The Marlow Murder Club

Malik meets Judith, Suzie, and Becks at Maidenhead Police Station. She officially asks them to join her team as civilian advisers, explaining that the Senior Investigating Officers’ Handbook allows her to co-opt civilian experts. The position is unpaid, but they will have access to all case files. Suzie reveals she has a past criminal fraud conviction, though it was a spent suspended sentence. Malik warns them to keep quiet about it and that her team will resist their involvement.

The women cross the Incident Room under hostile stares and are given a conference room. Judith immediately asks three questions. First, Malik confirms that an expert authenticated the Rothko in Stefan’s house as genuine. Second, she reveals that the murder weapon is a World War II German Luger pistol. In response to a question from Becks, Malik discusses the medallions inscribed with “Faith,” “Hope,” and “Charity” left at each scene. Judith theorizes that three medallions for three bodies signals the murders are over and asks Malik to check if Andy Bishop is a Freemason. She also requests an officer search Iqbal’s house for a Borlasian magazine with page 74 torn out.

After Malik leaves, the women divide the case files. Becks discovers Iqbal drove Liz in his taxi two weeks before her death, and Judith notes Liz was a regular at Stefan’s gallery, linking all three victims. They find Stefan and Iqbal both attended Sir William Borlase’s School. Becks discovers an entry in Liz’s otherwise empty diary: Rowing dinner on August 5, the same day Elliot Howard argued with Stefan. Judith recalls seeing rowing photos in Elliot’s office, creating a potential link.

Malik returns and confirms Andy Bishop is a Freemason but Elliot, Stefan, and Iqbal are not. Suzie notes Iqbal’s house showed no forced entry and concludes that the killer had a key. Judith realizes Andy Bishop likely inherited Iqbal’s spare key from Ezra’s estate. Malik confirms page 74, listing the obituaries of Ezra’s will witnesses, is torn from the magazine in Iqbal’s house, giving Andy motive. She also shares that Elliot goes swimming every Monday night, including August 5, so he likely was not at the rowing dinner.

However, as they pore over the case files, they find nothing that significantly moves the case forward.

For two days, the women make no breakthroughs, rehashing clues and alibis. Their spirits flag. On Wednesday, Becks and Suzie return to their lives, leaving Judith working alone. Feeling cooped up, she goes for a swim that evening as a storm approaches.

Swimming past Stefan’s property, Judith reflects that the Luger points to Elliot while the Masonic medallions point to Andy. She realizes the river links many Marlow residents and has a breakthrough: Liz was an international rower, Elliot rowed in his youth, and Stefan argued with Elliot at the Henley Royal Regatta. Rowing might be the connection.

At home, Judith researches online but finds an article stating Stefan hated rowing and everything about it. She persists, searching for Liz and Danny’s rowing connections, but the volume of results about their rowing center obscures their competitive careers. By midnight, frustrated, she realizes school rowing careers from the 1980s predate searchable online archives. Before bed, she looks at the locked oak door, knowing she cannot delay opening it much longer. She goes to sleep hoping for a solution, and the next morning she wakes with one.

The next morning, Elliot Howard leaves his auction house for a sandwich. Judith, who has been waiting on a nearby bench, seizes her opportunity and enters. Elliot’s wife, Daisy, confronts her, hostile and accusatory. Daisy insists Judith lied about the ruined dress and claims Judith came to spy on Elliot. Despite Daisy’s protests, Judith enters Elliot’s office to inspect the framed rowing photos on the walls. Daisy follows and says she and Elliot have worked hard to be happy together, then orders Judith out. Alarmed by Daisy’s aggression, Judith retreats.

As she leaves, Judith notices a breakthrough: There is now a gap on the wall where one of the rowing photos has been removed since her last visit. Convinced rowing is the key, Judith knows she must finally open the locked room in her house.

She summons Becks and Suzie, tells them about the missing photograph and her encounter with Daisy, and explains that since online research yielded nothing, they must find physical records of Elliot’s school rowing career. She takes the key from the chain around her neck and unlocks the door.

Judith opens the door to reveal a room filled floor-to-ceiling with chaotic stacks of newspapers and magazines, held together by cobwebs. Becks is horrified by the mess and dust; Suzie is amazed. Judith reveals that the collection goes back to 1970 and that there are two more rooms of files.

Judith leads them to a second, more organized room with newspapers on metal bookcases. She outlines their task: search local papers from June and July between 1973 and 1980 for articles or photos about Elliot’s school rowing crew. The search proves difficult due to Judith’s inconsistent filing system. Becks devises a method to efficiently locate newspapers from the correct months and years.

They find extensive regatta coverage, but the articles list boat names rather than individual crew members. After two hours, Judith despairs. She takes her frustration out on Suzie, who has not contributed. Suzie reveals that she has found something significant: a 1970 copy of the Bucks Free Press with an article headlined “Marlow Woman’s Greek Tragedy,” featuring a photo of a young Judith Potts.

