Hetty Wainthropp Investigates (1996) s04e02 Episode Script

[Men arguing.]
Man: I don't have to tell you every single thing which happens in my life.
Is it not your concern.
Second man: You can't be serious about this.
I've never been more serious in my life.
There's no reason why-- your life Mother would turn in her grave.
Yes.
Talk about mother after what you've done to us.
Whenever you're ready, Mr.
Carter.
Thank you, Ella.
[Door slams.]
acorn media [telephone rings.]
Wainthropp detective agency.
[Didgeridoo playing.]
Hetty: Geoffrey, I'm on the phone.
I'm so sorry about that.
My assistant is practicing.
How can I help you? James Carter? Hetty: You remember.
He was found dead in his garden pond last month.
Oh, yes.
In fact I'm off to Janet's.
Oh, planning to give her a bit of a tune, are we? Thought I might.
She'll enjoy that.
There we are.
The inquest was yesterday.
"Accidental death.
" So who was that on the phone? His brother Harry.
What did he want? That, Robert, is what I'm about to find out.
So, Geoffrey Oh, only I've arranged to see Janet, you see.
Oh, well, I'll have to manage on my own, then, but you can drop me off on your way.
Come on.
Did he? Look.
I was just about to pour myself a glass of wine.
May I offer you one or something stronger, perhaps? It's a bit early for me, Mr.
Carter, but I wouldn't say no to a cup of tea.
Hetty: So what exactly are you telling me, Mr.
Carter, that you don't think this was an accident? My brother was in very poor health, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
He was due to go into hospital at any time for a bypass.
What he was doing standing by a pool at least 100 yards from his house, I can't imagine.
Did you tell the police this? Yes.
They said there was no indication of foul play of any kind.
You're not suggesting suicide, I take it.
Of course not.
Because if it's murder we're on about, I have to tell you here and now that that's definitely police business.
But it isn't my brother's death I want you to investigate, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
It's her.
Her? Ella Parsons, his so-called housekeeper.
Really knocked you out, didn't it? Sorry, Geoff.
I've just got a lot on me mind.
Like what, for instance? Well, the fact that I could be homeless this time next week.
I thought, what with this new job, all that was sorted.
Well, I won't see any money for weeks yet, will I? Most of me redundancy has already been spent, and besides, even with a regular job again, it's more than I could manage on me own.
Have you thought of advertising for somebody? Yeah, but you never really know who you're gonna end up with, do you? What you really want if you're sharing is somebody you already know, isn't it? [Gulp.]
You mean, like a mate.
Ideally.
Somebody you've shared with before.
Right.
I don't suppose you can think of anybody, can you? Not offhand, Janet, but I'll certainly give it some thought.
Right.
Harry: Underneath that serene exterior, she's devious, unscrupulous, and manipulative, and I have reason to believe that for the past two years, Ella Parsons has been systematically robbing my brother.
Robbing him? Well, my brother is an inveterate collector, Mrs.
Wainthropp-- I mean, coins, stamps, jade-- and since his death, certain items have gone missing.
You have mentioned this to the police.
Oh, no.
No, no, no.
Oh, no.
Quite apart from anything else, I felt I should check it out myself first.
SoWill you take the case? Oh, we'll certainly check out Mrs.
Parsons for you.
If I could have a few details Robert: Is she from this area? Yorkshire.
Apart from that, Harry Carter doesn't seem to know much else about her.
Hmm, better get our skates on, then.
She won't be around much longer with her former boss dead and buried.
Dead, Robert, but not necessarily buried.
You what? If the inquest was yesterday, they probably only just released the body.
Man: "Man that is born of woman "hath but a short time to live and is full of misery.
"He cometh up and is cut down like a flower.
"He fleeth as if were a shadow "and never continueth in one stay.
"In the midst of life, we are in death.
"Of whom may we seek for succor but of thee, o lord, who, for our sins, art justly displeased?" [Sandpaper scraping.]
Oh.
Thanks very much, Geoffrey.
She not back, then? Not yet, no.
Ah.
Something on your mind, is there, Geoffrey? No.
