Whitstable Pearl (2021) s02e04 Episode Script

1
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[WOMAN VOCALIZING]
I work for Zelda St. John.
The movie star?
Isn't she a recluse?
She's a nightmare.
Uh, but her husband, Scott, he's worse.
He's half her age.
He loves drama.
He's like a bullet in Chinatown.
A bull in a china shop.
Oh, I like your one better.
I've been their housekeeper
for two years.
Zelda's daughter, Estella,
she's an actress who never works.
She married the gardener, Jed,
her third husband.
Now Jed doesn't work either.
- Okay, okay.
- They hate me.
They think I'm stealing from Zelda.
So you want me to clear your name?
NATALIA: Mnh-mnh. Zelda trusts me.
I, uh, respect her secrets.
I don't, um
[MUMBLES IN POLISH]
gossip.
I don't speak to newspapers,
or magazines.
Just private detectives.
Zelda has changed her will.
She's giving some to charity.
Dogs and cats.
How do you know this?
She's leaving the rest to me.
Why you?
Zelda came to this country with nothing.
I remind her of her.
Do her family know?
They're mad. That's why I'm here.
I went to the police, but they
didn't take me seriously.
They just said I should be happy.
Well, yeah, Natalia,
you're gonna be rich.
[SIGHS] I didn't ask for any of this.
I had a plan. I wanted to leave this job
as soon as I'm finished with college.
What are you studying?
Criminology.
I want to join the police.
Good choice.
NATALIA: Pearl
I'm scared.
I feel like I'm in danger.
And maybe Zelda is, too.
If something happens to either of us
promise me you won't let them
get away with it.
There once was a place
with my little lovely ♪
Whey, hey, ho ♪
And I seek and I search,
and I know that I'll find it ♪
Whey, hey, ho ♪
I know the wind, she blows ♪
I know the tides are low ♪
But you'll find me at the Whitepost ♪
You'll find me at the Whitepost ♪
MAN: Thank you.
Isla.
Yeah, right, um
My husband could start a fight
in an empty room.
[CHUCKLES]
He had a sick sense of humour.
He was wild.
He said to tell the truth
at the funeral.
I didn't didn't even make a speech.
Now everyone talks about him
like he was a saint.
That wasn't him.
Now I
MAN: Take your time.
ISLA: I'm sorry.
Sorry, I
[SIGHS]
Hey.
MIKE: Hey.
Are you all right?
Great. Where have you been?
I just, uh, had some stuff to sort out.
Did you check your phone?
No.
I texted you a house. Uh, uh, a cottage.
Right by the sea.
Oh.
I put an offer in.
That's a bit quick, innit?
It's gonna go quick.
We can always withdraw it
if you don't like it.
But I know you will.
Kat
it's okay.
Come on. We're gonna be late.
Late for what?
Pearl invited us for dinner.
Oh, yeah. I forgot.
KAT: Another night talking shop.
Maybe we should hang out
with some of your other mates.
PEARL: Okay. Slow down.
So one of your pupils
My star pupil.
She had a bottle of vodka
in her pencil case?
- Yep.
- Wow.
Is that to help her
get through your lessons?
Ha. Ha. She says it wasn't hers.
Oh yeah, right.
She's captain of the football team.
I think somebody set her up.
Oh. And you're gonna investigate?
Yeah. Don't tell DCI Mike.
He might think I'm treading on his toes.
Oh, well, he'd send her down
for 10 years.
So come on. I need lots of top tips.
From one amateur sleuth to another.
What do you mean amateur?
Hey! There they are.
- Hi.
- Hi.
Let's go and sit by the window.
Mike, I wanted to pick your brains.
Do you know Zelda St. John?
Um
She was an actress.
She was big in the '70s.
She won three Scream Queen awards.
Anyway, her housekeeper came to see me.
There's drama around the will.
What, she's not leaving it
to her family?
No, she's leaving it to
cats and dogs and Natalia,
the aforementioned housekeeper.
Lucky her.
Mm, but now she feels at risk.
She says that she might be in danger.
She went to the police,
but they ignored her.
- Has she got any evidence?
- No, just a feeling.
But the family are definitely
looking at her different.
Sounds like a paranoid nutter.
No, she didn't seem like a nutter.
I liked her.
She said that she wanted
to join the police.
MIKE: Great, more amateurs
playing detective.
