Inspector George Gently (2007) s01e01 Episode Script
The Burning Man
1 Sir? It's Sunday.
The day of rest.
Not anymore.
Single bullet to the head.
There's nothing left of him.
Or her.
Well let's hope whoever it was went to the dentist.
Why did those lads leave it till this morning? Oh, they'd been drinking.
I think they were pretty shook up.
Sir.
Well, you're in charge till I get back.
Why? Where are you going? Fishing.
Well, in charge of what? There's nothing to do until we get the lab report back, and that won't be till tomorrow.
Exactly.
I thought I'd go round these lads' houses and scare the living daylights out of them.
You know, for driving under the influence and that.
Harassment? No.
Friendly advice, that's all.
Why? Did they break a law? No, but -- Stay at your desk.
Wait for a phone call.
From who? A wife, a girlfriend, a mother, a father, husband.
Any-bloody-body.
Don't see the point in drowning worms.
E-M-P-T-O-N.
Yes, sir.
Have you got a map? Where am I exactly? And where is RAF Huxford? I see.
Have my luggage sent up.
Pronto.
Catch anything? Did you ever hear of Zen, Sergeant? Yeah.
Yeah, it's a fish of prey.
Brook Bond PG Tips Fish Of Europe.
I collected the whole set.
That's Zander.
Zen is a form of meditation.
Oh, I see.
So you stood in cold water all day thinking about catching a fish.
Phone ring? Nope.
What, nobody called in to report a missing person? No.
Preliminary lab report -- definitely male.
And the bullet came from a.
38 Webley.
And the victim's body was burned after he was shot.
Uh-huh.
Leaving nothing behind but the contents of his stomach.
Dental records? That's going to take a while.
And what were the contents of his stomach? A meal of egg, chips, prepared starch, and coffee.
And why the silly grin, Sergeant? Egg and chips.
What does that tell you? What does it tell you? Well, the body was found near the A1.
Right? So while I was waiting here pointlessly for my phone to ring, I used yours.
Checked on every transport café in a 50-mile radius.
Am I supposed to be impressed? There was something else in his stomach.
He swallowed a ring? Uh-huh.
And if you look closely, you'll see it has the name "Wanda" inscribed on the inside.
Halfway up the A1's a place called The Rook.
The Proprietress is Wanda Christine Lane.
Do you know, sometimes, you show actual promise.
15 minutes was all I needed, guv.
Bang.
Solved.
You should drown worms more often.
And then you go and spoil it.
Right then.
Shall we go? I quite fancy egg and chips.
Who put this on my desk? Desk sergeant.
Wanda will have to wait.
You stay back.
Good morning.
Commander Empton, I presume.
Good morning.
Do you know who I am? I would guess Gently of the Yard, as was.
Now it's Gently of where are we exactly? It's an act of courtesy, an act of common courtesy, to come and introduce yourself to the head of CID.
And yet all I get is a note put across my desk with no explanation.
I'm terribly sorry, old boy.
Explanation of what exactly? You're on my patch, and I would like you to tell me what you're doing here.
Having a holiday.
I hear the fishing is very good up here.
Did you get a good look? Who is he? His name's Empton.
He's Special Branch.
Special Branch? What are they doing here? Stay on him.
I want to know where he goes and who he meets.
You want me to follow another police officer? Mm-hmm.
Is that kosher? In this case, yes.
Why? Because I know Empton by reputation, and he's a complete bastard.
Hey, hey.
What about Wanda Lane? She's my lead.
I found her.
I'll give her your regards.
Oh, man.
See you later.
Yeah, bye.
Can I get you something? Tea.
Anything to eat? Biscuits? Cake? Do egg and chips? The kitchen's closed, but for a nice-looking fella like you No, don't go to any trouble.
Oh, it's no trouble.
Bye, fellas.
Tea will be fine.
See you later.
You're the boss.
Yes, that's right, sir.
Thank you.
So what brings you here? You don't look like a lorry driver or a traveling salesman.
What do I look like? A professor.
Or a distinguished novelist.
In fact, I'm a policeman.
I'm investigating a suspicious death.
How fascinating.
A murder, in fact.
Who? I don't know, Mrs.
Lane.
But he had a ring with your name on it.
Ruairi? I'm sorry? Ruairi? Ruairi O'Connell.
Don't be sorry.
Why should I care? If he meant so little to you, why the ring? I didn't know he still wore it.
It was over a long time ago.
There was a time when I thought But then I realized it was just sex.
Ruairi wanted me for sex, Mister Gently.
Gently.
A wonderful name for a lover.
A lot of men want me for sex, Mr.
Gently.
Do you find that surprising? When did you last see him? Last week.
I hate you, Ruairi.
One more time.
Make me feel good.
I like sex, Mr.
Gently.
Don't you? I'd like you to come down to the station and make a statement on the record.
I need a few minutes.
You know any good pubs? Uh So How is G.
G.
these days? Still the pillar of rectitude? Well, yeah, he is.
Hey, where did you learn to play like that? The East End.
I went undercover for six months infiltrating a protection racket.
Really? Yeah.
Wow.
Even with that accent? Oh, don't be fooled.
I was born in a gutter.
You see this man because this is the man I want people to see.
Mrs.
Lane? Like what you see? Get dressed, will you? You don't like what you see? Mrs.
Lane.
You're lonely, aren't you? I know men.
I can read them like a book.
You're lonely.
Like I am.
You're married.
Is that the problem? She died.
Mr.
Gently.
What? How did Ruairi die? He was shot.
And then somebody poured petrol over his body and set light to it.
I'm sorry.
What about you? What's a smart guy like you doing stuck here? Well waiting for a better offer, really.
We should talk.
Maybe I can help.
Me? In Special Branch? Even with my great undercover skills? I'm afraid you owe me another large one.
Two more.
No problem.
Any unexplained bodies turned up recently, John? I can't Quite right.
You keep shtum.
You did what?! It was just a game of darts.
It seemed like the best plan.
What did you talk to him about? Nothing.
His work.
You.
Me? Not really.
What did he ask you? What did he ask you about? Um He asked about dead bodies.
And you told him to mind his own business? I don't see it matters.
He's a policeman.
Oh, this is funny.
This is funny.
What's funny? It's funny that you don't look stupid! Why exactly are you in such a Paddy? Has something happened? Wanda Lane is in the interview room.
It appears that the dead man answered to the name of Ruairi O'Connell.
I want you to take a statement from her.
Have another officer present.
Preferably female.
What about you? I want you to do it.
Find out all you can about her and about him.
He was Irish.
Find out how Irish.
Find out if he's political.
You mean IRA? Must be a reason that Empton's here.
It's not a coincidence.
Do you think she killed him? I don't know.
But where are you gonna be? Sir, you said to tell you straightaway of any missing person reports.
Bloke called O'Shaughnessy hasn't shown up at work or home for 36 hours now.
O'Shaughnessy? Yes, sir.
His daughter's at the front desk.
Where does he work? RAF Huxford, sir.
Ah.
Bring her in.
Mrs.
Lane.
I'm Detective Sergeant Bacchus.
I'm going to be taking a statement from you about Ruairi O'Connell.
Where's Mr.
Gently? He's busy.
So what's your name? I've just told you my name.
No, your first name.
You can call me Wanda.
Mrs.
Lane, I'm questioning you about a murder.
I'm not asking you out on a date.
You have very bad manners, like a lot of young chaps these days.
Right! Talk to me about Ruairi O'Connell.
Time's come for me to disappear.
I'm going to America.
He was a customer.
Do you give all your customers eternity rings, Mrs.
Lane? Only the nice ones.
What's in the box? Something I need to leave here for a few days.
Why leave it here? Because I know I can trust you.
Put it somewhere safe.
A man's been shot and burned, but you don't seem bothered.
Mr.
Bacchus you don't know what I think or feel.
What did he do for a living? He drove a van delivering things long distance.
Who did he work for? A man called Alan Madsen.
Arrow Auto Deliveries.
And where can I find him? In the phone book? So the last time you saw your father was when he left for work at RAF Huxford on Saturday, day before yesterday.
Has he gone missing before? No.
And he reached RAF Huxford? Yeah.
And he went for a drink in the mess afterwards.
But he didn't come home.
I think something's happened to him.
Don't worry too much just yet.
Most missing persons turn up.
Does he have a friend called Ruairi O'Connell? No.
Do you know a man by that name? No.
Well I work in the Irish Club.
I think there might be a bloke called that sometimes comes in.
Miss O'Shaughnessy, I can't help you find your father if you lie to me.
Why are you asking about Ruairi O'Connell? Because Ruairi O'Connell has been murdered.
Murdered? And your father's disappeared.
It could, of course, be a complete coincidence.
Is it? And I can easily imagine Wanda Lane putting a bullet in any man's head.
Talk about a vampire.
So she told you absolutely nothing about Ruairi O'Connell.
No.
Said he never said a word about what he did, where he went, what his politics were.
Believe her? No.
Think she killed him? No.
No, I don't.
I'll tell you why, right? This murder was planned.
First a bullet, then the destruction of the body.
Why? I don't know.
Do you? Well, no, no.
Now, if that's what you're gonna do, you don't leave the one piece of evidence that's gonna link you to the crime, a ring with your name on it.
Whatever else she is, she's not stupid.
So? So did it ever occur to you that somebody might be trying to frame her? Yes, it did occur to me.
Right.
What are we looking at? We are looking at RAF Huxford.
Why? What did O'Shaughnessy's daughter tell you? Lies and evasions.
Do you think there's a connection? Oh, I know there is.
Well, shall we go down there then? No.
I want to go to Arrow Auto Deliveries first.
Hang on.
Who is it? Nobody.
Hey.
What you playing at? Alan Madsen? Aye.
What's this, like? We've come to ask you a few questions about Ruairi O'Connell.
Oh.
He's not here at the minute.
We know that.
Do you know where he is? Glasgow.
Why? Doing what? He's delivering spares to some workshop.
When's he due back? When he feels like it.
Why yous asking? He comes and goes, does he? It's a delivery business, man.
Is he a friend, as well as an employee? We go for a drink sometimes, chase women.
Ruairi O'Connell's been murdered.
There's a sizeable Irish community in the area.
Did Ruairi spend much time among them? He drank in the Irish Club sometimes.
So did I.
I'm not a Paddy.
I just like the music.
No special friends there? No.
No.
Ruairi was a loner.
Where did he live? Well, you're going to find this hard to believe, but I don't know where Ruairi lives.
Lived.
Yeah, you're right.
I do find that hard to believe.
After a night at the Irish Club, where did he go? He'd drop me off and disappear.
You never asked him? Didn't ask Ruairi questions.
Ah, this is bullshit.
Where did the tax man think he lived? Here, maybe, with me.
Here? I don't think the tax man knew much about Ruairi.
Well, tax evasion's a criminal offense, pal, and you're his employer, and you're gonna be for the high jump if you haven't kept proper records of his wages, right?! Did he know a man called O'Shaughnessy? Oh, him? Walter Mitty.
Walter Mitty? Some pathetic flake of codshite that drinks in the Irish Club.
Tells people he's the IRA's number one quartermaster.
And? That guy's never been to Ireland.
Knows the words to all the songs though.
Know the sort I mean, don't you? And they were mates, were they? No.
You're joking, aren't you? Ruairi couldn't stand him.
Mr.
Madsen, did Ruairi have a gun? No.
How do you know? Well, I never saw him with a gun.