I have this mate, mind you, with a bit of a problem.
Oh.
He has this girlfriend with this flat, you see.
Oh, yes? Only she can't afford to keep it on, not on her own, like, and now she's on at him-- that is, this mate of mine-- to move in with her.
I mean, she's not exactly asked him straight out, like, but he can see that's what she's hinting at.
I see.
I mean, purely to split the cost, like.
Two being able to live as cheaply as one, as it were.
That's right, only he has this Well, aunt and Uncle who he lives with at present, and he doesn't think they'd approve.
Hmm, difficult.
I'll say.
I suppose at the end of the day, it is up to him, Geoffrey.
Well, I'd have said so, yeah.
I presume he is over 21.
Well, no.
He isn't.
You see, that's the other thing, but he's old enough, I mean, to make up his own mind about these things.
Right, and I would have thought-- without knowing any of the parties concerned, of course-- of course.
That this Uncle would understand that, being a man of the world and seeing the sheer practicalities of the situation.
Right.
But that still does leave the aunt, I suppose.
Right.
Mrs.
Parsons, isn't it? That's right.
I'm Hetty Wainthropp, a friend of Harry Carter's.
Oh, yes? I gather you're from Yorkshire.
Harrogate.
Very nice.
I wouldn't say it was all that nice, Mrs.
Wainthropp, not where we lived, anyway.
The accident must have been a terrible shock for you.
Yes.
It was.
Whatever happened, do you think? I can only assume he tripped and fell in and couldn't get out again.
It is quite deep, that pool, and overgrown.
Where does this leave you now? Well, Mr.
Carter has asked me to stay on for a few weeks, just until everything is sorted out, but after that, I-- quite a feast, Ella.
Thank you.
You've done him proud.
And now, if you'll excuse me, I better organize some coffee.
It's mutual, then Your feelings for one another.
Would you like to see where my brother was found? I thought it was a robbery I was investigating, Mr.
Carter, not a death.
It never does any harm, though, Mrs.
Wainthropp, having a complete picture.
It's a bit smelly.
He had let things go somewhat, I'm afraid.
How deep is it? 6 feet, I suppose, certainly deep enough to drown him.
He couldn't swim, I take it.
He always hated water.
Where was Mrs.
Parsons that afternoon? Oh, gone to the shops, she says.
When did she last see him alive? Couple of hours earlier.
She said she served him his lunch and left him there eating it.
What did she think he was doing this far from the house? Oh, she said he often came down here when he wanted to think.
Did he? Possibly.
[Birds cawing.]
Robert: Cape town? You can say Johannesburg, if you'd rather.
Well, considering I've never been within 2,000 Miles of either, I can't see that it matters.
Can you? There you are, then.
Whose crackpot idea was this? And what's crackpot about it? How is my posing as James Carter's South African cousin gonna help us? It gains you legitimate access to the house, Robert, and then you can have a good root round when she's out of the way.
Access to the house? Your story is that you've already made an offer on the place and Harry Carter has accepted it and because you're family-- got it?-- he's agreed to let you stay on until the estate has been properly sorted out.
Oh, and your name is Tate, by the way-- Robert Tate.
Geoffrey: How's your South African accent, Mr.
Wainthropp? Nonexistent.
Hetty: Oh, that's no problem.
You originally came from around here, and you're one of those people who never lost his local twang.
And when's all this supposed to happen? The sooner, the better.
So you'd best both go and get packed.
Both, Mrs.
Wainthropp? Somebody has got to push the wheelchair.
Wheelchair? Wheelchair? You've been confined to one every since your riding accident on the veldt, right? There was a stair lift at that house.
That's what gave me the idea.
But what advantage is there in me being confined to a wheelchair? For a start, it's a perfect excuse to have Geoffrey with you.
Oh, and Mr.
Carter has agreed to provide a car.
And what are you gonna be doing all this time? Checking out one or two things with dci Adams.
Not bad, is it, Mr.
Wainthropp, having your own chauffeur-driven roller for a couple of days? I can think of places I'd rather be at this moment.
Geoffrey.
