GONE - sun and mon 9pm itv - TV PACE NO SPOILERS [Title edited by MNHQ at OP's request]

[Blondeshavemorefun]

new 6 part series stars Eve Myles (https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/lifestyle/a65948077/best-eve-myles-dramas/) (Keeping Faith) as gutsy Detective Annie Cassidy, who's investigating the mysterious disappearance of Bristol woman, Sarah.

And the chilling twist is that Detective Cassidy’s main suspect is Sarah’s husband, Headmaster Michael Polly, who's played by none other than Sherwood's David Morrissey. Genius casting indeed!

Gone is a chilling mystery focusing on local Headmaster Michael Polly, played by David Morrissey (The Long Shadow, Sherwood), who becomes the prime suspect in his wife Sarah’s disappearance.

An upstanding member of the community, Michael Polly is inscrutable and likes order and precision in his working life.

Until, that is, he encounters super bright, gutsy Detective Annie Cassidy, played by Eve Myles (The Crow Girl, Hijack) and a compulsive game of cat and mouse begins as she chips away at his veneer in search of the truth.

Beneath the surface of the mystery, lies a deeper exploration of trauma, trust and the legacy of elite institutions.

The series also stars Jennifer Macbeth, Arthur Hughes, Nicholas Nunn, Elliot Cowan, Billy Barratt, Rupert Evans, Jodie McNee, Oscar Batterham and Clare Higgins.

Why do people in TV cop shows act like they've never seen a TV cop show in their entire lives? Spouses of murder victims are outraged if asked for an alibi, nobody's ever heard of a FLO, etc etc. One day, when they say that, the cop will reply, don't you ever watch television, and I'll applaud! The grandparents here were typical.

@SydneyCarton I think all the parents were there picking up because headmaster is a suspect in killing his wife so they don't feel their kids are safe. One parent shouted about the kids safety with what was going on. That's why the deputy and the other female teacher were talking is suspending Michael as the school's reputation is the most important thing.

What seems to me a bit ridiculous is that even if you buy Michael's 'the school comes first' schtick, he is not a fool, he surely realises that in the eyes of the police (and, come to that, everyone else) he is murder suspect numero uno? He behaves as if the idea that he might have murdered his wife has never occurred to anyone. Seems to me there's three options:

a) He did it. Well, duh.
b) He didn't do it, but he's covering for someone (Alanna?)
c) He has no connection with Sarah's death.

His behaviour towards the police makes c) seem less likely, I'd have thought.

Another thing I don’t understand them doing these days is having the family appeal for the missing person to return. Everyone knows it’s purely to see how they act.

@moto748e I suppose it's that rigidity of thought and centring of yourself as the most important person (Alana's comment "It's always been about Dad") that means he can't conceive of anyone thinking he would kill his wife. Which is either a really good double bluff, or he knows he didn't kill her and therefore can't understand why everyone doesn't automatically realise that.

I did think her dad - grandad an his attitude was spot on

you would want to know how your child died

Me too! I was cheering him on trying to get answers from Annie.

it was a bit daft that Annie didn't explain herself at all. She said she had info that they wanted to hear, but refused to reveal it to them. She should have made some attempt to explain why, what the procedure was, and at what time the family would be given all the facts.

I thought that Annie said earlier that they couldn't reveal the cause of death until Sarah's body had been identified .

Plus I guess she wanted to tell next of kin aka hubby first

Ooooooh I absolutely love David Morrissey. LOVE him! Love him in all senses of the word.

I generally like a slow drama and I'm very appreciative of the fact that this one is so easy to follow so far, but it is creaking along a bit. I thought it very strange that we saw so little of Mike and Alanna being told it was the Mum/Wife (pending formal identification) and also very weird that they'd be all four be sitting down to a pasta dinner that evening. Would you eat if your spouse had been found dead in the woods?

Mike couldn't have sent a voicemail if her phone was switched off?

Rugby boy's mother will feature as she's a name. Maybe an affair with Mike?

It bugs me hugely that it's all filmed in different seasons and so the exterior shots (pretty as they are) show early spring/height of summer/winter all out of sequence. Film and TV companies are meticulous about continuity in interior shots and I just don't understand why they don't try and do the same with the exteriors. I always notice and it always annoys me!

Why couldn't Mike have left a voicemail if Sarah's phone was switched off? My mobile automatically goes to voicemail when it's switched off.

It is the opinion of both DH and myself that the actress playing the daughter looks very much like Zoey Deschanel.

Well spotted. I didn’t even notice her till you said - so yes her son could be a suspect

I thought she looked Eva Myles, and I thought mini buses would pick up the children

Absolutely loving this - trying to stop myself from racing through the entire thing!

I’m not loving it at all but I want to see what happens

It was a question @Meredusoleil that's why I put a question mark. Every time someone called her number they got a recorded message saying the phone was switched off, but I didn't hear an option to speak to voicemail.

Maybe she didn’t have an ansa machine on phone. My friends doesn if has no signal

I hope this isn’t a spoiler. Ask for it to be deleted please. if so but I’d like this here for a reason.

It’s inspired by a true story, the work of a detective who caught a killer of a young girl.

It’s not about that mainly, I didn’t know her, but, that young girl, was a friend of a friend, and I’d like to raise a glass to her, her life was brutally taken away. She was, and would have been, the same age as me.

(I'm not sure I’ll be watch now I know, that as its got to me a bit which is ridiculous as its not about me.)

I think that the admin woman/PA is suspicious.

Agree, she is very protective of Michael, I think it’s to obvious that he is the murderer have no idea who is though I’m wondering is Sarah’s death linked to the other missing person who’s family Annie visited, have no idea how the intense rugby boy figures in it all either confused at the moment.

Intense Rugby Boy's surname is Sedgewick, and the number in the phone was stored as "Claire S". Could it be his father that Sarah was having an affair with, and stored his number in her phone as Sedgewick's mum to avoid suspicion?

@SydneyCarton oh I missed that thank you, maybe Intense rugby boy knows about the affair then.

It's very slow . His boring personality is draining. No smile, no laugh, no banter.
Imagine living with someone like that.