He never talked about having -- why would he have a gun? This bottle of J40 Oil, what do you use it for? I don't.
It belonged to Ruairi.
Well, what did Ruairi use it for? Greasing tools? I don't know.
May I? Thank you.
One more question, Mr.
Madsen.
How long have you employed Ruairi O'Connell for? Uh two years? Yeah, two years.
Right, well, thank you.
Stay in the area please.
We will want to talk to you again.
Oh, no.
No, n-no.
I've got runs to make.
Hey.
He's just told you.
Thank you.
I didn't believe a single word that man was talking about -- When they gave you that warrant card, it gave you quite a lot of authority.
The right to enter people's places of work, their homes, the right to question them.
It did not give you the right to be impolite.
And it most certainly did not give you the right to be a bully.
You were very "polite" to Wanda Lane, weren't you? Yes, I was.
Yeah.
Very attractive woman all right.
"Very attractive woman.
" What does that mean? Why didn't you want to question her yourself? How come I'm suddenly deemed competent enough to take a statement for you? I mean, I half expected to see pigs flying past the window.
She tried to seduce me.
And? What do you mean "and"? Well, I'd have said yes.
Oh.
That was a joke.
She's a bit too old for me.
She's a bit too young for you.
Hey, sir.
Chocks away.
Bandits, 9:00, sir.
Pranged me bally kite in the soup, sir.
It doesn't give you the right to take the mickey either.
Sorry, sir.
O'Shaughnessy, O'Shaughnessy.
Have we got an O'Shaughnessy, Rupert? Yes, Squadron Leader.
Works in Stores.
Never a flier, then? No, sir.
Clerk.
Ah.
Johnny Stamplicker, eh? What's your business with him? He's been reported missing, sir.
Oh.
Let's go and have a look then, shall we? Shall I take them, sir? No, no.
No, the exercise will do me good.
Don't worry about this.
Lost an argument with a Messerschmitt.
Me own fault.
Couldn't find reverse.
I couldn't help noticing, sir.
No airplanes.
Airplanes? Good God, no.
Last Spitfire flew away six years ago.
We're being slowly mothballed.
Death by a thousand cuts.
Don't ask me who'll protect England if the Russians ever arrive.
No, we handle the RAF's supplies for the North of England.
We're all stamp lickers now.
Soon they won't even need us for that.
You see service, Chief Inspector? Yes, sir, I did.
Thought so.
Podmore's the chap we're looking for.
Salt of the earth.
Podmore? Where the devil is he? Sir! At ease, Podmore.
This is Detective Chief Inspector Gently and his Sergeant, Mr.
Bacchus.
Tell them whatever they want to know.
Sir.
I'm looking for Mr.
O'Shaughnessy.
Can you tell me where he is? No, sir.
When did you last see him? Two nights ago.
In the mess, sir.
About 9:00.
This was after your duties were finished then? Yes, sir.
And he'd reported for work that day as normal? Sir.
How did he seem? Usual self, sir.
Go on.
He got a phone call in the mess, sir.
Seemed to flummox him a little bit, and off he went.
Any idea who called? No, sir.
Was he involved in any criminal activities? Just answer, Podmore.
I don't understand the question, sir.
Well, you see, he's gone missing.
I'm looking for a reason.
No idea, sir.
Do you know what J40 oil is, Flight Sergeant? Lubricant, sir, heavy machinery.
It is blue, isn't it? Yes, sir.
Yeah.
Not yellow.
So, have you any idea what this is? Well, that's a different oil, sir.
Um, that's what we, uh, use -- we use for, uh For cleaning guns.
Do you stock it? We got a big drum of it.
Did you pour some of it into this bottle? Or did perhaps Mr.
O'Shaughnessy do so? He could have done, sir.
If you lie to me at all from this point forward, it will go very badly for you.
He did, sir, yeah.
I saw him doing it.
Did O'Shaughnessy possess a handgun? Say a Webley.
38? I honestly don't know, sir, but I can't think of any other reason why he'd want to fill that bottle.
Did he ever mention a man called Ruairi O'Connell? Talked about him nonstop, sir.
Said he was like a brother.
Used to bore me to death with it all.
With all of what? All that bollocks about Ireland.
Pardon my French, Squadron Leader.
Carry on.
About how they were going to drive the British into the sea.
It was just talk, sir.
And weapons pass through this place all the time? All the time, sir.
Such as? At the moment, sir, Sten guns.
Twelve crates.
144 weapons.
Show me.
They're in a secure room, sir.
O'Shaughnessy has the key.
That's really secure, that.
I swear to God, sir.
I-I didn't know.
I had no idea.
You're a disgrace to your uniform, man.
Have you finished with him? For the present.
Wait for me in my office.
My sincere apologies.
I will of course do what my duty requires me to.
Duty? It's a bit late for duty, isn't it? Who are these idiots? He means he'll resign his post.
Well, what's the point in that now? Because when you're the man in charge, you can never say "I didn't know.
" It's your job to know.
He's a serviceman, not some oily politician.
Well, those Sten guns could be in Donegal by now.
So could O'Shaughnessy.
So what do we do now then? We're going to do what I should have done this morning.
Well, George.
I knew you'd be back.
Did Ruairi O'Connell live here, Mrs.
Lane? Why don't we forget about Ruairi? We should always keep our eyes on the future, don't you think? Oh, the young Turk, too.
My cup runneth over.
Both of them? Also look for smelly socks, shaving foam, toilet seats that are up, that kind of stuff.
You go up there.
Right, you in there.
You two in here.
Contraceptive sheathes, used or otherwise.
What's in the box? Something I need to leave here for a few days.
Well, at least I'll be seeing you one more time, eh? No.
Someone else will be picking it up.
Put it somewhere safe.
Why don't you try them on, Sergeant? You'd look good in black.
Will I be seeing you again? Oh, you can count on it.
Did Ruairi ever mention a man called O'Shaughnessy? No.
But then Ruairi was a man of very few words, George.
"Stay.
" "Sit.
" "Beg.
" "Kneel.
" "Here.
" "Now.
" "Goodbye.
" Do you know who killed Ruairi O'Connell? No.
Can you think of any reason why anybody would want me to think that you did it? None whatever.
Right.
Come on, lads.
Mr.
Gently? You have a visitor.
What do you think you're doing? Questioning my prisoner.
Your prisoner? If you don't like it, you can take your bellyaching to the Chief Constable.
The Branch have got an interest in this case now.
You're free to stay and watch.
John.
Mr.
Madsen is going to explain to me why he's been lying about O'Connell, aren't you? I'm not lying.
Mr.
Madsen has just told me that he saw Ruairi O'Connell at the workshop at 1:00 A.
M.
on the 20th.
Does that sound likely to you, John? He was already dead.
So why are you lying? He came into the workshop, started up his van, and he drove away.
Why are you lying? Don't act stupid.
Talk.
Hang on, hang on.
You were where? In bed.
In your room above the workshop, yeah? So you got up, you went downstairs, and you saw him? No.
I heard him.
You never said "heard," you idiot.
You said "saw.
" You don't get up when somebody comes into the workshop, takes a van in the middle of the night? We always do it.
He had to have the stuff in Glasgow for half past 7:00, man.
What was in that van, Mr.
Madsen? That's enough! Enough.
You know perfectly well what was in that van.
The question is who drove it away? And I can tell you that.
It was a man called O'Shaughnessy.
Oh.
"A man called O'Shaughnessy.
" You know, I really do admire you local boys.
There's no flies on you.
Although you can sometimes see where they've been.
Did Ruairi O'Connell get a visit from a stranger in the last few weeks? There was some bloke who came in to the workshop.
He was looking for Ruairi.
What did he look like? Tall.
Gray hair.
Did he find him? I don't know.
I told him to come back at night and try the Irish Club.
Let him go.
Fancy a drink later, John? Um I'm not sure, really.
Well, you know where I'll be.
You can go.
I'm sorry.
You didn't mind that? Somebody's running Sten guns to the IRA to shoot British soldiers.
I don't mind if somebody gets slapped as long as we find out who it is.
Empton knew about O'Shaughnessy long before we did.
I want to know how and why.
Let him make a fool of you if you like.
He's not going to make a fool out of me.
I think you've got him wrong, actually.
Really? We'll see.
I don't get any of this.
What do the Paddies want to shoot the Brits for in the first place? Catholics believe quite strongly in a united Ireland, Sergeant.
But we gave them most of it back.
Does it really matter if we kept a bit for the Proddies to live in? It does to the IRA, yes.
Yeah, but most of them are in prison, aren't they? Are they? Why don't you ask your friend, Commander Empton? And while you're at it, ask him if he ever met Ruairi O'Connell? And when he came to Ballymo he stole the Parson's car And he gave it to the Bishop in the town of Mullingar Seven hundred Peelers couldn't catch him The Chief sent out the order for the lashing And when he came to Dublin town he stole an armored car And he gave it to the IRA brigade in Mullingar Thanks for coming, China.
How's life? Ah, fair to muddling, Mr.
Gently.
Fair to muddling.
That fella I shook hands with is O'Shaughnessy's cousin.
Known him all his life.
Both born and bred in South Shields.
They sing the old songs.
They even go around collecting money for the boys over the water.
But guns? I doubt it.
This is fantasy Ireland, Mr.
Gently.
Nuts and bolts.
How many houses? Hi.
Will you excuse us? John.
How are you? Glad you could come.
If I overstepped the mark today -- Ah.
Gently's the kind of bloke that gets under my skin.
He's a damn fine cop, I know that, but times change, and people must change with them.
Here's to the war.
Which war's that? The war we'll have to win against the IRA.
Ah, right.
The war the politicians don't seem to have noticed.
Did you ask about Ruairi O'Connell? He came in now and then, had a few pints.
Nobody seems to know much about him, Mr.
Gently.
That's what I'm learning.
He seems to have lived an invisible life.
I don't know where he lived.
I haven't even got a photograph of him.
You got a wife? Yeah, yeah.
That was a pretty good show today.
I thought Madsen was lying.
It took you to show me he was just stupid.
See, I just think What? I just think we should be working together.
I mean, we're all coppers, aren't we? The thing about working for the Branch, John -- when you first appear, the locals feel threatened.
Why? Because 9 times out of 10, they're little people.
Which is why it's been refreshing to meet you.
I agree.
We should all be pulling together.
Okay.
I take it you've heard nothing from your father? No.
Nothing.
And you've still no reason for his disappearance? No.
Did Ruairi O'Connell come in here much? I told you.
Sometimes.
He liked the coach trips to the rugby.
Is Ruairi in that photograph? Yeah.
They're all on it.
There's me father on the end.
Which one's Ruairi? Ruairi's the one standing next to him.
So, that's Ruairi.
The one with his face hidden.
Who took the photograph? Billy, the Steward.
So tell me, did you ever meet Ruairi O'Connell? No.
Next question.
Well, in that case, how did you know about O'Shaughnessy? How did you know about the guns? I can see I'm going to have to be completely frank with you, John.
Aye, let's see.
England versus Ireland at Twickenham.
Murdered them.
Them? The Brits.
I see.
Funny, isn't it, this? Photo after photo, but Ruairi's never -- Ah! Got you, you bugger.
St.
Patrick's Day last year.
Ruairi O'Connell.
That's him on the right with his arm round Carmel.
Do you mind if I ask, is there some reason why Ruairi O'Connell has his arm around Carmel O'Shaughnessy? Bugger for the lasses, Ruairi.