Ohh Oh, now, Geoffrey, you don't have to go raving mad.
Ah, Mrs.
Parsons, I presume.
That's right.
Robert Tate.
Harry did warn you.
Oh, yes.
Adams: Accidental death, according to the coroner.
And there's no doubt in anybody's mind that is was an accident.
None at all.
Why? What's your interest in Carter's death? His brother Harry has asked me to look into it.
Really? Do you think he's being paranoid? Well, I certainly don't believe the housekeeper pushed him in and held him under.
That's what he more or less tried to suggest to us.
But did you check her out? Not even a parking ticket.
Robert: I take it, cousin Harry told you I'll be buying the house.
Of course.
Did he also tell you I'll be looking for a housekeeper, once things have been finalized, that is.
He didn't.
No.
Well, what are your own plans now? I don't know that I've made any as yet, Mr.
Tate.
It's all been such a shock.
I'm sure.
I was wondering if you'd be interested in staying, if we find we get on, that is.
That's very nice of you, Mr.
Tate, but you hardly know me.
Oh, but I do, Mrs.
Parsons.
Oh? James often spoke of you in his letters and always very warmly.
Oh, well, that's nice.
He never mentioned you to me, I'm afraid.
I'd always understood his brother was his only surviving family.
Well, I suppose we're not cousins as such, more half-cousins, really.
I see.
Well, why don't we both think about it, eh? Yes.
Thank you.
And now, if you'd like to come up, I'll show you your room, shall I? So far, so good.
As the man said as he jumped off blackpool tower.
As you can see, there is a lift Oh.
Ah, yeah.
Not that Mr.
Carter used it much.
He seemed to regard it as an admission of defeat.
Oh, not a great follower of doctor's orders, our James.
Not really, no.
Ok.
Thank you.
That probably explains why he went into the garden that day.
More than likely.
Thanks.
Right, then.
Whenever you're ready, boss.
Huh.
Whenever you're ready, Geoffrey.
Pardon? The chair.
The chair.
Oh.
Sorry.
All right for you? Oh, yes.
Lovely.
In that case, if you'll excuse me, I'll organize some lunch.
Ah.
Well, don't just stand there, Geoffrey.
Go and fetch the bags.
Yes, sir.
Ahh.
All right for you? My favorite, Mrs.
Parsons.
And mine.
You'll find yours in the kitchen, Geoffrey.
Oh, right.
Ahh.
Ahh.
Yummy.
Oh, thanks.
About your offer, Mr.
Tate Oh, yes? Would it be on the same terms as Mr.
Carter's? Well, of course.
In that case, I might well be interested Good.
And thanks very much.
Thank you.
Oh, and if you could lay your hands on any references, the ones you provided for James would do.
But of course.
[Door opens and closes.]
Robert, how's it going? Well, she's agreed to stay on.
Good.
Well, isn't it? Just as long as I never have to explain that there isn't really a job at all.
We'll worry about that when we come to it.
Did she find you any references? Oh, that was quick.
She's a very organized lady.
Both from addresses in harrogate.
Yes.
She said she came from there.
What else did you manage to find out? Not a lot, except that she's a terrific cook.
I've had roast beef for lunch.
Oh, that's nice for you.
How's Geoffrey doing? Also eating royally, I trust.
Not quite as royally.
Where is he, anyway? Gone to see Janet.
Incidentally, has he mentioned this mate of his to you yet? Mate of his? And the little problem he's having? Janet: Ha ha! Eh? Not a bad old banger, I suppose, if you're into flash.
So have you found anyone to share your flat with yet? Afraid not.
Have you thought of anyone? Afraid not.
So you think these may be forgeries.
No family called houghton or frodsham are living at either of these addresses at the moment, and it is a bit of a coincidence if both of them have moved within the last two years.
But not impossible.
Of course not.
Well, why can't you simply ring the people who live there now and ask them? If I had their names, I could.
You can't get a number out of directory inquiries without giving them a name.
Oh.
So So I'll have to go over to harrogate and check.
Well, the sooner, the better.
