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The Pact on BBC One review: Six burning questions we have after watching episode one

Laura Fraser and Julie Hesmondhalgh star in the new six-part thriller

The Pact started on BBC One tonight and viewers were left wondering what on earth happened to Jack Evans – amongst other things – so here are the questions we want answering after watching The Pact episode one.

The six-part drama kicked off on Monday May 17 2021, and will continue on Tuesday May 18 2021 at 9pm.

Here’s what we desperately want to know in the next instalment.

The Pact cast
The Pact cast includes Laura Fraser, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Eiry Thomas and Heledd Gwynn (Credit: BBC One)

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What or who killed Jack?

Obviously the main question we want answering is what did Jack die of?

He’s found lifeless in the woods after a prank goes wrong.

But did he die of an undiagnosed heart condition, or was it a drug overdose?

As this is a thriller, we suspect foul play was involved.

There are several people who could have returned to the woods to kill Jack.

Prime suspect has to be Louie surely? (See below)

But Nancy also left the girls to go for a wee in the woods.

Did she go back to Jack to kill him? She was the only sober one amongst them and seemed the most keen not to call the police on the night.

But why would she want Jack dead?

Did Louie kill Jack?

After leaving Jack in the woods, Louis did not enter her house after being dropped off.

She appeared to loiter in the doorway with her key in the door until the others had gone.

In the early hours of the next morning, she refused to let her colleagues into her house. But why?

Did she return to Jack’s position in the woods to finish him off?

She certainly has motive, living in a small terraced house while her nephew and brother lived in luxury.

And Jack had just sacked her, after all.

At the end of episode one, we saw that Louie had planted Mandy’s card at the scene of the crime.

Why would she frame an innocent woman?

Eddie Marsan as Arwel
The Pact episode one questions: Eddie Marsan as Arwel Evans in The Pact (Credit: BBC One)

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What was the beef between Arwel and his son Jack?

Jack seemed to have an irrational hatred for his dad Arwel.

Arwel says that Jack “started resenting me when I packed him off to rehab”.

However, Jack hinted at something more sinister between them.

During an emotionally-charged phone conversation, Jack told his dad to stay away from the party.

He spat: “It’s the least you owe me.”

What’s the history between the father and son, and could it be why Jack ended up dead?

The Pact episode one questions: Why was Cat in prison?

Cat has already been in prison, viewers were told.

She told her colleagues she couldn’t face going back to jail.

Nancy tells Anna: “Cat is still on parole.

“She’ll go straight back to prison.”

But why was she there in the first place?

Does she have a violent past?

The Pact Nancy
Julie Hesmondhalgh as Nancy in The Pact (Credit: BBC One)

The Pact episode one questions: What’s happened between Nancy and Richard?

Nancy’s character is perhaps the oddest.

She didn’t drink at the work party, but still took part in the prank against Jack.

She said she “didn’t feel comfortable with any of it” but did nothing to stop it.

And Nancy’s home life clearly isn’t a happy one.

Her husband Richard sleeps in a different room and the pair are barely civil to each other.

What’s happened between them, and is it somehow connected to Jack’s murder?

More likely, perhaps, is that Richard finds out about the prank and tells the police about his wife’s involvement.

The Pact episode one questions: Who sent the text?

At the end of episode one, the four employees involved in the prank received a text message.

The message said: “I know what you did. I want money.”

Who sent the text and why didn’t they go straight to the police?

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The Pact continues on Tuesday May 18 2021 at 9pm on BBC One. The whole series is currently available to watch on iPlayer.

What do you think? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix.


Helen Fear
TV Editor