What's that supposed to mean?
Not you, I, oh
Really? That's what it sounded like.
They arguing already?
I think it's just their way
of saying hi.
PEARL: What, so we just ignore her?
Well, it doesn't sound like you've
got anything concrete to go on.
Well, if I do nothing,
what if she gets hurt?
Trust me, with experience,
you get to know
when someone's wasting your time.
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[LINE RINGING]
WOMAN: Emergency.
Which service do you require?
SCOTT: Ambulance please!
WOMAN: Are you hurt?
SCOTT: No. It's my wife.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
Oh, you look upset.
Don't tell me you were a fan.
She's the actress
that Pearl warned me about.
Ah, queen of '70s horror.
Survived attacks from vampires,
werewolves, cannibals.
Yeah, and now this.
- Yeah.
- What you got?
Someone hit her over the head.
A blunt instrument.
Have we got a weapon? Any suspects?
Yeah, Colonel Mustard
with the candlestick.
Scott found her this morning.
Called the ambulance.
Estella and Jed were in bed.
- The housekeeper
- Natalia?
Yeah.
She's done a runner.
Zelda's still unconscious, but
the medics think she'll be okay.
And when she wakes up,
you can get her autograph.
Yeah, and she can tell us who did it.
Maybe get one for Pearl, too.
She's gonna kill me.
Yeah, she is.
Did Zelda tell you
that she changed the will?
Mother loves to play games.
Poor Natalia.
She was cleaning toilets
and scrubbing floors
while sitting on a lottery
ticket she couldn't cash.
It must have been maddening.
You think Natalia attacked your Mum?
Mother changed Natalia's life,
and she had the power
to change it back again.
It was too much for Natalia
to bear, so she lashed out.
Case closed.
NIKKI: Did you know Zelda was
leaving everything to Natalia?
SCOTT: I don't care about the will.
Zelda St. John is a goddess.
She's the love of my life.
And I worship her.
Well, can you think of anyone else
who'd want to do this?
Zelda gave Natalia a beautiful,
transcendent gift.
And this is how she repays her.
Right.
NATALIA: This is why I came to you.
Well, is she gonna be okay?
Somebody tried to kill her!
I'm sorry. I did try and talk
to the police.
I told you. Scott, Estella, Jed.
They're all gold-diggers.
You can't trust any of them.
And you think one of them
definitely did this?
NATALIA: Obviously!
Where am I going to go?
Maybe I go to Wojciech or
Natalia, is there something
you're not telling me?
Because you're the one that
stands to benefit from Zelda's death.
I told you. I didn't ask for this.
Well, if you run, you'll look guilty.
They are going to say it was me.
Oh, the foreign cleaner.
Listen, Estella, Scott, Jed.
One of them did this.
Please find out who before they find me
and they throw away the key.
Please
[DOOR CLOSES]
PEARL: Hey.
What's this? I told you so? What?
Natalia came to see me.
Alright.
Look, she knows what it looks like.
She says she's innocent.
Yeah. She's done a runner.
And she's got a motive.
It just doesn't make sense.
I mean, Zelda left her everything.
Why why not wait?
Well, it's a lot of money.
Maybe just too tempting. She got greedy.
You think she played me?
I think she told you exactly
what you wanted to hear.
She told me she wanted to join
the police, and I believed her.
It just doesn't feel right.
I don't know, I like her.
Well, you see the best in people.
It's a good quality.
But in this job you need to see
the worst in people, too.
And you don't.
I need to speak to her, Pearl.
You got any idea where she's hiding?
No.
No!
CHARLIE: Yeah.
Yeah, yeah I know.
Alright, got to go. Boss is back.
Okay.
Yeah, I know.
Alright, Dad.
The papers are calling her Mrs. Danvers.
PEARL: I know. I'm not sure about her.
Zelda St. John.
She used to throw huge parties
in the old days.
All the journalists
would hide in the bushes
to steal photos of the celebs.
And you know this because?
Because we used to cater her parties.
The A-listers demanded
a certain glamour.
[LAUGHS] I bet you were in those bushes.
[LAUGHS]
Do you remember Charlie and his mates
used to swear her mansion was haunted?
They used to sneak up on to the grounds,
and one time, they saw Zelda
in the window,
and they thought she was a ghost.
Has Charlie spoken to you yet?
No, why?
He wants to check
if his passport's up to date.
