Series 3, Episode 4 of the BAFTA-winning BBC comedy drama Detectorists, written and directed by Mackenzie Crook. Host Katie and guest Ross Carpenter (@detectorosst) review an episode that earns its place as one of the best of the series.
Lance is sleep-deprived and obsessed with the magpies. He dismantles the tent to build a catching net, places a two-pound coin as bait, hides in the long grass and falls asleep. The magpies arrive, flip the coin to tails and leave without taking it. Andy, meanwhile, is back on verge work, filling his sprayer with water instead of weedkiller because he cannot bring himself to kill the wildflowers. Veronica, driven past in a car, clocks him immediately.
The episode belongs to Maggie. Tony arrives at Lance's flat to find Maggie answering the door half-dressed, calling herself his current, looking Tony up and down and calling her Trevor. The empty wine bottle Tony gave Lance as a reward for the hypnotherapy is sitting on the table. She leaves. Later, Maggie comes home from the shops unaware Kate is sitting on the bed, starts sifting through her drawers, and Kate says what are you doing. A text message from Maggie's ex reveals everything. Kate tells her to get her spells and potions out of her room and her bony ass out of her dad's life. The boys end the episode under the lunch tree with Kerplunk and Connect Four, while the camera pulls up through the branches to reveal the magpies' nest stuffed with gold coins.
We commentate on the brilliant series with characters: Andy (Mackenzie Crook), Lance (Toby Jones), Becky (Rachel Stirling), Veronica (Diana Rigg), Tony (Orion Ben), Terry (David Sterne), Sheila (Sophie Thompson).
Find Ross at @detectorosst on Instagram. For more metal detecting chat, interviews, and the history behind the finds, follow Katie and the Detecting History Podcast on Instagram and YouTube at @detectinghistorychannel, and listen on all major podcast platforms. Shop at Regton and use promo code DHPODCAST for 10% off selected items at checkout.
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