It’s the question that has gripped more than 10 million viewers for the past eight weeks: ‘Who raped Trish Winterman?’
And on Easter Monday, the nation will hold their breath as the truth is at last revealed in the Broadchurch finale – which isn’t just the end of the third series, but the show as a whole.
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“Sitting down to write the final episode was very emotional and I admit I actually had a bit of a weep doing it,” reveals writer and creator Chris Chibnall, 46.
“Obviously it is a very emotional story we are telling and there are lots of complex shades of emotion.
There is the resolution to the story of the attack on Trish, which goes to a lot of dark places, but there is also the small matter of saying goodbye to the show and all these characters.”
Did he feel a lot of pressure, knowing there’s three series of work riding on the reveal?
“There is pressure with every script, but I am really proud of the final episode,” Chris smiles.
“Hopefully there are some surprises, but I also hope it is satisfying. I think there is a sense of completion and lots of nods to where we started in series one.”
As the master of secrecy (Broadchurch is renowned for the tight security on set, including fake names on scripts and constantly changing passwords that the cast had to use to access them), Chris is obviously not going to give us the slightest clue about who Trish’s rapist – or rapists – might be.
“Even my family don’t know!” he teases.
“My wife and eldest son are watching it week by week on TV and I get into trouble from them. I got a punch in the arm when they saw Mark trying to kill himself in episode six.
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But I love that they don’t know, as it means I can experience it with them each week and see first-hand how the audience are reacting.”
It was the exact same story on set, with not even the show’s lead actors, Olivia Colman (Ellie Miller) and David Tennant (Alec Hardy), knowing the identity of Trish’s attacker until the very end – when the script for episode eight landed in their inbox.
“There was an early conversation with the guilty party, but David and Olivia didn’t know and neither did Julie [Hesmondhalgh, who plays Trish],” says Chris.
“You could count on your one hand those who knew – it was basically me, the executive producer, the producer and the director.”
What Chris will admit, however, is that he did have second thoughts about his decision
to make this the final series of Broadchurch.
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“I felt like a bit of an idiot,” he confesses. “I was like: ‘Why am I saying goodbye to David and Olivia and all these brilliant people?’ But I didn’t have another story to tell in this world and I think it’s nice to go out on such strong form.
“There seems to be a real groundswell of affection for the show this year, which I hadn’t really expected.”
But while the sun may have set on those famous Dorset cliffs, could we ever see a Broadchurch movie or maybe even a Cold Feet-style reunion in the future?
“Who knows?” Chris says. “It’s certainly the end for now, but if I have a story and I can convince David and Olivia to come back… ask me again in 10 years!”
Of course, Chris is currently hard at work on his next project – the small matter of taking over the reins of Doctor Who.
“I think the secrecy of Broadchurch is pretty similar to the secrecy of Doctor Who, so Broadchurch has been a good training ground,” he laughs. “I am holding a lot of secrets!”
LAST EVER! Broadchurch Easter Monday 9pm ITV