Well, owt else, just give us a shout.
Well? That's Ruairi all right.
But not Ruairi O'Connell.
That's Ruairi MacLeish.
Ruairi MacLeish Border Campaign.
The IRA's top marksmen.
They called him The Sniper.
He had a sister.
She was interned.
She died in jail.
Story was she committed suicide.
What happened to MacLeish after the Border Campaign finished? He vanished off the face of the earth.
How long ago was this, China? Oh, two or three years ago.
So, two years ago, Ruairi MacLeish vanished in Ireland and Ruairi O'Connell turns up in England.
Good morning.
Right.
Talk me through it.
I just had a few too much to drink.
Not you, the case.
Tell me what we've found out so far.
Oh, right.
Uh Well, we know that Ruairi O'Connell was shot, and then his body was burned beyond recognition.
There's no luck with dental records yet.
So the ring's the only thing that identifies him, and that leads us to Wanda Lane, who may or may not have had personal motives for wanting him dead.
Uh Shortly after the murder, somebody drove Ruairi's van away from the workshop.
Well, that's if Madsen's telling the truth, which I think he is.
Is Madsen a suspect? Uh He has to be, really.
Although, again, there's no known motive.
Uh, Ruairi O'Connell could have been involved with gunrunning with O'Shaughnessy, and he hasn't been seen since shortly before the murder, making him our prime suspect.
And that's the question.
Where is O'Shaughnessy now? I think he's in the mortuary.
Correct.
What do you mean "correct"? That's what Empton thinks.
He told me last night.
You were going to share this with me.
Well, yeah, if you'd given me a chance, sir.
And Ruairi O'Connell? Where does Empton think he is? Um What else did Empton tell you? He, um He asked me not to share everything just yet.
What did Empton tell you about Ruairi O'Connell?! He thinks he's on a boat to America.
A boat to America.
Well.
Let me tell you what I've learned while you were sitting there letting Empton blow smoke in your face.
Ruairi O'Connell never existed.
The man who persuaded O'Shaughnessy to help him steal 144 Sten guns is Ruairi MacLeish, hard-line IRA soldier on active service.
But I suppose your friend Empton never mentioned that, am I right? Eh? MacLeish? What else did he tell you? Nothing.
He -- He -- I'm sorry, guv, I -- Sorry.
Why -- Why don't you think? Why would Empton share certain pieces of information with you and not others? I don't know.
Because his real intention is to blow smoke in my face, not yours! Do you really think that he could be bothered to share one jot of real information with a junior Sergeant on a provincial force? Use your brains, will you? Okay, so what now? I need O'Shaughnessy's dental records.
Get somebody onto that urgently.
I want absolute proof that the body in that field is O'Shaughnessy's.
Can you get on the phone and chase O'Shaughnessy's dental records? Aye, I'm onto it.
Now.
Please.
Right, don't have a cow.
Why did he say that Ruairi was on a boat to America? Don't know.
So he's either guessing or bluffing or lying.
Why didn't you go home? Why are you sleeping on your desk? Look, look, sir.
Listen, I do my job, and I do it well.
Well, that's debatable at the moment.
The rest is my business.
When you turn up to work looking like that, it is my business.
Get yourself cleaned up.
We're going to pay a call on Carmel O'Shaughnessy.
Why? Because when I asked her about her father's disappearance last night, she couldn't look me in the face.
And she told me that she hardly knew the man called Ruairi O'Connell and it turns out that they were sweet on each other.
She's been lying to me from the start.
Let's find out why.
Carmel.
Why don't you tell us the truth about Ruairi and your dad, Carmel? I don't see why it matters.
It matters because we have reason to believe that the body in the field was not, after all, that of Ruairi O'Connell.
Look me dad's just a little man who wants the world to look up to him.
He s-started nicking things from the base.
Selling them to people.
I don't even think it was for the money.
It was just -- you know, he loved to be able to say to people, "I can get you this, I can do that for you.
" What sort of stuff? Stupid stuff mainly.
I mean, who wants parachute silk, honestly? Who wants a box of screwdrivers, drums of oil? Did he sell this stuff at the Irish Club? Yeah, sometimes.
Is that how he met Ruairi? Actually, he met Ruairi through me.
Did Ruairi ask you to introduce him to your father? Yeah.
Oh Go on.
What happened then? That's when the problems started.
Ruairi had bigger ideas.
I think that frightened me dad.
They started knocking quite big things off.
Ruairi would take them away on his trips, sell them, then split the money with me dad.
Then, of course, he couldn't back out.
He'd lose face.
and he was in awe of Ruairi 'cause Ruairi was proper Irish, a bit mysterious.
Did you find him mysterious, Carmel? Billy told me you saw the photo.
And? I loved Ruairi.
I loved him with all me heart.
Ruairi seemed to you everything your father could never be.
Ruairi was the real thing, wasn't he, Carmel? Where is he, Carmel? Where's Ruairi? He's dead.
You told me so yourself the other day.
Where is he, Carmel? He's dead! He's dead.
Did you notice anybody unusual, any, you know, strangers hanging around the Irish Club past couple of weeks? There was a tall, slim bloke with gray hair in the club a couple of weeks back.
I don't know who he was.
I only ever saw him that once.
The guy that Madsen says was looking for Ruairi.
Mm-hmm.
Was he asking about Ruairi? Bought himself a drink and asked if Ruairi was in.
Next time I looked over, they were both gone.
We will be carrying out further forensic tests on the body in the field.
But I think you should prepare yourself for some bad news, Carmel.
See the suitcase? Yeah, I did, yeah.
What do you think? Drive round the block.
I'll tell you in a minute.
She's making sure we're leaving.
I think shes gonna run away with the man that she thinks is Ruairi O'Connell.
Ruairi MacLeish.
I think he's faked his own death and left us a body in a field with Wanda Lane's ring so that we identify that as him.
So why wasn't the ring on the finger? Because because he didn't want it destroyed in the blaze.
Go on.
Meaning that Ruairi killed Carmel's dad.
Has to be.
Maybe Ruairi thought that he was going to crack under the pressure and go and talk to the police.
Because this is a man who's one minute nicking spanners, and the next, he's gunrunning.
Yeah.
Have armed men standing by.
I'll let you know where when I know myself.
Roger that, sir.
You don't buy me story, do you? No.
Which bit? If the body's not Ruairi, who else could Carmel possibly think it is except her dad? Are you telling me she's running away with the man who killed her father? What kind of person would do that? A woman.
Women are different.
Besides, who else could she be going to meet? What's the matter? I think we're being followed.
Or are they following Carmel? Ah, he's gone.
Yeah.
Here we go.
Oi! Hey! You stay right there! Drop the suitcase! Hands above your head now! Would you like to introduce us to your friend, Carmel? Sorry, Dad.
They must've followed me.
O'Shaughnessy? He's innocent.
He didn't know what he was getting involved in.
Ruairi was just using him.
Quiet, pet.
It'll all have to come out one way or another.
Get down! Aah! Dad?! Dad! Stay down.
Oh, sir, he's still breathing.
Stay low.
Can he survive, do you think? Not a chance.
Have you seen this sort of stuff before? On many Italian beaches.
I mean, that stuff in the back of his head.
Part of his brain.
High velocity round, fired by an expert sniper.
Ruairi MacLeish.
Yes.
Which brings us to this.
If the burned body wasn't Ruairi, and he wasn't O'Shaughnessy, who the hell was he? Um I need to be open with you about something.
Empton -- despite what you might think of him -- he thinks I should put in a transfer for the Branch.
Does he? Yeah.
Yeah, he does.
And he thinks I stand a good chance and all.
Based on what? Well, he says I remind him of him when he was my age.
Is there some reason why you're telling me this? I need to know if you're going to stand in my way or not.
No, I'm not going to stand in your way, Sergeant.
If that's what you want.
My dad died on the operating table.
Oh, Carmel.
I'm sorry.
Sir.
Mr.
Empton is here, as requested.
Fabulous.
Send him to my office.
He's already in there, sir.
Well, you made a right balls-up of that, didn't you, Gently? Our only witness dead.
Splendid work.
You better start talking to me.
Yes, you're right.
I can see the time has come for me to be completely frank with you.
If I tell you a story about John Bull in his glory, will you promise not to speak in the middle of it? The situation in the Six Counties can't sustain indefinitely.
The Protestants rule the roost, and the Catholics live like pigs, Sans houses, sans decent jobs, sans a meaningful vote in many cases.
Until our political masters wake up and do something about it, we have a disaffected populace that actively and tacitly supports the gunmen.
Men like Ruairi MacLeish.
Oh, Congratulations, you found him out.
No thanks to you.
Good old-fashioned legwork, eh? So what's the story about Ruairi MacLeish? This is you and him.
Three years ago.
You told me you'd never met him.
In this job, John, you tell people only what you need them to know and only when you need them to know it.
What are you saying exactly? Ruairi was useful to us during the Border Campaign.
Very useful.
We made some important arrests.
He gave you names.
Yes.
Why? In return for certain considerations.
Money? Not exactly.
You mean you blackmailed him.
This is a dirty little business we're in over there, Chief Inspector.
He had a sister.
In fact, she had no Republican connections, but her name somehow got onto a list during the last round of internments and she found herself in prison.
I was able to help her out.
No, you mean you framed her and then promised to let her go if Ruairi gave you the names of his IRA comrades.
But she died, didn't she? How come? Well, she wasn't a strong individual.
Before we had the chance to release her, she took her own life.
So then Ruairi MacLeish disappears.
Why? Did the IRA suspect he was a traitor? No.
They never suspected him.
Not Ruairi MacLeish.
Not The Sniper himself.
So, still on active service, he turns up a few months later in my town, where he goes undercover and eventually finds a way to steal enough guns to arm a brigade of Republicans for the next campaign.
Correct.
And you just happened to find him.
Sort of.
How, exactly? The Branch had a tip-off, a phone call.
Who from? I don't know.
It didn't come to me.
But whoever dealt with it clearly thought it was barely worth investigating, So they sent a very inexperienced officer to have a look around.
The guy that Madsen and Carmel both saw.
The one that found Ruairi in the Irish Club.
I assume so, yes.
What happened to him? Well, that's what I'm here to find out.
So you've lost an officer? Yes.
Do you know his name? You need only know him as Mr.
Smith.
And what was Mr.
Smith hoping to achieve? Well, he was simply reacting to the tip-off.
Of course he had no idea the man he was seeking was Ruairi MacLeish.
We'd lost him from the radar.
If this had come across my desk in the first place, I would never have let Mr.
Smith come blundering in.
Presumably, you'd have wanted to talk to MacLeish personally.
Oh, I certainly would.
The Branch takes the view that a man like Ruairi MacLeish might rise very high in the IRA Army Council as time passes and the situation gets worse.
Now, that could be very useful to us in five years' time.
We would have made him an offer.
What offer? Inform on your comrades again or we'll turn you over to them? You could go far in the Branch, John, with a mind like that.
However, it wasn't to be.
Exactly how long have you known about MacLeish being here? Not long.
A few days.
I hope that's true.
Because if you've known about an IRA gunman living on my patch, and you haven't told me about it, I'm going to be very angry.
Oh, steady on, old boy.
Never mind "Steady on, old boy.
" You've brought a dirty little war into my town, and two people are dead because of it.
I don't take kindly to that.
Three people, guv.
Mr.
Smith? Yeah.
Looks like he's been dead for days doesn't it? What would Ruairi want with him? Why the beating? Revenge.
