Deadwater Fell, Channel 4’s latest crime drama ended Friday, 31 January 2020. The answers we were seeking in the previous three episodes were mostly addressed. The most important question, the one pertaining to the identity of the killer, was emphatically answered.

Each episode in the miniseries, even though not everything we saw pointed us in the right direction, presented us with a compelling piece of information.

Image Credit: IMDb.com

There was much speculation that Dr Tom Kendrick’s (David Tennant) wife, primary school teacher Kate Kendrick (Anna Madeley), killed their three daughters, herself, and attempted to kill her husband. With the doctor having routinely kept insulin in his medical bag, it wouldn’t have been difficult for Kate to have gained access to her husband’s car.

Tom and the three children had each been injected with insulin. The same is true of Kate herself. The real killer, as this finale episode reveals, is Tom. Tom injected them and himself before setting the fire. If it wasn’t for the neighbours having spotted the fire, Tom would have succeeded.

Tom killed his entire family because he believed they were his to kill. The doctor’s control over his family members was worth more to him than their lives. As each episode progressed, we saw more and more of the doctor’s relationship with his wife. Kate had apparently been planning to divorce Tom. In the doctor’s eyes, this undermined his authority over the family unit.

Losing control of them was apparently unbearable to him. He felt entitled to kill each of them. Once his wife and children were dead, given his lack of empathy, there is no indication that he felt anything for them.

The injection marks on each body were significant. Kate had no real medical experience. The single puncture marks suggest a working knowledge of anatomy. Tom, being a doctor, had the knowledge to effortlessly administer the injections.

The Lynsey Miller directed four-part miniseries, written by Daisy Coulam, is the darkest drama we’ve seen televised on Channel 4 in several years. Given the subject matter, with how each episode unfolded, the tension within each instalment was significant. Much of that tension, with each actor and actress committing totally to their respective performance, can be attributed to the cast’s unwavering focus.

Previously …