Geoffrey: I could get used to this, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
What, at 10 Miles to the gallon? Ha ha ha! Ha ha! Incidentally, I didn't tell you about this mate of mine, did I? Oh, what mate might this be, Geoffrey? [Knocks on door.]
Geoffrey is out, is he? Uh, day off.
Oh.
Will you be all right on your own if I popped down to the shops for an hour? Oh, yes.
Oh.
In that case, I'll see you later.
Right.
Geoffrey: What would you advise him to do, Mrs.
Wainthropp? Oh, I'm sure I'd be the last person this mate of yours would turn to for advice, Geoffrey, but if it was you who was asking Yeah? I'd say the one person he'd be most likely to have trouble with would be his Uncle.
They can become very staid, men of that age.
But you think his auntie would be more broad-minded about it? Oh, in my experience, women are much more realistic about these things than men are.
Right.
As long as he makes it quite clear, of course, that it's just the rent they're sharing.
Right.
Only me, Mr.
Tate.
I forgot my purse.
Oh.
Oh, dear.
Are you all right, Mr.
Tate? Huh? You seem a bit breathless.
Oh, it's the-- it's the lancashire climate after Africa.
It gets to me chest a bit.
[Door closes.]
Ohh Oh, no.
Come on.
Come on.
[Door closes.]
Ohh Nobody called houghton lives here.
Has anybody called houghton ever lived here? No.
I don't think so, well, not for the last 10 years.
That's how long we've been here.
Well, I'm sorry I've bothered you.
Thank you.
So? They've never heard of anyone called frodsham at trenchard Crescent, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
Well, there's a surprise.
[Door opens.]
Still not back, then, young Geoffrey? Uh, not yet, no.
He's a lucky boy to be given the use of a car like that on his day off.
Well, it's not much use to me, really, without Geoffrey to drive me.
He's a good lad, you know, totally trustworthy.
And local, too, from his accent.
Well, I booked him through an agency before I left South Africa, and he was here waiting for me when I arrived.
You don't sound all that South African yourself, Mr.
Tate.
No.
Well, it was something I prided myself in when I was over there, my northern accent.
Never could stand it when people arrived from the old country and in no time at all, were talking as though they were born there.
Which part of South Africa were you living in? Johannesburg, or rather, joburg, as we used to call it.
I have a friend there.
Oh, r-r-really? She lives in a place called-- oh, what was it again?-- hillbrow.
No.
That's where I lived--hillbrow.
Good lord.
Small world, eh? Isn't it, though? Well, you must be bored out of your mind, stuck inside all day.
Would a breath of fresh air help? Why not? That's where they found him? Yes.
Are you warm enough? I think so.
Will you be all right for a few minutes while I put the kettle on? Yes.
That sounds like a wonderful idea.
I'll leave you to it, then.
Right, Geoffrey.
I want you to give Robert a ring and warn him we'll need to have a meeting to bring him up to date.
That is, if he can bear to be dragged away from Mrs.
Parsons' cordon bleu cooking for an evening.
[Telephone rings.]
[Ring.]
[Ring.]
Stapleton hall.
Hi, Mrs.
Parsons.
It's Geoff.
Is Mr.
Tate there, please? I'm afraid he's out in the garden at the moment.
Can I take a message? Just tell him I'll be back soon, will you? Are you sure I can't get him to call you? No.
No.
I'm in a pay phone.
Bye.
[Telephone rings.]
Oh! [Ring.]
Wainthropp detective agency.
[Click.]
Who was that? Don't know.
They put the phone down.
Wrong number, obviously.
Well, you know what to do, don't you? Dial 1471, and they'll tell you who it was who rang.
[Ring.]
Hello.
It's me.
Hi, Janet.
I just wondered if you'd had any thoughts yet? Thoughts? About this flat business.
Oh, look.
It's a bit awkward at the moment.
Can I ring you back? Ok.
See you, then.
Oh Will you tell dci Adams the references are forgeries? Well, I think before we do, we need to find out a bit more about Ella Parsons.
And how do you intend to do that, Mrs.
Wainthropp? Oh, it isn't how I intend to do it, Geoffrey.
It's how you intend to do it.