Ruairi MacLeish always blamed the Branch for his sister's suicide.
Get him down, for pity's sake.
I'll make arrangements for the body to be taken home.
If I were you, I wouldn't try to find MacLeish now.
My guess is he's halfway to America with a new identity.
And the guns are long gone, you can bet your life on that.
So, as far as the Branch is concerned, this case is closed.
Looks like the Paddy outfoxed us, doesn't it? This case is not closed, Commander.
If the burned body wasn't Ruairi MacLeish and it wasn't O'Shaughnessy and it wasn't your man here, who was it? I haven't the foggiest, old boy.
Do you mind if we don't stand around like sitting ducks, sir? If he wanted to kill us, he could have picked us off while we were standing next to O'Shaughnessy.
He's not interested in us.
Ruairi MacLeish has killed every witness that could tie him to a criminal charge.
Ruairi MacLeish beat and killed Mr.
Smith at least five days ago, possibly a week.
Which makes it at least two days before the body in the field was murdered.
We still have no idea who the burned body is.
But, for some reason, he swallowed a ring with Wanda's name on it.
Why aren't you saying anything? 'Cause I'm meditating.
I'm doing that Zander thing.
Zen.
Zen.
And what, pray, are you meditating on? "Halfway to America.
" Empton said that MacLeish would be "halfway to America.
" Yes, well, that's logical.
We have no extradition treaty with America.
Yeah, but there's more to America than that.
America has a huge Irish community.
It has a press that can lend a very friendly ear to the Republican cause.
True, so? If MacLeish has gone to America, he could tell a really interesting story about his dealings with the British Special Branch.
Now, that's going to be very embarrassing for Empton, yet he doesn't seem bothered, does he? I was watching him today in that forest very closely.
Now you find a fellow officer beaten up and strung up like that and you know what, I didn't see any grief.
He used the word "pity.
" I didn't see any pity on his face.
He was relieved.
Are you saying that he was glad Mr.
Smith was dead? No.
No, no, no.
No, I'm not saying that.
But you heard what he said.
"This case is closed.
" Right? Yeah.
Why? Because he was worried that the body was Mr.
Smith.
When it turned out it wasn't, "case closed" for Empton.
Why? Ask yourself why.
Why was he so relieved? Because there was only one other person the burned body could be.
Ruairi.
The body's Ruairi all along.
We're back to the beginning.
No, we're not.
Because whoever shot and burned Ruairi stayed behind to shoot O'Shaughnessy.
So why did O'Shaughnessy need to be silenced? What did he see? I think there might be only one person who knows that.
Well, let's go and ask her.
All right.
John, well done.
We'll make a fisherman out of you yet.
Don't know a Ruairi.
Yeah? Well, you know, Wanda, I got the impression that you knew each other very well indeed.
He said you'd be expecting me.
I got the feeling there wasn't very much about Ruairi that you didn't know.
That's the strong impression he gave.
Any idea where he is, by the way? He's dead.
No.
That's a shame.
I knew Ruairi very well in the old days.
Taught him everything he knew.
Ruairi had a delivery for me, but he never made it.
You wouldn't happen to know where the goods are, would you, Wanda? How would I know that? 'Cause I think he talked to you about it.
I talk to a lot of fellas.
Yeah, I'm sure you do, Wanda.
Men are lonely.
They like to sit and talk.
I know that.
But it's you who needs to do the talking this time.
What's happening here? He wants me to sign this.
I don't understand.
I'm simply trying to make Miss O'Shaughnessy aware of her position in law.
Official Secrets Act.
Why does she have to sign the Official Secrets Act? Miss O'Shaughnessy's father may have made her privy, before his sad death, to certain information which could be damaging to the security of the nation.
This is pure intimidation.
There's no legal weight whatsoever, and it makes me wonder what it is you don't want her to tell us.
A friendly warning.
You could be risking a long prison sentence.
He was terrified.
Terrified.
It's a horrible thing to know your dad can cry like a little bairn.
Ugh! Aah! What do you want? Oh, just shut up! Just shut up, will you! This do? This'll do.
I'd never say a word.
Never say a word, man.
Oh, lads, you know me.
You're a bag of wind, O'Shaughnessy.
Behave like a man.
Empty his pockets.
Here, give me your gun.
Hey.
Wear that for me, will you? You'll be a better man in death than you ever were in life.
Ruairi.
Step away, and put your hands behind your head.
What's this, Sean? You know what this is, Ruairi.
Say a prayer.
I don't understand, Sean.
You gave the Brits names.
You gave them our comrades' names.
Who on God's earth told you that? Empton sent us the photographs.
That's why I was late getting here.
We had to make a decision about you.
Photographs prove nothing, Sean.
Yes, I met him.
He wanted me to betray the movement.
Which you did, for your sister's sake.
You know, you should never of killed that Special Branch fella.
You made your friend Empton a very angry man.
He's not my friend, Sean.
I said no to his offer.
My sister's dead because I refused to betray my comrades.
We always knew there was an informer.
Nobody wanted to believe it was you, Ruairi.
You, empty his pockets.
You! Say a prayer.
Didn't I get us the guns, Sean? Didn't I do that? Is that a traitor? Think about it.
Empton's making fools of you.
Let me speak to the Army Council.
Too late, Ruairi.
I'm carrying out a direct order.
I'm to tell you, you have to pay for your sins.
You gave them names.
Why believe Empton and not me? For God's sake, it doesn't make sense.
Why believe Empton? Just do one thing.
Give this to Wanda.
I won't have time to chat to your bit on the side.
You'll be wanting to see her.
She's at a place called The Rook.
Goodbye, comrade.
You, have you got the keys to his van and workshop? Yeah.
Pour petrol on him.
All of it.
Are you going to kill me? Just take me to the guns, and you're scot free.
Ruairi? Is that you? Drive the van out and take it out of town.
I'll be right behind you, so don't try to be brave.
Don't move a muscle, comrade.
Did your father hear a name? Doyle.
Why would Doyle need to go and see Wanda? The guns.
No bolts.
He's taken out the bolts.
Where are the bolts?! Come back, you bastard! Shit.
No more messing about.
Now! Another man barking commands at me! You're just the same kind of shit he was! Did you kill him?! Did you?! Stay where you are.
"Stay!" "Sit!" "Beg!" "Now!" What is it men like you want?! Stay where you are.
Keep your distance.
Oh, you don't want me to keep my distance.
I just want a closer look at your lovely, big gun.
Well, what are you waiting for? I'm waiting for you to do as you're told.
Have you any idea how many times in my life I've heard a man say that?! Very well, sir.
There's a box.
Thank you.
Ruairi never made it to America then? No, he never made it.
What a shame.
I can't figure out what he saw in you.
Can't you? What does any man see in a woman like me? Ruairi always had a soft spot for women.
He was a good comrade.
But then, Wanda, Ruairi never knew what a bitch you are, did he? Pick up the box.
Pick it up! Get out.
Lower your weapons! You make one mistake and I put a bullet in her head.
Understand? Show yourselves.
Come out with your guns above your heads.
Do exactly as he says! Give me your rifle.
Safety's on sir.
Throw your guns away.
Right away.
Get down on your faces! Now you lot out back, come out! Hold on.
Throw them down! Come on! On your faces! You, get down! Get down! Stay where you are! Oh, shit.
Look.
I don't have any weapons.
No, no, no! No, no, please.
Look, look.
Look, I'll prove it.
See.
Nothing.
Why don't you take me and leave her? I can be your safe passage.
No, look I can get you through roadblocks, she can't.
Hand me the box, Mrs.
Lane.
No.
Right.
Right.
All she has to do is just hand me the box and Do it.
Do it.
All right.
Slowly.
Got it.
Got it.
All right.
All right.
Open the door.
Well.
That's what I call balls.
You're a brave man, John.
Gently.
Miss O'Shaughnessy.
Mrs.
Lane, I presume.
Well, it all came out in the wash.
Sergeant Bacchus gets a medal, I'd have thought, and who knows, perhaps goes on to greater things.
Not quite everything came out in the wash, did it, Commander? Why did Doyle murder his old friend and comrade Ruairi MacLeish, for instance? Ruairi was an informer for us.
I told you that.
And who else did you tell? The IRA? Now why would I do that, George? To stop Ruairi getting to America where he could make embarrassing revelations about you.
What? An IRA man tells the world I turned him for British Intelligence, embarrassed? I get a medal too, don't I? No, that wasn't it.
The Commander had a plan.
And it might have succeeded if you hadn't messed it up for him Sergeant.
Messed it up? Doyle goes back to Ireland with the guns, a hero.
Plus, he's executed an IRA traitor into the bargain.
So he's a Republican hero twice over.
So I ask myself -- who benefits? Apart from Mr.
Doyle? These aren't issues we should be airing in present company, Chief Inspector.
Perhaps we could talk in private? We will talk here and nowhere else.
I ask again.
Who benefits from Ruairi MacLeish's death? I'm not with you, guv.
Your story about wanting Ruairi MacLeish to be your man on the IRA Army Council was all smoke and mirrors, wasn't it? You didn't need Ruairi to be your man on the Army Council 'cause you already had one, and his name was Doyle.
Ruairi MacLeish was loyal to the IRA to his last breath, wasn't he? Unfortunately for you, George, you put a bullet into the head of the only man who could answer your question.
You.
You authorized Doyle to execute Carmel's father, didn't you? Because he saw Doyle kill Ruairi.
Go on, Commander.
You look into her eyes, right, and you tell her what you did.
Things happen when people get involved in affairs they don't understand.
When the little people get involved, you mean? Oh, John.
Maybe you've got some growing up to do.
And what about Mrs.
Lane? Hey? Doyle was going to kill her and all.
Why? Why did she need to get killed, eh?! Why?! Why, why, why, why, why! You know, John, in this job, we don't bother so much about "why.
" We're more interested in "how" and "who.
" You know, perhaps it's a good idea the ladies are present after all.
I don't understand.
Who what? That's the one question Mr.
Gently has been too polite to ask.
Oh, I was getting there in my sweet, old-fashioned way.
Well, don't take all day, George.
The one unanswered question.
Mrs.
Lane do you know who it was who made the original phone call to Special Branch informing them that there was an IRA gunman operating here? Hmm? All we ever knew was that the call came from a woman.
Well-spoken if a little brassy.
Men use you.
Men tell lies.
Sometimes a man can push a woman too far.
I can't take you with me, sweetheart.
You know that.
You'll find someone else.
You know you will.
Do I? He used me and threw me away.
Mrs.
Lane.
I'll always wear the ring you gave me.
Carmel You and I should have a drink together, don't you think? We can talk about men.
Well, well, well.
A woman scorned.
I've still got a few minutes, John.
What say I buy you a drink? I'm busy.
Empton.
I'll be making a full report.
About what? About the guns you were willing to send to the IRA.
Guns that would have killed British soldiers.
Could you have lived with that? If you hadn't shot him, Gently, Doyle might have saved hundreds of British lives in years to come.
I hope you can live with that.
And the Wanda Lanes and the Carmels and the O'Shaughnessys of this world are what, dispensable? For what, national security? Or your glorious career? I was thinking, guv.
What? What are you doing? I'm doing it.
I'm fishing.
Why don't you do it the way I showed you? I showed you how to do it.
Why do I have to stand in the water? Why can't we just stand on the side and fish? Shall we go and find a nice café and have egg and chips? I've got water in me boot now.