Oh, is he going on holiday?
He's thinking of going to stay
with his dad.
Oh. What, for a week or two?
Maybe longer.
Mm.
Yeah. Yeah, I know.
[CHUCKLES] Okay, okay, I've got to go.
Seriously, before I get
the sack. Okay, bye, bye.
- Charlie.
- I know what you're gonna say.
We've got 10 minutes before we open.
Glasses need cleaning.
Barrels need changing.
- I'm on it.
- No, I wanted to
No, no, no, no, no, I mean it,
I promise you, I'm on it.
It'll be done.
[SIGHS]
[HAND BRAKE CLICKS, ENGINE SHUTS OFF]
PEARL: Hi.
I'm Pearl Nolan. I'm the detective.
What, police?
No, not police, no. A private detective.
I'm looking for Natalia.
Join the club.
Let's hope you find her first.
What's that supposed to mean?
I'm protective of my family,
Detective Nolan.
Right, I was hoping to speak to Estella.
She's in Scott's office.
Well, where's that?
In the basement.
I'll find it myself then, shall I?
Press are all outside.
Hiding in the bushes.
It's like the old days.
First time in 20 years.
Mummy will be thrilled.
PEARL: "Zelda and me, our story."
Scott's writing Zelda's biography.
I'm proofreading it for him.
You making a few edits?
Bravo, Miss Marple.
He's been predictably scathing about me.
So I'm finessing a few details.
Mummy was beautiful.
People say I look just like her.
She hates me for it.
Enough to write you out of the will?
You're a private detective you say.
Natalia hired you?
Yeah, she did.
She thought you were gonna kill her.
ESTELLA: Really?
Well, she would say that, wouldn't she?
I'll pay you double what she
offered you if you find her.
PEARL: Double?
Have you really got no idea
where you think Natalia might be?
I'll tell you what I told
that brooding policeman.
Natalia's boyfriend does seasonal work.
Farm labour.
Very admirable.
Probably a good place to start.
[DOOR CLOSES]
- We've talked about this.
- I know.
It's unprofessional.
What's that supposed to mean?
MIKE: Oh, you know what I mean.
What are you doing here anyway?
- Zelda's awake.
- Oh that's good.
What does she remember?
It was Natalia who attacked her.
Oh.
Now listen, I'm telling you this
because she's dangerous, all right?
You got to stay away from her.
Thanks.
[GROANS]
More flowers?
Are these all from your fans?
I think they're all from my husband.
He adores me.
Uh, I'm Pearl.
I'm a private detective.
Estella hired me to find Natalia.
Oh. [LAUGHS]
The gumshoe and the femme fatale.
How exciting.
Who's the femme fatale? You or Natalia?
I'm appalled you even have to ask.
[CHUCKLES]
Natalia.
My mother fled Poland
just after the war.
It was a very hard journey.
And she had a younger sister
whose name was Natalia.
But she didn't make it.
I'm sorry.
Maybe that's why I was so fond of her.
Were you really gonna
give her everything?
I know what it's like
to come from nothing.
Natalia worked hard.
Her boyfriend, Wojciech,
he was slogging his guts out
for minimum wage.
I thought they deserved it more.
[LAUGHS]
Look where that got me.
Natalia came to see me
before the attack.
She thought that the will
put her at risk.
She was worried about you, as well.
What did Natalia tell you?
She told me about your family.
About Estella and Scott and Jed.
Huh.
I like to have a cigarette
in the morning first thing.
Just when the sun is rising.
And I saw Natalia
out of the corner of my eye
racing towards me with a face like fury.
From the moment I told her
about the will,
she looked at me completely differently.
It was as if everything
that I had was hers.
Look, if it's any consolation,
I think that Natalia
might have played me, too.
Hello. I'm looking
for a Wojciech Pazdan.
I heard that he worked there.
No, I just
[SIGHS] Rude.
Wojciech Pazdan, yeah.
I'm looking for him.
I need to speak to him.
No, I'm not the police.
[SIGHS]
Hello, I'm looking
for a Wojciech Pazdan please.
He is there?
Oh that that's great. Um, good news.
He's he's won a competition.
Yeah. He's won a speedboat.
Sure, I can hold.
[DOG BARKING]
[HAND BRAKE CLICKS, ENGINE SHUT OFF]
Hello?
Hello?
Hey, Mike, it's me.
You're a good detective.
