Marcella: The Story So Far, And The Two Big Questions We Need Series Three To Answer

Anna Friel is back in action as troubled detective Marcella in ITV’s crime drama this week – except, she’s sort of not.

The third series sees the character take on a new identity after being presumed dead following the shocking events in the 2018 finale.

While the announcement of a new run of episodes came as something of a surprise to many, after the second series experienced a slump in traditional TV viewers, the show has seen its popularity soar on Netflix thanks to binge-watching during the pandemic.

As a refresher ahead of Marcella’s return to ITV, here’s a wrap up of everything that’s happened so far, and the questions we’re still in search of answers to...

Marcella is returning for a third series

What happened in series one of Marcella?

The first series of Marcella aired on ITV back in 2016 and focussed on an 11-year-old case of a serial killer who had suddenly become active again.

After returning to the murder squad following a career break, Marcella was assigned the case to investigate. Matters became complicated when she began to suspect she could somehow be involved in the murders, having been suffering from blackouts that caused memory loss.

Marcella's fugue states were a key plot point of both series of the show

However, the series finale saw the son of a construction company owner, Henry Gibson (the brother of murdered Grace Gibson, who herself had been having an affair with Marcella’s husband Jason), revealed as the serial killer.

The shock scenes saw him take best friend Matthew Neil hostage in his wine cellar, in an attempt to frame him for his crimes.

After Marcella arrived at Henry’s house, to find he had also stabbed her husband Jason, he admitted to the killings.

Henry Gibson was unveiled as the serial killer

But in a twist, Marcella had another of her blackouts, and came round to find she had tied him up and tried to suffocate him with a bag over his head – the same method he had used to kill some of his victims.

Realising what she had done, she gave him resuscitation, but her actions had compromised the police investigation, forcing her to find alternative evidence to hold him...

Continue reading on HuffPost