I'm not happy.
This is rubbish.
by Acorn Media
The day of rest.
Not anymore.
Single bullet to the head.
There's nothing left of him.
Or her.
Well let's hope whoever it was went to the dentist.
Why did those lads leave it till this morning? Oh, they'd been drinking.
I think they were pretty shook up.
Sir.
Well, you're in charge till I get back.
Why? Where are you going? Fishing.
Well, in charge of what? There's nothing to do until we get the lab report back, and that won't be till tomorrow.
Exactly.
I thought I'd go round these lads' houses and scare the living daylights out of them.
You know, for driving under the influence and that.
Harassment? No.
Friendly advice, that's all.
Why? Did they break a law? No, but -- Stay at your desk.
Wait for a phone call.
From who? A wife, a girlfriend, a mother, a father, husband.
Any-bloody-body.
Don't see the point in drowning worms.
E-M-P-T-O-N.
Yes, sir.
Have you got a map? Where am I exactly? And where is RAF Huxford? I see.
Have my luggage sent up.
Pronto.
Catch anything? Did you ever hear of Zen, Sergeant? Yeah.
Yeah, it's a fish of prey.
Brook Bond PG Tips Fish Of Europe.
I collected the whole set.
That's Zander.
Zen is a form of meditation.
Oh, I see.
So you stood in cold water all day thinking about catching a fish.
Phone ring? Nope.
What, nobody called in to report a missing person? No.
Preliminary lab report -- definitely male.
And the bullet came from a.
38 Webley.
And the victim's body was burned after he was shot.
Uh-huh.
Leaving nothing behind but the contents of his stomach.
Dental records? That's going to take a while.
And what were the contents of his stomach? A meal of egg, chips, prepared starch, and coffee.
And why the silly grin, Sergeant? Egg and chips.
What does that tell you? What does it tell you? Well, the body was found near the A1.
Right? So while I was waiting here pointlessly for my phone to ring, I used yours.
Checked on every transport café in a 50-mile radius.
Am I supposed to be impressed? There was something else in his stomach.
He swallowed a ring? Uh-huh.
And if you look closely, you'll see it has the name "Wanda" inscribed on the inside.
Halfway up the A1's a place called The Rook.
The Proprietress is Wanda Christine Lane.
Do you know, sometimes, you show actual promise.
15 minutes was all I needed, guv.
Bang.
Solved.
You should drown worms more often.
And then you go and spoil it.
Right then.
Shall we go? I quite fancy egg and chips.
Who put this on my desk? Desk sergeant.
Wanda will have to wait.
You stay back.
Good morning.
Commander Empton, I presume.
Good morning.
Do you know who I am? I would guess Gently of the Yard, as was.
Now it's Gently of where are we exactly? It's an act of courtesy, an act of common courtesy, to come and introduce yourself to the head of CID.
And yet all I get is a note put across my desk with no explanation.
I'm terribly sorry, old boy.
Explanation of what exactly? You're on my patch, and I would like you to tell me what you're doing here.
Having a holiday.
I hear the fishing is very good up here.
Did you get a good look? Who is he? His name's Empton.
He's Special Branch.
Special Branch? What are they doing here? Stay on him.
I want to know where he goes and who he meets.
You want me to follow another police officer? Mm-hmm.
Is that kosher? In this case, yes.
Why? Because I know Empton by reputation, and he's a complete bastard.
Hey, hey.
What about Wanda Lane? She's my lead.
I found her.
I'll give her your regards.
Oh, man.
See you later.
Yeah, bye.
Can I get you something? Tea.
Anything to eat? Biscuits? Cake? Do egg and chips? The kitchen's closed, but for a nice-looking fella like you No, don't go to any trouble.
Oh, it's no trouble.
Bye, fellas.
Tea will be fine.
See you later.
You're the boss.
Yes, that's right, sir.
Thank you.
So what brings you here? You don't look like a lorry driver or a traveling salesman.
What do I look like? A professor.
Or a distinguished novelist.
In fact, I'm a policeman.
I'm investigating a suspicious death.
How fascinating.
A murder, in fact.
Who? I don't know, Mrs.
Lane.
But he had a ring with your name on it.
Ruairi? I'm sorry? Ruairi? Ruairi O'Connell.
Don't be sorry.
Why should I care? If he meant so little to you, why the ring? I didn't know he still wore it.
It was over a long time ago.
There was a time when I thought But then I realized it was just sex.
Ruairi wanted me for sex, Mister Gently.
Gently.
A wonderful name for a lover.
A lot of men want me for sex, Mr.
Gently.
Do you find that surprising? When did you last see him? Last week.
I hate you, Ruairi.
One more time.
Make me feel good.
I like sex, Mr.
Gently.
Don't you? I'd like you to come down to the station and make a statement on the record.
I need a few minutes.
You know any good pubs? Uh So How is G.
G.
these days? Still the pillar of rectitude? Well, yeah, he is.
Hey, where did you learn to play like that? The East End.
I went undercover for six months infiltrating a protection racket.
Really? Yeah.
Wow.
Even with that accent? Oh, don't be fooled.
I was born in a gutter.
You see this man because this is the man I want people to see.
Mrs.
Lane? Like what you see? Get dressed, will you? You don't like what you see? Mrs.
Lane.
You're lonely, aren't you? I know men.
I can read them like a book.
You're lonely.
Like I am.
You're married.
Is that the problem? She died.
Mr.
Gently.
What? How did Ruairi die? He was shot.
And then somebody poured petrol over his body and set light to it.
I'm sorry.
What about you? What's a smart guy like you doing stuck here? Well waiting for a better offer, really.
We should talk.
Maybe I can help.
Me? In Special Branch? Even with my great undercover skills? I'm afraid you owe me another large one.
Two more.
No problem.
Any unexplained bodies turned up recently, John? I can't Quite right.
You keep shtum.
You did what?! It was just a game of darts.
It seemed like the best plan.
What did you talk to him about? Nothing.
His work.
You.
Me? Not really.
What did he ask you? What did he ask you about? Um He asked about dead bodies.
And you told him to mind his own business? I don't see it matters.
He's a policeman.
Oh, this is funny.
This is funny.
What's funny? It's funny that you don't look stupid! Why exactly are you in such a Paddy? Has something happened? Wanda Lane is in the interview room.
It appears that the dead man answered to the name of Ruairi O'Connell.
I want you to take a statement from her.
Have another officer present.
Preferably female.
What about you? I want you to do it.
Find out all you can about her and about him.
He was Irish.
Find out how Irish.
Find out if he's political.
You mean IRA? Must be a reason that Empton's here.
It's not a coincidence.
Do you think she killed him? I don't know.
But where are you gonna be? Sir, you said to tell you straightaway of any missing person reports.
Bloke called O'Shaughnessy hasn't shown up at work or home for 36 hours now.
O'Shaughnessy? Yes, sir.
His daughter's at the front desk.
Where does he work? RAF Huxford, sir.
Ah.
Bring her in.
Mrs.
Lane.
I'm Detective Sergeant Bacchus.
I'm going to be taking a statement from you about Ruairi O'Connell.
Where's Mr.
Gently? He's busy.
So what's your name? I've just told you my name.
No, your first name.
You can call me Wanda.
Mrs.
Lane, I'm questioning you about a murder.
I'm not asking you out on a date.
You have very bad manners, like a lot of young chaps these days.
Right! Talk to me about Ruairi O'Connell.
Time's come for me to disappear.
I'm going to America.
He was a customer.
Do you give all your customers eternity rings, Mrs.
Lane? Only the nice ones.
What's in the box? Something I need to leave here for a few days.
Why leave it here? Because I know I can trust you.
Put it somewhere safe.
A man's been shot and burned, but you don't seem bothered.
Mr.
Bacchus you don't know what I think or feel.
What did he do for a living? He drove a van delivering things long distance.
Who did he work for? A man called Alan Madsen.
Arrow Auto Deliveries.
And where can I find him? In the phone book? So the last time you saw your father was when he left for work at RAF Huxford on Saturday, day before yesterday.
Has he gone missing before? No.
And he reached RAF Huxford? Yeah.
And he went for a drink in the mess afterwards.
But he didn't come home.
I think something's happened to him.
Don't worry too much just yet.
Most missing persons turn up.
Does he have a friend called Ruairi O'Connell? No.
Do you know a man by that name? No.
Well I work in the Irish Club.
I think there might be a bloke called that sometimes comes in.
Miss O'Shaughnessy, I can't help you find your father if you lie to me.
Why are you asking about Ruairi O'Connell? Because Ruairi O'Connell has been murdered.
Murdered? And your father's disappeared.
It could, of course, be a complete coincidence.
Is it? And I can easily imagine Wanda Lane putting a bullet in any man's head.
Talk about a vampire.
So she told you absolutely nothing about Ruairi O'Connell.
No.
Said he never said a word about what he did, where he went, what his politics were.
Believe her? No.
Think she killed him? No.
No, I don't.
I'll tell you why, right? This murder was planned.
First a bullet, then the destruction of the body.
Why? I don't know.
Do you? Well, no, no.
Now, if that's what you're gonna do, you don't leave the one piece of evidence that's gonna link you to the crime, a ring with your name on it.
Whatever else she is, she's not stupid.
So? So did it ever occur to you that somebody might be trying to frame her? Yes, it did occur to me.
Right.
What are we looking at? We are looking at RAF Huxford.
Why? What did O'Shaughnessy's daughter tell you? Lies and evasions.
Do you think there's a connection? Oh, I know there is.
Well, shall we go down there then? No.
I want to go to Arrow Auto Deliveries first.
Hang on.
Who is it? Nobody.
Hey.
What you playing at? Alan Madsen? Aye.
What's this, like? We've come to ask you a few questions about Ruairi O'Connell.
Oh.
He's not here at the minute.
We know that.
Do you know where he is? Glasgow.
Why? Doing what? He's delivering spares to some workshop.
When's he due back? When he feels like it.
Why yous asking? He comes and goes, does he? It's a delivery business, man.
Is he a friend, as well as an employee? We go for a drink sometimes, chase women.
Ruairi O'Connell's been murdered.
There's a sizeable Irish community in the area.
Did Ruairi spend much time among them? He drank in the Irish Club sometimes.
So did I.
I'm not a Paddy.
I just like the music.
No special friends there? No.
No.
Ruairi was a loner.
Where did he live? Well, you're going to find this hard to believe, but I don't know where Ruairi lives.
Lived.
Yeah, you're right.
I do find that hard to believe.
After a night at the Irish Club, where did he go? He'd drop me off and disappear.
You never asked him? Didn't ask Ruairi questions.
Ah, this is bullshit.
Where did the tax man think he lived? Here, maybe, with me.
Here? I don't think the tax man knew much about Ruairi.
Well, tax evasion's a criminal offense, pal, and you're his employer, and you're gonna be for the high jump if you haven't kept proper records of his wages, right?! Did he know a man called O'Shaughnessy? Oh, him? Walter Mitty.
Walter Mitty? Some pathetic flake of codshite that drinks in the Irish Club.
Tells people he's the IRA's number one quartermaster.
And? That guy's never been to Ireland.
Knows the words to all the songs though.
Know the sort I mean, don't you? And they were mates, were they? No.
You're joking, aren't you? Ruairi couldn't stand him.
Mr.
Madsen, did Ruairi have a gun? No.
How do you know? Well, I never saw him with a gun.
He never talked about having -- why would he have a gun? This bottle of J40 Oil, what do you use it for? I don't.