[Pouring and stirring.]
That's Mr.
Tate's cocoa, is it, Mrs.
Parsons? That's right.
I'll take it up for him if you like.
Very well.
Thanks.
Ah, nothing like a nice cup of hot cocoa to help you sleep.
Only not this one, I'm afraid, Mr.
Wainthropp.
Geoffrey.
Geoffrey! Shh.
Shh.
Dabs, Mr.
Wainthropp, a perfect set, I'd say.
Harry: You found something out, haven't you, Mrs.
Wainthropp? All I've got to go on so far are suspicions.
The minute they become something else, believe me, you'll be the first to know.
You better have very good grounds for asking me to do this.
I've been accused of lots of things in the past few years, chief inspector, but wasting police time has never been one of them.
Her name isn't Ella Parsons.
It's Anna lithgow.
She got 9 months for robbery a few years back, and gbh on the policeman who arrested her.
Oh, and she isn't married, either, by the way.
Perhaps it's just as well.
All right, Geoffrey.
You can drop me at Chez renoir.
Robert: Chez renoir? That's right.
I'm lunching with Mr.
Carter.
Are you now? So she's not only a fraud.
She's a pretty dangerous one, too.
It seems like it.
And what did the police say about that? Oh, dci Adams was all for pulling her in at once, of course, until I talked him out of it.
How did you manage that? By pointing out that they'd blow our cover and miss their chance of nailing her for something far more serious than falsifying references.
Hmm.
We've got 24 hours to come up with something.
After that, it's out of our hands.
Thank you, George.
If she has been helping herself to items from the house, isn't it likely she's still at it? It's a possibility.
And if she is, how has she been disposing of the stuff? Bit risky, I would have thought, touting for a fence in an area you're not familiar with.
Much better to have stashed the stuff and then get rid of it on home turf, so to speak.
She made regular trips to Yorkshire, allegedly to visit relatives.
If she is hiding it around the house, it certainly isn't in her room.
There must be lots of other places, outhouses and such, places my brother wouldn't dream of going into, hmm? Worth checking, I would have thought.
Hmm.
[Knocks on door.]
Right, Mr.
Tate.
I'm off.
Back about teatime.
Going somewhere nice? Just to the cinema.
See you later, then.
[Door closes.]
Right.
Robert, you make a start on the garages.
Geoffrey, have a sniff around the attic.
I'll check the back.
[Wings flutter.]
[Sniff.]
[Sniff.]
[Sniff sniff.]
Found something interesting, have you, Mrs.
Wainthropp? These yours, by any chance? They certainly look familiar.
And they're damp, as well.
No prizes for guessing how they got like that, and if the smell is anything to go by Oh? The pond, Mrs.
Parsons, the one James Carter drowned in Or should I call you miss lithgow? You're obviously very good, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
I must remember to consult the Wainthropp detective agency myself next time I need somebody.
Presumably, you're working for Harry Carter.
Yes.
I am, and the only person you'll be consulting in the near future, I dare say, will be a solicitor when the police see this little lot.
Are these the clothes you were wearing on the day he drowned? I'm sorry? What happened, miss lithgow? Did he prove to be more of a handful than you thought he would, which is why you both ended up in the water? You think I drowned him.
Did you? You're mad.
Let's see if the police think I am, shall we? No, at least not until you've heard what I have to say.
Why one earth should I want to drown him, Mrs.
Wainthropp? Good grief, woman, I only just agreed to marry him.
Married To my brother The original confirmed bachelor? Ha! Ha ha! That's ridiculous.
Even confirmed bachelors have been known to get married, Mr.
Carter.
Not my brother, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
He was terrified of women, always had been.
Anyway, where is LA Parsons or lithgow or whatever she's calling herself nowadays? Safely locked away, I hope.
Upstairs in her room, but the police are on their way.
[Car approaching.]
These are for you, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
If you're half as good a detective as I suspect you are, I think you might just find them interesting.
Oh, and by the way, Mr.
Wainthropp, next time you pretend you're from Johannesburg, don't tell people you're from hillbrow, will you? My black friend who lives there says you would look most out of place.
