Who Done It

A young Philip Marlow has to confront the death of his mother, he's back at The Train Station, in the present day, Doctor Gibbon's therapy sessions seem to be paying off as Marlow's physical health improves significantly.

What a captivating final episode, it's all I hoped for and more. Some of the content is amazing, there's even a dig at Rupert Murdoch, this truly was The BBC at its very best.

The fusion of real life and fantasy works to perfection. What could have been overly complicated is straightening and somehow easy to follow.

So much glorious detail, I was at a loss to understand why Marlow was having nightmares about a scarecrow, naturally they explain it. Everything seems to be so neatly tied up and concluded here, nothing is left dangling.

Quite rightly I've praised Gambon throughout, and once again he's terrific, but I'm going to give a shout out to both Patrick Malahide and Janet Suzman, they're both fantastic, that scene where Nicola blows her top about not getting the part, amazing.

Magical.

10/10.

Six Characters in Search of an Author might have been the inspiration for the finale.

The two mysterious men ponder who they are, not even knowing their names and motivation.

Philip Marlow is getting better, but the warbling gumshoe knows it is time to call it quits from his creator.

As for his greedy estranged wife Nicola. Stealing his manuscript was not about the money. It was to get a juicy part when the film is made.

As if her boyfriend Mark Finney could persuade a Hollywood bigwig to give some unknown over the hill actress the main role.

Maybe it was the reflections of Dennis Potter, his thoughts when he was afflicted with serious bouts of psoriasis, high on medication.

Potter's exploration of lies and a media dominated by Rupert Murdoch. Just watching that scene again, where he blamed a backward boy called Binney for doing the deed. Then others in the class corroborate and collaborate with Philip's story. All too see Binney get humiliated and punished.

Maybe The Singing Detective was an acerbic look at Britain after all.