The Bletchley Riddle

Jakob is on his way to the Park. Jarvis intercepts him and lets him know that he’s aware Lizzie is back. Jarvis brings up the case of the American Embassy spy in London, who has implicated Willa as an accomplice. Jakob rejects this idea. Jarvis says he wants to interrogate Jakob and then alludes to the secret message Jakob got from his mother, “goulash.”

Lizzie walks to the Park. She goes to see the Colonel and reveals to him that she has figured out that the Park is a codebreaking operation. Unlike all the other staff, who are compartmentalized in their specific department huts and unaware of others’ roles, she sees all the different operations in her role as a messenger. She tells him that she is driven to find out the truth about Willa. The Colonel dismisses her, but says that she should report directly to him from now on. She goes outside to meet Jakob by the lake.

Jakob has fallen into the water. Lizzie helps him up, and they paddle out to the middle of the lake in a rowboat. Jakob reveals that someone has been in his room, possibly Jarvis. He shows Lizzie the “goulash” code. They speculate on its meaning, and Lizzie takes the diary out of her pocket and shows it to him.

He sees the names of the Polish mathematicians Willa was associated with in Warsaw. The mathematicians were working on breaking German codes until the war started. Lizzie claims that Willa was a spy, but for the Americans. She was recruiting these men for American interests. They spot Nigel watching them and discover he’s doing it on Jarvis’s instructions. Lizzie convinces him to get onto the boat.

Lizzie asks Mrs. Tilbury for the ingredients for goulash. She reveals the American goulash is called “slumgullion.” There are reports that parachutes were found in the Channel, but there is still no sign of Colin’s brother, Simon. Lizzie spots Alan Turing and runs out to speak to him. She asks him about the possible code meaning in the word “goulash.” He tells her to think about what could be associated with the word, and this gives her a minor epiphany.

Jakob goes to meet Dilly Knox, another code breaker. Dilly knew Jakob’s father. They go for a walk and talk about the code breaking efforts he worked on during WWI; Jakob’s father was remarkably gifted at it.

Jakob asks Dilly about the Polish mathematicians Willa was working with. Dilly knows them and has great reverence for them. They had managed to build their own replica Enigma machines. They gave everything they had to the Allies, setting up everything that the Park was built on. Jakob asks if the Americans were present for any of this, but Dilly says the Americans shut down their codebreaking bureau and are very far behind. This seemingly rules out Lizzie’s theory about Willa being an American spy.

Lizzie astounds the Colonel by showing her deep understanding of the comings and goings of the Park.

Lizzie wakes Jakob from a nap in the pigeon loft. She tells him about the theory Alan Turing gave her about the associations related to goulash. They work out that it is a shared memory code. Jakob tells Lizzie that it is unlikely that the Americans’ espionage is up to date to the point where Willa will be working for them. They realize that there are more clues to follow. They also discover that Lizzie has a crush on Colin, while Jakob has a crush on Beryl.

Jakob enters Hut 11 to speak to Welchman. Turing says he met Lizzie. They are getting close to finishing Turing’s codebreaking machine. Jakob asks Turing about the Polish scientists he met in France.

Lizzie returns to the Mutton to find a postcard from Marion. Lizzie’s grandmother is looking after her. She also receives another scrap of newspaper with a crossword on it. One of the clues is underlined, which alludes to a nine-letter word describing the source of a bilious complaint. The letter is postmarked London.

Welchman is telling Jakob about the progress of the Nazis across Poland and the risk of them finding the Enigma prototypes. They were evacuated along with the mathematicians by rail. On the train, there was a woman who matched Willa’s description helping with the evacuation. They lost track of her when the evacuees had to split up and flee following the bombing of their rail station. However, there was some note on how involved she was throughout the evacuation for someone who was ostensibly just another evacuee.

Lizzie is in Colin’s room looking at the clipping she received, presuming it’s from Willa. They look up the meaning of “bilious” but don’t see any obvious clues to its meaning. Lizzie gets up to leave for the Park for a shift. Colin offers to walk with her.

Jakob is in Hut 2. It’s an hour until his midnight shift. It is nearly September 7th, a date he has divined from Willa’s goulash clue. Lizzie arrives and shows him the clipping she received. They figure out that “bilious” is a clue for “gallbladder.”

This word reminds them of a memory with their mother at the lake, making it the second shared memory clue. They realize that it’s Willa contacting them with a time, the 7th; an item she wants, the diary; and a place, which they have yet to work out. Jakob says he can’t risk going to a secret meeting, so Lizzie resolves to go alone.

Outside, Jakob tells Lizzie what he learned about the American woman on the train. Jakob suggests showing the diary to someone. Lizzie accuses him of turning on Willa. She insists on following the clues and meeting Willa.

Lizzie storms home and goes over the clues she’s gathered so far. She realizes that the message is pointing to an address in London.

Lizzie passes a note to Mr. Berrycloth to deliver to Jakob. Colin is mad at Lizzie for being absent and distant. He softens and then says that he likes her romantically. He’s also worried about her leaving to meet her mother, something that goes against Home Guard advice. He asks her to promise not to go, but she doesn’t. He leaves.

Jakob is in Hut 6. He knows that the Luftwaffe have something planned in six minutes. John and Beryl wait with him. He realizes that Lizzie is likely to try to meet their mother and rushes out. Nigel warns him that Jarvis is outside the Park, waiting for him. Jakob takes an alternate route. He climbs into the back of a pigeon delivery van.