It belonged to Ruairi.
Well, what did Ruairi use it for? Greasing tools? I don't know.
May I? Thank you.
One more question, Mr.
Madsen.
How long have you employed Ruairi O'Connell for? Uh two years? Yeah, two years.
Right, well, thank you.
Stay in the area please.
We will want to talk to you again.
Oh, no.
No, n-no.
I've got runs to make.
Hey.
He's just told you.
Thank you.
I didn't believe a single word that man was talking about -- When they gave you that warrant card, it gave you quite a lot of authority.
The right to enter people's places of work, their homes, the right to question them.
It did not give you the right to be impolite.
And it most certainly did not give you the right to be a bully.
You were very "polite" to Wanda Lane, weren't you? Yes, I was.
Yeah.
Very attractive woman all right.
"Very attractive woman.
" What does that mean? Why didn't you want to question her yourself? How come I'm suddenly deemed competent enough to take a statement for you? I mean, I half expected to see pigs flying past the window.
She tried to seduce me.
And? What do you mean "and"? Well, I'd have said yes.
Oh.
That was a joke.
She's a bit too old for me.
She's a bit too young for you.
Hey, sir.
Chocks away.
Bandits, 9:00, sir.
Pranged me bally kite in the soup, sir.
It doesn't give you the right to take the mickey either.
Sorry, sir.
O'Shaughnessy, O'Shaughnessy.
Have we got an O'Shaughnessy, Rupert? Yes, Squadron Leader.
Works in Stores.
Never a flier, then? No, sir.
Clerk.
Ah.
Johnny Stamplicker, eh? What's your business with him? He's been reported missing, sir.
Oh.
Let's go and have a look then, shall we? Shall I take them, sir? No, no.
No, the exercise will do me good.
Don't worry about this.
Lost an argument with a Messerschmitt.
Me own fault.
Couldn't find reverse.
I couldn't help noticing, sir.
No airplanes.
Airplanes? Good God, no.
Last Spitfire flew away six years ago.
We're being slowly mothballed.
Death by a thousand cuts.
Don't ask me who'll protect England if the Russians ever arrive.
No, we handle the RAF's supplies for the North of England.
We're all stamp lickers now.
Soon they won't even need us for that.
You see service, Chief Inspector? Yes, sir, I did.
Thought so.
Podmore's the chap we're looking for.
Salt of the earth.
Podmore? Where the devil is he? Sir! At ease, Podmore.
This is Detective Chief Inspector Gently and his Sergeant, Mr.
Bacchus.
Tell them whatever they want to know.
Sir.
I'm looking for Mr.
O'Shaughnessy.
Can you tell me where he is? No, sir.
When did you last see him? Two nights ago.
In the mess, sir.
About 9:00.
This was after your duties were finished then? Yes, sir.
And he'd reported for work that day as normal? Sir.
How did he seem? Usual self, sir.
Go on.
He got a phone call in the mess, sir.
Seemed to flummox him a little bit, and off he went.
Any idea who called? No, sir.
Was he involved in any criminal activities? Just answer, Podmore.
I don't understand the question, sir.
Well, you see, he's gone missing.
I'm looking for a reason.
No idea, sir.
Do you know what J40 oil is, Flight Sergeant? Lubricant, sir, heavy machinery.
It is blue, isn't it? Yes, sir.
Yeah.
Not yellow.
So, have you any idea what this is? Well, that's a different oil, sir.
Um, that's what we, uh, use -- we use for, uh For cleaning guns.
Do you stock it? We got a big drum of it.
Did you pour some of it into this bottle? Or did perhaps Mr.
O'Shaughnessy do so? He could have done, sir.
If you lie to me at all from this point forward, it will go very badly for you.
He did, sir, yeah.
I saw him doing it.
Did O'Shaughnessy possess a handgun? Say a Webley.
38? I honestly don't know, sir, but I can't think of any other reason why he'd want to fill that bottle.
Did he ever mention a man called Ruairi O'Connell? Talked about him nonstop, sir.
Said he was like a brother.
Used to bore me to death with it all.
With all of what? All that bollocks about Ireland.
Pardon my French, Squadron Leader.
Carry on.
About how they were going to drive the British into the sea.
It was just talk, sir.
And weapons pass through this place all the time? All the time, sir.
Such as? At the moment, sir, Sten guns.
Twelve crates.
144 weapons.
Show me.
They're in a secure room, sir.
O'Shaughnessy has the key.
That's really secure, that.
I swear to God, sir.
I-I didn't know.
I had no idea.
You're a disgrace to your uniform, man.
Have you finished with him? For the present.
Wait for me in my office.
My sincere apologies.
I will of course do what my duty requires me to.
Duty? It's a bit late for duty, isn't it? Who are these idiots? He means he'll resign his post.
Well, what's the point in that now? Because when you're the man in charge, you can never say "I didn't know.
" It's your job to know.
He's a serviceman, not some oily politician.
Well, those Sten guns could be in Donegal by now.
So could O'Shaughnessy.
So what do we do now then? We're going to do what I should have done this morning.
Well, George.
I knew you'd be back.
Did Ruairi O'Connell live here, Mrs.
Lane? Why don't we forget about Ruairi? We should always keep our eyes on the future, don't you think? Oh, the young Turk, too.
My cup runneth over.
Both of them? Also look for smelly socks, shaving foam, toilet seats that are up, that kind of stuff.
You go up there.
Right, you in there.
You two in here.
Contraceptive sheathes, used or otherwise.
What's in the box? Something I need to leave here for a few days.
Well, at least I'll be seeing you one more time, eh? No.
Someone else will be picking it up.
Put it somewhere safe.
Why don't you try them on, Sergeant? You'd look good in black.
Will I be seeing you again? Oh, you can count on it.
Did Ruairi ever mention a man called O'Shaughnessy? No.
But then Ruairi was a man of very few words, George.
"Stay.
" "Sit.
" "Beg.
" "Kneel.
" "Here.
" "Now.
" "Goodbye.
" Do you know who killed Ruairi O'Connell? No.
Can you think of any reason why anybody would want me to think that you did it? None whatever.
Right.
Come on, lads.
Mr.
Gently? You have a visitor.
What do you think you're doing? Questioning my prisoner.
Your prisoner? If you don't like it, you can take your bellyaching to the Chief Constable.
The Branch have got an interest in this case now.
You're free to stay and watch.
John.
Mr.
Madsen is going to explain to me why he's been lying about O'Connell, aren't you? I'm not lying.
Mr.
Madsen has just told me that he saw Ruairi O'Connell at the workshop at 1:00 A.
M.
on the 20th.
Does that sound likely to you, John? He was already dead.
So why are you lying? He came into the workshop, started up his van, and he drove away.
Why are you lying? Don't act stupid.
Talk.
Hang on, hang on.
You were where? In bed.
In your room above the workshop, yeah? So you got up, you went downstairs, and you saw him? No.
I heard him.
You never said "heard," you idiot.
You said "saw.
" You don't get up when somebody comes into the workshop, takes a van in the middle of the night? We always do it.
He had to have the stuff in Glasgow for half past 7:00, man.
What was in that van, Mr.
Madsen? That's enough! Enough.
You know perfectly well what was in that van.
The question is who drove it away? And I can tell you that.
It was a man called O'Shaughnessy.
Oh.
"A man called O'Shaughnessy.
" You know, I really do admire you local boys.
There's no flies on you.
Although you can sometimes see where they've been.
Did Ruairi O'Connell get a visit from a stranger in the last few weeks? There was some bloke who came in to the workshop.
He was looking for Ruairi.
What did he look like? Tall.
Gray hair.
Did he find him? I don't know.
I told him to come back at night and try the Irish Club.
Let him go.
Fancy a drink later, John? Um I'm not sure, really.
Well, you know where I'll be.
You can go.
I'm sorry.
You didn't mind that? Somebody's running Sten guns to the IRA to shoot British soldiers.
I don't mind if somebody gets slapped as long as we find out who it is.
Empton knew about O'Shaughnessy long before we did.
I want to know how and why.
Let him make a fool of you if you like.
He's not going to make a fool out of me.
I think you've got him wrong, actually.
Really? We'll see.
I don't get any of this.
What do the Paddies want to shoot the Brits for in the first place? Catholics believe quite strongly in a united Ireland, Sergeant.
But we gave them most of it back.
Does it really matter if we kept a bit for the Proddies to live in? It does to the IRA, yes.
Yeah, but most of them are in prison, aren't they? Are they? Why don't you ask your friend, Commander Empton? And while you're at it, ask him if he ever met Ruairi O'Connell? And when he came to Ballymo he stole the Parson's car And he gave it to the Bishop in the town of Mullingar Seven hundred Peelers couldn't catch him The Chief sent out the order for the lashing And when he came to Dublin town he stole an armored car And he gave it to the IRA brigade in Mullingar Thanks for coming, China.
How's life? Ah, fair to muddling, Mr.
Gently.
Fair to muddling.
That fella I shook hands with is O'Shaughnessy's cousin.
Known him all his life.
Both born and bred in South Shields.
They sing the old songs.
They even go around collecting money for the boys over the water.
But guns? I doubt it.
This is fantasy Ireland, Mr.
Gently.
Nuts and bolts.
How many houses? Hi.
Will you excuse us? John.
How are you? Glad you could come.
If I overstepped the mark today -- Ah.
Gently's the kind of bloke that gets under my skin.
He's a damn fine cop, I know that, but times change, and people must change with them.
Here's to the war.
Which war's that? The war we'll have to win against the IRA.
Ah, right.
The war the politicians don't seem to have noticed.
Did you ask about Ruairi O'Connell? He came in now and then, had a few pints.
Nobody seems to know much about him, Mr.
Gently.
That's what I'm learning.
He seems to have lived an invisible life.
I don't know where he lived.
I haven't even got a photograph of him.
You got a wife? Yeah, yeah.
That was a pretty good show today.
I thought Madsen was lying.
It took you to show me he was just stupid.
See, I just think What? I just think we should be working together.
I mean, we're all coppers, aren't we? The thing about working for the Branch, John -- when you first appear, the locals feel threatened.
Why? Because 9 times out of 10, they're little people.
Which is why it's been refreshing to meet you.
I agree.
We should all be pulling together.
Okay.
I take it you've heard nothing from your father? No.
Nothing.
And you've still no reason for his disappearance? No.
Did Ruairi O'Connell come in here much? I told you.
Sometimes.
He liked the coach trips to the rugby.
Is Ruairi in that photograph? Yeah.
They're all on it.
There's me father on the end.
Which one's Ruairi? Ruairi's the one standing next to him.
So, that's Ruairi.
The one with his face hidden.
Who took the photograph? Billy, the Steward.
So tell me, did you ever meet Ruairi O'Connell? No.
Next question.
Well, in that case, how did you know about O'Shaughnessy? How did you know about the guns? I can see I'm going to have to be completely frank with you, John.
Aye, let's see.
England versus Ireland at Twickenham.
Murdered them.
Them? The Brits.
I see.
Funny, isn't it, this? Photo after photo, but Ruairi's never -- Ah! Got you, you bugger.
St.
Patrick's Day last year.
Ruairi O'Connell.
That's him on the right with his arm round Carmel.
Do you mind if I ask, is there some reason why Ruairi O'Connell has his arm around Carmel O'Shaughnessy? Bugger for the lasses, Ruairi.
Well, owt else, just give us a shout.
