Annie bolts back to Blackthorn Station, her heart pounding with fury, determined to confront Canning about what happened to Tommy. As he turns to Shane, she feels a surge of righteous anger. "Put a muzzle on her," he orders, but before Shane can react, Annie delivers a swift punch to Canning's face, the action both satisfying and potentially perilous. "You punched a senior officer!" McNally chides, her tone a mix of fury and empathy.
Chief Nicola Robinson, delighted with the intel Canning has provided, muses over whether to take down Lee Thompson or simply contain him. "He could be better than what's come before," Canning explains, hinting at a complexity that runs deeper than mere confrontation.
At The Loyal Pub, Lee Thompson hears of Davy Hamill's extortion racket and cancels the debts, his words tinged with nostalgia for a simpler time. "I want things to go back to the way they were," he says, a wistful note in his voice.
Grace and Shane, their relationship strained, are on patrol when they are called to a disturbance at Brendan's house. "It's a mental health case," Shane says, his voice softening as he recalls his own experiences. He offers Brendan a cigarette as before, but this time the big man attacks him without hesitation. As Shane is battered, he begs Grace to use the pepper spray, but she hesitates, caught between her training and her emotions.
If the cops in Blue Lights seem to deal with a myriad of mental health cases, it is a realistic reflection of life on the beat for officers all over Britain. The writers are to be commended for their nuanced portrayal of this complex and often overlooked aspect of policing.
Back at the station, Tommy reveals to Sandra the name of the man who attacked him in the club: Keith Wiley. But he also requests to see the video of Gerry's death again...
At Factory Faithful, Craig whispers to Lee that the police must be onto them, as an officer was present in the club last night. "It was only a matter of time," he replies, winking at the prospect of something sinister in store for Wiley - a plot twist that promises little joy for our protagonist. Craig and Lee then escort Henry to Keith's lair, where he unleashes a tirade against the mind-numbing idiocy of those who claim to be British patriots, interspersed with Nazi salutes. "What does that make him?" Lee asks Henry, only to hear that he must leave forever. "You are the past and we are the future," Henry declares. While waiting at the bus stop to depart the town, Sandra and Aisling spot him and arrest him for the attack on Tommy. "That's what you get for being a racist prick!" shouts an old woman after Sandra kicks him in the balls in response to his assault. A delightful spectacle indeed.
Meanwhile, Robin Graham is facing charges under the official secrets act for "dissemination of stolen documents." When he's brought into Blackthorn Police Station, Jen Robinson descends to confront him, revealing that she used the documents to reach out to some of his former colleagues, who must have reported it. "It's fine," he says with a smile. "I'm exactly where I want to be!" During his interview, Robin confesses to taking the documents as evidence of wrongdoing by his colleagues. "I was involved in the operation of agents who had foreknowledge of acts of violence, and on occasion I did nothing about it!" he says before his interviewer cuts the tape.
During a break in the interview, Jen's mother, Chief Robinson - whose character we're growing increasingly disenchanted with - pulls her aside and demands that the case be dropped. She then unearths memories of her role in Gerry's death, making her mother-of-the-year credentials questionable at best.
The news that Happy Kelly has been offered a "substantial settlement" with the promise of Robin Graham's release without charge, hangs heavy in the air. Supt Robinson, with a sense of finality, remarks, "You get your win, and we all move on." However, a deeper understanding of the case unfurls when Jen realizes that her mother's role extends beyond that of a mere spectator. "Here you are, trying to save your own skin!" Jen exclaims, hinting at a deeper, more complex truth.
As the veil is lifted from Chief Robinson's past, it emerges that she was transferred to the Special Branch shortly after Jen's birth, entrusted with the daunting task of downsizing and restructuring operations. "I reviewed every case, read every file, stood down assets, and even paid off some individuals," she confesses, her words heavy with the weight of history. "The decisions we made back then were unthinkable, but in the end, we prevented a civil war... The truth is too much for everyone to bear! Don't let this destroy your future."
The scene resonates with an intensity that feels like a defining moment in the series, as the words of both actors carry a powerful force that leaves an indelible mark on the viewer's mind.