Suzie explains she suspected a connection between Judith’s 1970 newspaper hoard and the death of her husband, Philippos. She believes Judith is still wearing her wedding ring and hoarding newspapers because she did something wrong when Philippos died. Becks reads the article aloud: Philippos died in a boating accident in Greece, the death was considered suspicious, and a witness reported seeing a second person on the boat.

Judith confirms she insisted on a police investigation but says the witness was mistaken and the death was ruled an accident. She denies Philippos was with another woman, stating only his body was found. Upset, Judith tells Becks and Suzie to leave. They comply, leaving Judith alone in the room, staring at the old newspaper article about her husband’s death.

Judith stares at the photo of her 27-year-old self in the newspaper. While reflecting on her youth and beauty, she has a sudden realization and solves the murders.

Judith locks the archive room and methodically reviews all case information on her tablet, re-reading every web search. She finds her answer in the last article she visited: the piece about Stefan’s house. The line stating Stefan hated swimming and rowing provides the final piece. Judith now understands everything: the motives, the weapon, and the medallions.

Her phone rings. Elliot Howard confronts her about visiting his office and reveals he knows who she is. He delivers a veiled threat, saying they will not meet again. Judith bluffs that she will confront him at choir practice that evening, but Elliot states he will not be there as he is attending a football match in London.

Realizing Elliot is establishing an alibi, Judith calls Andy Bishop’s office. The receptionist confirms Andy is away in Plymouth for the night. Judith understands the truth: she is the intended fourth victim, and the attempt on her life will be that night.

That evening, a severe storm breaks over Marlow. Judith decides to use herself as bait to catch the killer. She devises a plan involving Suzie and Becks but withholds information to protect them. Suzie is positioned across the river to signal the killer’s arrival by canoe; Becks waits at the police station to alert Malik at the right moment. Just before 9:00, Suzie signals that the killer has arrived. Judith hears glass smash inside her house.

In Malik’s car, Becks reveals Judith’s plan as they race to the scene. They find Ferry Lane blocked by a massive fallen oak tree. Malik’s car skids to a stop with its rear wheel hanging over the river.

Inside Judith’s house, she confronts the intruder, identifying him as Danny Curtis, Liz’s husband, who is holding a Luger pistol. Judith stalls for time by outlining his resentment of Liz’s superior rowing career. Danny shoots at her but misses, shattering the window behind her.

Suzie calls Becks, who explains they are blocked. Becks tells Suzie to cross the river, but Suzie reveals she cannot swim. Becks runs to All Saints Church, grabs a ceremonial sword, runs up the bell tower, rings the alarm bell, and cuts down a long bell rope. She rallies the choir members, including her husband Colin, to carry the rope to Malik. They attach it to the oak tree and Becks’s vehicle, but the tree is too massive to move.

Judith continues stalling Danny, revealing her full theory: Danny, Elliot, and Andy were on a school rowing team together and reconnected at a reunion dinner on August 5. They agreed to kill for each other to create unbreakable alibis, using a single gun and medallions as misdirection. Danny killed Stefan for Elliot, Elliot killed Iqbal for Andy, and Andy killed Liz for Danny.

Suzie, realizing she is Judith’s only hope, attempts to cross the storm-swollen river. She is swept away and pulled underwater, but Emma the Doberman rescues her.

Danny raises his gun again. Judith throws her empty travel sweet tin at his face, creating a cloud of icing sugar. She stabs Danny in the arm with a sharpened pencil, making him drop the gun. Danny retaliates by throwing a card table at her, knocking her down, then recovers the gun and points it at her head. Emma bursts through the broken window, attacks Danny, and pins him to the floor. Becks and police officers arrive and secure the weapon. Suzie appears at the window, alive. The police arrest Danny.

DS Malik arrives and explains that Becks ringing the church bell summoned two hundred townspeople, whose combined effort with the car moved the tree. Judith tells Malik to arrest Elliot and Andy, explaining their alibis were part of the plan. Suzie explains Emma rescued her from drowning and then saved Judith. Judith apologizes for acting alone and pours them all whisky.

A few days later, on a sunny Sunday morning, Judith invites Suzie and Becks for a celebratory outing. They meet at her boathouse, where she has prepared a punt with a picnic basket for a trip to a riverside pub. Judith expertly poles the punt onto the river, trailing a bottle of champagne in the water to cool it. The friends recount their heroic acts from the night of the storm.

Becks asks why Elliot stole the frame from the Rothko. Judith explains that when she interrupted him, Elliot was swapping his forgery for the real painting. To avoid leaving forensic evidence on his forgery, he had to put the real, frameless painting back on the wall. He later burned both the forgery and the original frame.

Judith expertly navigates a bend using the current. Suzie confronts her, noting her surprising expertise with boats. Suzie directly accuses Judith of being the second person on Philippos’s boat the day he died and speculates Judith either let him drown or pushed him overboard. Becks is horrified and asks if it is true.

Judith looks at her friends, realizes she can trust them, and replies with a twinkle in her eye that she could not possibly comment, implicitly confirming the accusation. She then offers everyone champagne.