I did my research when I hired you.
Everyone thinks it's me.
Including you.
Zelda told the police you attacked her.
She's lying.
She was hit on the head
with something heavy.
It knocked her out cold.
Her award. I just found it in your bag.
I know what it looks like.
But listen to me. Please.
The morning Zelda was attacked,
I woke up and I found
the award in my bag.
There was blood on it.
I have no idea how it got there.
I had to bring it with me.
I couldn't let the police
find it in my room.
But I promise you, someone put it there.
They framed me.
I know it makes me look guilty.
I could have just chucked it.
But I didn't, because
I care about Zelda.
Because I know how much it means to her.
[SIREN WAILING]
I'm sorry, Natalia.
What could I do?
They're all she's got.
She's covering for them.
- Or she's scared of them.
- Natalia Dudek!
I'm arresting you for the
attempted murder
- of Zelda St. John.
- Zelda is still in danger!
- Pearl! Listen to me!
- Enough.
Why would I do this?
Pearl!
Pearl!
OFFICER: Alright, come on.
Mind your head.
That's it.
[BELL RINGS]
SCOTT: I don't understand
she put this family.
- Calm down.
- Don't you tell me to calm down.
That is my wife you're talking about.
ESTELLA: Everything will be fine.
SCOTT: Ugh!
What, so this is it now?
The rest of our lives living a lie.
[SOBS]
PEARL: Something's not right.
Pearl, we've got a victim
who named her attacker.
Then you found that same attacker
- with the missing weapon.
- [SIGHS]
MIKE: It's cut and dry.
Now look, I haven't got time for this.
I've got a murder in Sheppey,
a pub robbery in Canterbury.
I've been told to move on, alright?
It doesn't make any sense, though.
It does. You just don't want it to
because you like her and
that's clouding your judgement.
Oh don't start that again,
that I see the best in people.
- What you talking about?
- You think the worst
- of everyone.
- Oh.
What about what I overheard?
Scott and Estella saying.
He said he was sick of living a lie.
I mean, what if they tried to kill Zelda
so they could be together
and then frame Natalia
so that she doesn't inherit the money?
MIKE: Pearl! Natalia's guilty.
Zelda confirmed it.
Yeah, but Zelda's old and vulnerable.
I mean, they could be threatening her.
I can't do this. You done?
[SCOFFS]
Right, have you considered
that Zelda might be
too scared to tell the truth?
NIKKI: You all right?
So, what did she say?
I only see the worst in people.
I'm a detective. That's part of the job.
I meant about the case.
Uh, she thinks that
Scott and Estella are having an affair.
What, they fight so much
they must be sleeping with each other?
Something like that.
Rings a bell.
Happy Birthday, by the way.
What?
It's five past midnight.
How'd you know?
I saw it on Facebook.
I'm not on Facebook.
Kat's organising a surprise party.
Nah, she wouldn't.
It's fancy dress.
Happy birthday!
What's this about you going
to stay with your Dad?
You you want to talk about this now?
Yeah.
Okay, um, it's an adventure. Before uni.
And I'm the last one to know about it?
No, no, no, no,
Ruby doesn't even know yet.
- Yeah, but Dolly does.
- Yeah, but you know Dolly.
I mean, come on.
She's like a mind reader.
Pretty sure she was a witch
in her last life.
Well, you're not a kid anymore, are you?
I can't stop you.
No, no, I suppose not.
Do you remember when you and
your mates used to sneak into
Zelda St. John's mansion?
[LAUGHS] Yeah.
Yeah, I remember you used
to ground me because of it.
I wish I could ground you now.
How did you get in?
[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]
[CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING]
[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]
[CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING]
[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]
Happy Birthday!
- Oh, alright.
- Hey, come through.
Take your jacket.
Come and sit. Come through.
Come, sit.
What's up? What do you keep
looking around for?
I'm worried a load of people
I don't like
are gonna jump out and shout
"Happy Birthday."
What, like a surprise party?
Yeah, Nikki says you've planned one.
You'd hate that.
Besides, who would I invite?
Exactly. So there's no one here?
No, I've ordered us a takeaway.
And, um
Oh. Thanks.
"We heard you need arrest."
Oh, scratch cards.
Perfect.
If you lose, it affirms
your pessimistic world view.
And if you win, we retire in the sun.
We're not giving any to charity.
Or friends or family.