[Door closes.]
[Car departs.]
Harry: I think that just about covers it, don't you? Thanks very much.
Thank you very much, Mrs.
Wainthropp, for a job well done.
Or were we just lucky, Mr.
Carter? You must admit, it was pretty lucky, finding that damp clothing.
I couldn't understand it, really.
How do you mean? Well, Anna lithgow leaving it lying around like that.
Little bit careless for such a careful woman.
Well, presumably, she never in a million years thought that anybody would come looking for it.
She claims that the clothes had gone missing from her room within the last few days.
She was proposing to wear that skirt for the funeral and took it to be dry-cleaned.
When she came to put it on on the morning of the funeral, it had gone, that and the blouse I found.
That's what she said, is it? Oh, and she can prove it.
You see, that skirt was dropped off at the cleaners, oh, less than a week ago with some curtains.
Being a meticulous housekeeper, she kept the receipt for the household accounts.
This is the receipt.
As you see, the list of items includes a skirt.
Well, there's nothing here says it was the skirt that you found.
They do remember it, though, at the cleaners.
Oh, you Carters and anybody associated with you were the talk of the town at the time.
So what does all this prove? It's not so much what it proves, Mr.
Carter, as what it suggests.
Suggests? That that clothing was deliberately planted for me to find by the same person who put the idea into my head of searching the outbuildings.
Now you're being ridiculous, Mrs.
Wainthropp.
Am I? You and your brother had a big row the night before he drowned, didn't you? You could be heard all over the house.
That's what she told you, is it? What was the row about, Mr.
Carter? Had he just told you he was gonna get married-- to her, of all people-- and you could see your entire inheritance being lost to her? That's preposterous.
Do you know what I think happened? I think you came back the following day to take it up with him again, only you found her out shopping and him all alone by that pond.
This time, the row got out of hand.
He ended up in the water, and you just left him there.
That's an outrageous thing to say.
You'd have got away with it, too, if you'd simply taken the money and run, but it wasn't enough for you, was it? You had to get even with her, as well.
It was all her fault.
If she hadn't come into your lives, he'd no need to have died, had he? Poetic justice, fitting her up for his murder.
You can't prove a word of this, Mrs.
Wainthropp, not one word.
Perhaps I can't, but then I don't need to, do I? As I told you, we don't do murder, Mr.
Carter.
We leave that to the police, but I don't think they'll have much trouble over this one.
Oh? Whoever planted that clothing must have left fingerprints all over that greenhouse door.
Had a bit of a job getting it open.
If they turn out to be your fingerprints, whatever were you doing in that particular greenhouse, of all places? Have you outlined your theory to the police yet, Mrs.
Wainthropp? I was just about to, as a matter of fact.
Were you really? [Door opens.]
Little late for that, I think, sir.
Already what you might call done and dusted, that door.
Uh! Aah! But I didn't-- uh! Uhh! But I didn't-- Janet: So what happened to your roller? Aw, spat with the real owner, I'm afraid, not that he'll be doing much driving, mind you.
SoYou sorted out this little problem? Problem solved, Geoffrey.
Oh.
Robert: What niggles me is the way he tried to use us to frame that poor woman.
His fatal mistake, Robert.
Never underestimate a Wainthropp, right, love? And we got paid.
Well, I suppose, if nothing else, I had a taste of the high life.
As for that roast beef and Yorkshire pudding-- I had the duck at the Chez renoir and a very nice chablis.
Ha ha ha! Not that it was a laughing matter, mind.
You could've been in real danger facing a murderer like that.
In future, when we say, "no murders," we mean it, ok? And before you tell me again that it wasn't a murder we were investigating, don't even start, all right? All right, Robert.
[Door closes.]
You're early.
Geoffrey: Fancied an early night.
I thought you were supposed to be seeing Janet.
I've seen Janet.
You two haven't had a row, have you? Of course not.
How's this mate of yours getting on with that little problem he was having? All sorted.
Oh? Seems his girlfriend found somebody else to share the flat with, some other fella.
So, like Janet said, problem solved.
[Door closes.]
Oh, dear.
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