'Broadchurch': Why Another Instalment Can Banish the Second Series Blues

The 'second album' syndrome was bound to bring a few problems and, as is the case with many follow ups to great debuts, it had some moments of high tension and nail-biting drama that just about wins out over some of the 'filler' moments that appeared (insert second episode here).

The good news is that Monday nights can be turned back over to celebrating the fact that you have embraced the start of the week and our nerves can avoid being shredded by the townsfolk of Broadchurch.

The problem is that it seems that there is more story to tell about the Dorset residents and whilst we gather our thoughts and spend some time in a darkened room to calm ourselves down, we begin to wonder, what else is there left to say?

Broadchurch's second serving has been an indifferent series at the best of times but with the paucity of high quality dramas on television at this time of year, it has been elevated in the minds of the viewer. The main problem has been the expectation levels as it tries to move on a story that seemed to reach its conclusion at the end of the first series and then went on to win awards left, right and centre.

The 'second album' syndrome was bound to bring a few problems and, as is the case with many follow ups to great debuts, it had some moments of high tension and nail-biting drama that just about wins out over some of the 'filler' moments that appeared (insert second episode here).

We have made it through though and now, as we stand atop of the Jurassic coast cliffs, the third series stretches out before us and it's glistening like the sea under the sun. It feels that now that the second instalment can be put to bed we are on the precipice of what could be unforgettable television.

It may feel that the residents of Broadchurch tied up the loose ends rather nicely but we were left with a few errant strands that are bound to form the basis of our next visit to the south coast.

It looks like it has been set up nicely for the warring lawyers Sharon Bishop (Marianne Jean-Baptiste) and Jocelyn Knight (Charlotte Rampling) to join forces to fight the conviction of the former's son after Knight dug deep enough in the case files to find an anomaly in his imprisonment.

There is the small matter of Joe Miller (Matthew Gravelle) still be out there somewhere and he will no doubt fancy seeing if all is forgiven after his extrication from the town, though the bright lights of Sheffield may keep him transfixed. He is, after all, an innocent man according to the law even though nine million of us saw him commit the crime.

DI Alec Hardy (David Tennant) is moving on to pastures new but writer and creator Chris Chibnall may give us the stressful issue of him trying to sell his caravan by the harbour. It's twee but not for everyone and after having problems with his heart, I'm sure the last thing Hardy will need is a difficult sale. Of course, there may be other plans like the reparation of his marriage that might pull at the emotional strings.

No doubt the Sandbrook case might return to bite him in the backside, unless of course this time around they have done all the police work correctly and not left the door ajar for a cold-hearted lawyer to get their foot in.

One suspects that there is more to be found out in the lives of Reverend Paul Coates (Arthur Darvill) and Twitter obsessed reporter Olly Stevens (Jonathan Bailey) as they have both tried to redefine the definition of shady with their secretive personalities and furtive glances.

This is all without the Latimers and Millers trying to rebuild their lives and Pauline Quirke's Susan Wright character waiting in the wings to bring a sinister feel to any given scene.

So it may have felt that we had to dig in deep at times to stay with the second series but now we have come through the other side we can feel pleased that we could be rewarded with a third series that will hopefully deliver the drama that brought a nation to the edges of their sofas the first time around.

As it was once said in a famous marketing campaign, the future is bright, the future is orange. This is of course unless Ellie Miller buys a different coloured waterproof coat for our next trip to sunny Dorset.

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