constant reminder of Becky’s rape and eventual suicide that her husband left her following her decision to care for their grandson.  She reveals Tommy Lee Royce as Becky’s rapist, imprisoned for drug trafficking but not her daughter’s rape.  Catherine is terrified that Ryan is just like Tommy.  Later that evening, she once again seeks comfort in a tryst with Richard to whom she confides her gruesome fantasy of killing Tommy Lee Royce.

Kevin is overcome with a guilty conscience and unsuccessfully persuades Ashley to abandon the kidnapping that is already underway.  He decides to go to a police station, and insists on speaking to a proper police officer.  Sgt. Cawood attends to a distressed Kevin who struggles to convey the crime he has come to report.  She notices Kevin’s consternation and offers to continue their chat in her office.  Sgt. Cawood makes her way to the side door of the precinct to let Kevin in, but he instead returns to his car and drives away.  She makes note of Kevin’s license plate, and returns to the precinct to respond to another case.  Kevin finds a phone booth and calls Ashley wanting reassurance that Ann will not be hurt.

Lewis and Tommy have been following Ann in a white van waiting for the right moment to hit her car.  They find an opportunity at a remote road.  Ann steps out of her yellow Mini Cooper and scolds Lewis while Tommy puts on his ski mask and punches Ann.  Lewis and Tommy carry a frantic, screaming Ann inside the van struggling to be free of her kidnappers, but the two men overpower her.  Tommy hits Ann once again stunning her enough allowing them to gag, bind, and put her inside a sleeping bag.  Tommy finds Ann’s mobile phone in her car and gives it to Lewis before taking her car leaving a nervous Lewis with Ann.  Tommy drives Ann’s Mini Cooper into town while Lewis follows close behind.  They carry Ann inside a garage and Lewis inadvertently mention’s Ashley’s name causing Tommy to threaten him if he makes another mistake.  Lewis leaves for the farm to bring Ashley Ann’s mobile phone, while Tommy goes for a walk.  Sgt. Cawood is driving back to the police station telling PC McAskill her last case when she notices Tommy on the sidewalk looking inside a closed curry house.  She parks her patrol car and runs to the sidewalk where she last saw him, but he is gone and nowhere in sight.  Unbeknownst to her, Tommy has returned to the garage where Ann is bound.

Nev receives a call from Ann’s mobile phone only it’s not Ann on the other line, but Ashley.  Ashley, who refers to himself as God, instructs Nev to take his call in twenty minutes on a specific phone booth.  Kevin watches as Nev rushes out of the office, and later receives a frantic call from Nev telling him Ann has been kidnapped and her captors are asking a million quid for ransom.  Nev has called Kevin for help raising the ransom in two days without raising alarms.  Unbeknownst to Kevin, Sgt. Cawood has returned to the police station and looks up his license plate from the database revealing his identity.

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