Well? That's Ruairi all right.
But not Ruairi O'Connell.
That's Ruairi MacLeish.
Ruairi MacLeish Border Campaign.
The IRA's top marksmen.
They called him The Sniper.
He had a sister.
She was interned.
She died in jail.
Story was she committed suicide.
What happened to MacLeish after the Border Campaign finished? He vanished off the face of the earth.
How long ago was this, China? Oh, two or three years ago.
So, two years ago, Ruairi MacLeish vanished in Ireland and Ruairi O'Connell turns up in England.
Good morning.
Right.
Talk me through it.
I just had a few too much to drink.
Not you, the case.
Tell me what we've found out so far.
Oh, right.
Uh Well, we know that Ruairi O'Connell was shot, and then his body was burned beyond recognition.
There's no luck with dental records yet.
So the ring's the only thing that identifies him, and that leads us to Wanda Lane, who may or may not have had personal motives for wanting him dead.
Uh Shortly after the murder, somebody drove Ruairi's van away from the workshop.
Well, that's if Madsen's telling the truth, which I think he is.
Is Madsen a suspect? Uh He has to be, really.
Although, again, there's no known motive.
Uh, Ruairi O'Connell could have been involved with gunrunning with O'Shaughnessy, and he hasn't been seen since shortly before the murder, making him our prime suspect.
And that's the question.
Where is O'Shaughnessy now? I think he's in the mortuary.
Correct.
What do you mean "correct"? That's what Empton thinks.
He told me last night.
You were going to share this with me.
Well, yeah, if you'd given me a chance, sir.
And Ruairi O'Connell? Where does Empton think he is? Um What else did Empton tell you? He, um He asked me not to share everything just yet.
What did Empton tell you about Ruairi O'Connell?! He thinks he's on a boat to America.
A boat to America.
Well.
Let me tell you what I've learned while you were sitting there letting Empton blow smoke in your face.
Ruairi O'Connell never existed.
The man who persuaded O'Shaughnessy to help him steal 144 Sten guns is Ruairi MacLeish, hard-line IRA soldier on active service.
But I suppose your friend Empton never mentioned that, am I right? Eh? MacLeish? What else did he tell you? Nothing.
He -- He -- I'm sorry, guv, I -- Sorry.
Why -- Why don't you think? Why would Empton share certain pieces of information with you and not others? I don't know.
Because his real intention is to blow smoke in my face, not yours! Do you really think that he could be bothered to share one jot of real information with a junior Sergeant on a provincial force? Use your brains, will you? Okay, so what now? I need O'Shaughnessy's dental records.
Get somebody onto that urgently.
I want absolute proof that the body in that field is O'Shaughnessy's.
Can you get on the phone and chase O'Shaughnessy's dental records? Aye, I'm onto it.
Now.
Please.
Right, don't have a cow.
Why did he say that Ruairi was on a boat to America? Don't know.
So he's either guessing or bluffing or lying.
Why didn't you go home? Why are you sleeping on your desk? Look, look, sir.
Listen, I do my job, and I do it well.
Well, that's debatable at the moment.
The rest is my business.
When you turn up to work looking like that, it is my business.
Get yourself cleaned up.
We're going to pay a call on Carmel O'Shaughnessy.
Why? Because when I asked her about her father's disappearance last night, she couldn't look me in the face.
And she told me that she hardly knew the man called Ruairi O'Connell and it turns out that they were sweet on each other.
She's been lying to me from the start.
Let's find out why.
Carmel.
Why don't you tell us the truth about Ruairi and your dad, Carmel? I don't see why it matters.
It matters because we have reason to believe that the body in the field was not, after all, that of Ruairi O'Connell.
Look me dad's just a little man who wants the world to look up to him.
He s-started nicking things from the base.
Selling them to people.
I don't even think it was for the money.
It was just -- you know, he loved to be able to say to people, "I can get you this, I can do that for you.
" What sort of stuff? Stupid stuff mainly.
I mean, who wants parachute silk, honestly? Who wants a box of screwdrivers, drums of oil? Did he sell this stuff at the Irish Club? Yeah, sometimes.
Is that how he met Ruairi? Actually, he met Ruairi through me.
Did Ruairi ask you to introduce him to your father? Yeah.
Oh Go on.
What happened then? That's when the problems started.
Ruairi had bigger ideas.
I think that frightened me dad.
They started knocking quite big things off.
Ruairi would take them away on his trips, sell them, then split the money with me dad.
Then, of course, he couldn't back out.
He'd lose face.
and he was in awe of Ruairi 'cause Ruairi was proper Irish, a bit mysterious.
Did you find him mysterious, Carmel? Billy told me you saw the photo.
And? I loved Ruairi.
I loved him with all me heart.
Ruairi seemed to you everything your father could never be.
Ruairi was the real thing, wasn't he, Carmel? Where is he, Carmel? Where's Ruairi? He's dead.
You told me so yourself the other day.
Where is he, Carmel? He's dead! He's dead.
Did you notice anybody unusual, any, you know, strangers hanging around the Irish Club past couple of weeks? There was a tall, slim bloke with gray hair in the club a couple of weeks back.
I don't know who he was.
I only ever saw him that once.
The guy that Madsen says was looking for Ruairi.
Mm-hmm.
Was he asking about Ruairi? Bought himself a drink and asked if Ruairi was in.
Next time I looked over, they were both gone.
We will be carrying out further forensic tests on the body in the field.
But I think you should prepare yourself for some bad news, Carmel.
See the suitcase? Yeah, I did, yeah.
What do you think? Drive round the block.
I'll tell you in a minute.
She's making sure we're leaving.
I think shes gonna run away with the man that she thinks is Ruairi O'Connell.
Ruairi MacLeish.
I think he's faked his own death and left us a body in a field with Wanda Lane's ring so that we identify that as him.
So why wasn't the ring on the finger? Because because he didn't want it destroyed in the blaze.
Go on.
Meaning that Ruairi killed Carmel's dad.
Has to be.
Maybe Ruairi thought that he was going to crack under the pressure and go and talk to the police.
Because this is a man who's one minute nicking spanners, and the next, he's gunrunning.
Yeah.
Have armed men standing by.
I'll let you know where when I know myself.
Roger that, sir.
You don't buy me story, do you? No.
Which bit? If the body's not Ruairi, who else could Carmel possibly think it is except her dad? Are you telling me she's running away with the man who killed her father? What kind of person would do that? A woman.
Women are different.
Besides, who else could she be going to meet? What's the matter? I think we're being followed.
Or are they following Carmel? Ah, he's gone.
Yeah.
Here we go.
Oi! Hey! You stay right there! Drop the suitcase! Hands above your head now! Would you like to introduce us to your friend, Carmel? Sorry, Dad.
They must've followed me.
O'Shaughnessy? He's innocent.
He didn't know what he was getting involved in.
Ruairi was just using him.
Quiet, pet.
It'll all have to come out one way or another.
Get down! Aah! Dad?! Dad! Stay down.
Oh, sir, he's still breathing.
Stay low.
Can he survive, do you think? Not a chance.
Have you seen this sort of stuff before? On many Italian beaches.
I mean, that stuff in the back of his head.
Part of his brain.
High velocity round, fired by an expert sniper.
Ruairi MacLeish.
Yes.
Which brings us to this.
If the burned body wasn't Ruairi, and he wasn't O'Shaughnessy, who the hell was he? Um I need to be open with you about something.
Empton -- despite what you might think of him -- he thinks I should put in a transfer for the Branch.
Does he? Yeah.
Yeah, he does.
And he thinks I stand a good chance and all.
Based on what? Well, he says I remind him of him when he was my age.
Is there some reason why you're telling me this? I need to know if you're going to stand in my way or not.
No, I'm not going to stand in your way, Sergeant.
If that's what you want.
My dad died on the operating table.
Oh, Carmel.
I'm sorry.
Sir.
Mr.
Empton is here, as requested.
Fabulous.
Send him to my office.
He's already in there, sir.
Well, you made a right balls-up of that, didn't you, Gently? Our only witness dead.
Splendid work.
You better start talking to me.
Yes, you're right.
I can see the time has come for me to be completely frank with you.
If I tell you a story about John Bull in his glory, will you promise not to speak in the middle of it? The situation in the Six Counties can't sustain indefinitely.
The Protestants rule the roost, and the Catholics live like pigs, Sans houses, sans decent jobs, sans a meaningful vote in many cases.
Until our political masters wake up and do something about it, we have a disaffected populace that actively and tacitly supports the gunmen.
Men like Ruairi MacLeish.
Oh, Congratulations, you found him out.
No thanks to you.
Good old-fashioned legwork, eh? So what's the story about Ruairi MacLeish? This is you and him.
Three years ago.
You told me you'd never met him.
In this job, John, you tell people only what you need them to know and only when you need them to know it.
What are you saying exactly? Ruairi was useful to us during the Border Campaign.
Very useful.
We made some important arrests.
He gave you names.
Yes.
Why? In return for certain considerations.
Money? Not exactly.
You mean you blackmailed him.
This is a dirty little business we're in over there, Chief Inspector.
He had a sister.
In fact, she had no Republican connections, but her name somehow got onto a list during the last round of internments and she found herself in prison.
I was able to help her out.
No, you mean you framed her and then promised to let her go if Ruairi gave you the names of his IRA comrades.
But she died, didn't she? How come? Well, she wasn't a strong individual.
Before we had the chance to release her, she took her own life.
So then Ruairi MacLeish disappears.
Why? Did the IRA suspect he was a traitor? No.
They never suspected him.
Not Ruairi MacLeish.
Not The Sniper himself.
So, still on active service, he turns up a few months later in my town, where he goes undercover and eventually finds a way to steal enough guns to arm a brigade of Republicans for the next campaign.
Correct.
And you just happened to find him.
Sort of.
How, exactly? The Branch had a tip-off, a phone call.
Who from? I don't know.
It didn't come to me.
But whoever dealt with it clearly thought it was barely worth investigating, So they sent a very inexperienced officer to have a look around.
The guy that Madsen and Carmel both saw.
The one that found Ruairi in the Irish Club.
I assume so, yes.
What happened to him? Well, that's what I'm here to find out.
So you've lost an officer? Yes.
Do you know his name? You need only know him as Mr.
Smith.
And what was Mr.
Smith hoping to achieve? Well, he was simply reacting to the tip-off.
Of course he had no idea the man he was seeking was Ruairi MacLeish.
We'd lost him from the radar.
If this had come across my desk in the first place, I would never have let Mr.
Smith come blundering in.
Presumably, you'd have wanted to talk to MacLeish personally.
Oh, I certainly would.
The Branch takes the view that a man like Ruairi MacLeish might rise very high in the IRA Army Council as time passes and the situation gets worse.
Now, that could be very useful to us in five years' time.
We would have made him an offer.
What offer? Inform on your comrades again or we'll turn you over to them? You could go far in the Branch, John, with a mind like that.
However, it wasn't to be.
Exactly how long have you known about MacLeish being here? Not long.
A few days.
I hope that's true.
Because if you've known about an IRA gunman living on my patch, and you haven't told me about it, I'm going to be very angry.
Oh, steady on, old boy.
Never mind "Steady on, old boy.
" You've brought a dirty little war into my town, and two people are dead because of it.
I don't take kindly to that.
Three people, guv.
Mr.
Smith? Yeah.
Looks like he's been dead for days doesn't it? What would Ruairi want with him? Why the beating? Revenge.