Blow it all on a villa in Barbados.
Or we could buy that house.
Did you go and see it?
Maybe.
And?
I knew you'd love it.
Oh, jackpot.
How much?
A quid.
Well, it's a start.
MIKE: Yeah.
We're really doing this, right?
Well, go on. Keep going.
The next one's got to be a million.
Yeah.
[BELL RINGING]
[LAUGHING IN DISTANCE]
[INDISTINCT TALKING IN DISTANCE]
[LAUGHTER]
ZELDA: So we'll put everything
into a trust
for Scott and Estella.
50/50 split. With strict restrictions.
I want strict limits
on how much they can spend.
LAWYER: Of course.
ZELDA: Left to their own
devices, the whole lot
would be gone
before I'm even in the ground.
There.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
[SEAGULLS CRYING]
TOM: Oh, man. I'm full as an egg.
Do you want to hear about my case?
Oh, the high school sting? Go on.
It was a set up.
You were right!
The football captain's best mate.
- Ouch.
- They fell out over a boy.
Well, I say boy.
He's a 26-year-old drug dealer
who still lives with his mother.
I said, "Girls, come on,
you're better than this."
But no, apparently he's quite the catch.
Yeah, well, bad boys always are.
Yeah, a boyfriend like that
catapults you into
the high school A-List.
[CHUCKLES]
It's quite sad really.
Throwing your friend under a bus
for a bit of attention.
I spoke to the head about it.
We're not gonna take it any further.
They're good kids.
You know, slap on the wrist.
Bit of truth and reconciliation.
Let's move on.
[GLASSES CLINK]
Sorry to gate crash.
What are we celebrating?
We've got a publisher for Scott's book.
[SIGHS] It's a bidding war apparently.
PEARL: Well, it's amazing what
a bit of notoriety can do.
There's rumours of
a television series, too.
Mm, and a part for Estella maybe?
Oh, I was hoping for one for me.
It's all in the book.
200 pages about the '70s,
and then nothing.
That book was clearly Scott's attempt
to put you back in the limelight.
Centre of attention.
Zelda St. John the movie star.
[LAUGHS]
But you couldn't find
a publisher, could you?
No one wanted it. No one could
remember who you were.
So you needed a new plan.
Something dramatic
and headline grabbing.
Like attempted murder.
Mm, murder sells.
You set Natalia up.
You changed your will
so there was a motive.
And you staged that attack.
Which one of them hit you?
Was it Scott? Or Jed? Or Estella?
Because they're entirely
dependent on you.
They'd do anything
you tell them, wouldn't they?
[LAUGHS]
[COUGHS]
Did one of them plant the award
on Natalia while she was asleep?
You haven't got a shred of evidence.
PEARL: Natalia could have
got rid of that award.
She knew it incriminated her.
But she didn't, and do you know why?
Because she knew
how much it meant to you.
You set her up, you framed her, and why?
Huh?
For fame?
For celebrity?
For my family.
I'm dying.
Really?
They don't know.
I've got months.
This beautiful pile is an illusion.
It's mortgaged up to the hilt.
The bank owns it. I am sinking in debt.
Scott's book was our last chance
to make some money,
and nobody wanted it.
Well[CHUCKLES]
Now they do.
Page turner of an ending.
Sending an innocent person to prison.
That just doesn't matter?
She's not family.
[SIREN WAILING IN DISTANCE]
Oh.
[SIGHS]
How do I look?
Ready for my close up?
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]
[CAMERA SHUTTERS CLICKING,
REPORTERS SHOUTING]
[REPORTERS SHOUTING]
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]
[INDISTINCT SHOUTING]
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
MIKE: Listen, you've got to
stop doing this.
- What?
- You know what.
If it wasn't for me, the wrong person
would have gone to prison.
Right, well, I'm not explaining
myself properly.
We've got to stop doing this.
It's unprofessional.
You coming to me with cases.
Me sharing evidence with you.
I shared evidence with you.
Look, there's proper channels, alright?
Correct procedures.
We don't even work together.
Well, we kind of do actually.
You don't think I can do this.
I didn't say that.
I know you can.
I solved this case on my own.
So keep doing that. Just not my cases.
It's too complicated.
Why?
Me and Kat are buying a house together.
Oh, you found somewhere?
Yeah, I think so.
Come on, you see what I mean.
All this, it's got to stop.