Ruairi MacLeish always blamed the Branch for his sister's suicide.
Get him down, for pity's sake.
I'll make arrangements for the body to be taken home.
If I were you, I wouldn't try to find MacLeish now.
My guess is he's halfway to America with a new identity.
And the guns are long gone, you can bet your life on that.
So, as far as the Branch is concerned, this case is closed.
Looks like the Paddy outfoxed us, doesn't it? This case is not closed, Commander.
If the burned body wasn't Ruairi MacLeish and it wasn't O'Shaughnessy and it wasn't your man here, who was it? I haven't the foggiest, old boy.
Do you mind if we don't stand around like sitting ducks, sir? If he wanted to kill us, he could have picked us off while we were standing next to O'Shaughnessy.
He's not interested in us.
Ruairi MacLeish has killed every witness that could tie him to a criminal charge.
Ruairi MacLeish beat and killed Mr.
Smith at least five days ago, possibly a week.
Which makes it at least two days before the body in the field was murdered.
We still have no idea who the burned body is.
But, for some reason, he swallowed a ring with Wanda's name on it.
Why aren't you saying anything? 'Cause I'm meditating.
I'm doing that Zander thing.
Zen.
Zen.
And what, pray, are you meditating on? "Halfway to America.
" Empton said that MacLeish would be "halfway to America.
" Yes, well, that's logical.
We have no extradition treaty with America.
Yeah, but there's more to America than that.
America has a huge Irish community.
It has a press that can lend a very friendly ear to the Republican cause.
True, so? If MacLeish has gone to America, he could tell a really interesting story about his dealings with the British Special Branch.
Now, that's going to be very embarrassing for Empton, yet he doesn't seem bothered, does he? I was watching him today in that forest very closely.
Now you find a fellow officer beaten up and strung up like that and you know what, I didn't see any grief.
He used the word "pity.
" I didn't see any pity on his face.
He was relieved.
Are you saying that he was glad Mr.
Smith was dead? No.
No, no, no.
No, I'm not saying that.
But you heard what he said.
"This case is closed.
" Right? Yeah.
Why? Because he was worried that the body was Mr.
Smith.
When it turned out it wasn't, "case closed" for Empton.
Why? Ask yourself why.
Why was he so relieved? Because there was only one other person the burned body could be.
Ruairi.
The body's Ruairi all along.
We're back to the beginning.
No, we're not.
Because whoever shot and burned Ruairi stayed behind to shoot O'Shaughnessy.
So why did O'Shaughnessy need to be silenced? What did he see? I think there might be only one person who knows that.
Well, let's go and ask her.
All right.
John, well done.
We'll make a fisherman out of you yet.
Don't know a Ruairi.
Yeah? Well, you know, Wanda, I got the impression that you knew each other very well indeed.
He said you'd be expecting me.
I got the feeling there wasn't very much about Ruairi that you didn't know.
That's the strong impression he gave.
Any idea where he is, by the way? He's dead.
No.
That's a shame.
I knew Ruairi very well in the old days.
Taught him everything he knew.
Ruairi had a delivery for me, but he never made it.
You wouldn't happen to know where the goods are, would you, Wanda? How would I know that? 'Cause I think he talked to you about it.
I talk to a lot of fellas.
Yeah, I'm sure you do, Wanda.
Men are lonely.
They like to sit and talk.
I know that.
But it's you who needs to do the talking this time.
What's happening here? He wants me to sign this.
I don't understand.
I'm simply trying to make Miss O'Shaughnessy aware of her position in law.
Official Secrets Act.
Why does she have to sign the Official Secrets Act? Miss O'Shaughnessy's father may have made her privy, before his sad death, to certain information which could be damaging to the security of the nation.
This is pure intimidation.
There's no legal weight whatsoever, and it makes me wonder what it is you don't want her to tell us.
A friendly warning.
You could be risking a long prison sentence.
He was terrified.
Terrified.
It's a horrible thing to know your dad can cry like a little bairn.
Ugh! Aah! What do you want? Oh, just shut up! Just shut up, will you! This do? This'll do.
I'd never say a word.
Never say a word, man.
Oh, lads, you know me.
You're a bag of wind, O'Shaughnessy.
Behave like a man.
Empty his pockets.
Here, give me your gun.
Hey.
Wear that for me, will you? You'll be a better man in death than you ever were in life.
Ruairi.
Step away, and put your hands behind your head.
What's this, Sean? You know what this is, Ruairi.
Say a prayer.
I don't understand, Sean.
You gave the Brits names.
You gave them our comrades' names.
Who on God's earth told you that? Empton sent us the photographs.
That's why I was late getting here.
We had to make a decision about you.
Photographs prove nothing, Sean.
Yes, I met him.
He wanted me to betray the movement.
Which you did, for your sister's sake.
You know, you should never of killed that Special Branch fella.
You made your friend Empton a very angry man.
He's not my friend, Sean.
I said no to his offer.
My sister's dead because I refused to betray my comrades.
We always knew there was an informer.
Nobody wanted to believe it was you, Ruairi.
You, empty his pockets.
You! Say a prayer.
Didn't I get us the guns, Sean? Didn't I do that? Is that a traitor? Think about it.
Empton's making fools of you.
Let me speak to the Army Council.
Too late, Ruairi.
I'm carrying out a direct order.
I'm to tell you, you have to pay for your sins.
You gave them names.
Why believe Empton and not me? For God's sake, it doesn't make sense.
Why believe Empton? Just do one thing.
Give this to Wanda.
I won't have time to chat to your bit on the side.
You'll be wanting to see her.
She's at a place called The Rook.
Goodbye, comrade.
You, have you got the keys to his van and workshop? Yeah.
Pour petrol on him.
All of it.
Are you going to kill me? Just take me to the guns, and you're scot free.
Ruairi? Is that you? Drive the van out and take it out of town.
I'll be right behind you, so don't try to be brave.
Don't move a muscle, comrade.
Did your father hear a name? Doyle.
Why would Doyle need to go and see Wanda? The guns.
No bolts.
He's taken out the bolts.
Where are the bolts?! Come back, you bastard! Shit.
No more messing about.
Now! Another man barking commands at me! You're just the same kind of shit he was! Did you kill him?! Did you?! Stay where you are.
"Stay!" "Sit!" "Beg!" "Now!" What is it men like you want?! Stay where you are.
Keep your distance.
Oh, you don't want me to keep my distance.
I just want a closer look at your lovely, big gun.
Well, what are you waiting for? I'm waiting for you to do as you're told.
Have you any idea how many times in my life I've heard a man say that?! Very well, sir.
There's a box.
Thank you.
Ruairi never made it to America then? No, he never made it.
What a shame.
I can't figure out what he saw in you.
Can't you? What does any man see in a woman like me? Ruairi always had a soft spot for women.
He was a good comrade.
But then, Wanda, Ruairi never knew what a bitch you are, did he? Pick up the box.
Pick it up! Get out.
Lower your weapons! You make one mistake and I put a bullet in her head.
Understand? Show yourselves.
Come out with your guns above your heads.
Do exactly as he says! Give me your rifle.
Safety's on sir.
Throw your guns away.
Right away.
Get down on your faces! Now you lot out back, come out! Hold on.
Throw them down! Come on! On your faces! You, get down! Get down! Stay where you are! Oh, shit.
Look.
I don't have any weapons.
No, no, no! No, no, please.
Look, look.
Look, I'll prove it.
See.
Nothing.
Why don't you take me and leave her? I can be your safe passage.
No, look I can get you through roadblocks, she can't.
Hand me the box, Mrs.
Lane.
No.
Right.
Right.
All she has to do is just hand me the box and Do it.
Do it.
All right.
Slowly.
Got it.
Got it.
All right.
All right.
Open the door.
Well.
That's what I call balls.
You're a brave man, John.
Gently.
Miss O'Shaughnessy.
Mrs.
Lane, I presume.
Well, it all came out in the wash.
Sergeant Bacchus gets a medal, I'd have thought, and who knows, perhaps goes on to greater things.
Not quite everything came out in the wash, did it, Commander? Why did Doyle murder his old friend and comrade Ruairi MacLeish, for instance? Ruairi was an informer for us.
I told you that.
And who else did you tell? The IRA? Now why would I do that, George? To stop Ruairi getting to America where he could make embarrassing revelations about you.
What? An IRA man tells the world I turned him for British Intelligence, embarrassed? I get a medal too, don't I? No, that wasn't it.
The Commander had a plan.
And it might have succeeded if you hadn't messed it up for him Sergeant.
Messed it up? Doyle goes back to Ireland with the guns, a hero.
Plus, he's executed an IRA traitor into the bargain.
So he's a Republican hero twice over.
So I ask myself -- who benefits? Apart from Mr.
Doyle? These aren't issues we should be airing in present company, Chief Inspector.
Perhaps we could talk in private? We will talk here and nowhere else.
I ask again.
Who benefits from Ruairi MacLeish's death? I'm not with you, guv.
Your story about wanting Ruairi MacLeish to be your man on the IRA Army Council was all smoke and mirrors, wasn't it? You didn't need Ruairi to be your man on the Army Council 'cause you already had one, and his name was Doyle.
Ruairi MacLeish was loyal to the IRA to his last breath, wasn't he? Unfortunately for you, George, you put a bullet into the head of the only man who could answer your question.
You.
You authorized Doyle to execute Carmel's father, didn't you? Because he saw Doyle kill Ruairi.
Go on, Commander.
You look into her eyes, right, and you tell her what you did.
Things happen when people get involved in affairs they don't understand.
When the little people get involved, you mean? Oh, John.
Maybe you've got some growing up to do.
And what about Mrs.
Lane? Hey? Doyle was going to kill her and all.
Why? Why did she need to get killed, eh?! Why?! Why, why, why, why, why! You know, John, in this job, we don't bother so much about "why.
" We're more interested in "how" and "who.
" You know, perhaps it's a good idea the ladies are present after all.
I don't understand.
Who what? That's the one question Mr.
Gently has been too polite to ask.
Oh, I was getting there in my sweet, old-fashioned way.
Well, don't take all day, George.
The one unanswered question.
Mrs.
Lane do you know who it was who made the original phone call to Special Branch informing them that there was an IRA gunman operating here? Hmm? All we ever knew was that the call came from a woman.
Well-spoken if a little brassy.
Men use you.
Men tell lies.
Sometimes a man can push a woman too far.
I can't take you with me, sweetheart.
You know that.
You'll find someone else.
You know you will.
Do I? He used me and threw me away.
Mrs.
Lane.
I'll always wear the ring you gave me.
Carmel You and I should have a drink together, don't you think? We can talk about men.
Well, well, well.
A woman scorned.
I've still got a few minutes, John.
What say I buy you a drink? I'm busy.
Empton.
I'll be making a full report.
About what? About the guns you were willing to send to the IRA.
Guns that would have killed British soldiers.
Could you have lived with that? If you hadn't shot him, Gently, Doyle might have saved hundreds of British lives in years to come.
I hope you can live with that.
And the Wanda Lanes and the Carmels and the O'Shaughnessys of this world are what, dispensable? For what, national security? Or your glorious career? I was thinking, guv.
What? What are you doing? I'm doing it.
I'm fishing.
Why don't you do it the way I showed you? I showed you how to do it.
Why do I have to stand in the water? Why can't we just stand on the side and fish? Shall we go and find a nice café and have egg and chips? I've got water in me boot now.
I'm not happy.
This is rubbish.
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