{"id":22693,"date":"2022-09-26T23:05:29","date_gmt":"2022-09-26T21:05:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1711836"},"modified":"2022-09-26T23:46:18","modified_gmt":"2022-09-26T21:46:18","slug":"the-suspect-ending-explained-catherine-mccains-killer-revealed","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/the-suspect-ending-explained-catherine-mccains-killer-revealed\/","title":{"rendered":"The Suspect ending explained: Catherine McCain\u2019s killer revealed"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Morgan Jeffery\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 26 September 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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*Warning: contains spoilers for the final episode of ITV\u2019s The Suspect*<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dr. Joe O\u2019Loughlin (Aidan Turner) was finally vindicated in the final episode of ITV thriller The Suspect<\/a>, as his name was cleared and the truth behind the conspiracy to frame him for murder was exposed.<\/p>\n

The real murderer \u2013 who\u2019d killed not just Catherine McCain (Tara Lee) but also Cara (Bronagh Waugh) and, it transpires, several others \u2013 was also unmasked, with DI Ruiz (Shaun Parkes) finally coming to believe Joe\u2019s protestations of innocence as the fit-up job arranged by the true killer started to fit together a little too perfectly.<\/p>\n

So who was behind the killings? What was their motive? And why did they target Joe? Read on for a full recap of events \u2013 including a few questions that were left unanswered.<\/p>\n

Who killed Catherine McCain?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The real killer was in fact\u2026 DJ, the plumber (Tom McKay).<\/p>\n

DJ was revealed to be the older brother of Bobby Morgan (Bobby Schofield) \u2013 his full name being David Jean Morgan \u2013 who used his position as a plumber to infiltrate the O\u2019Loughlins\u2019 home, earn the trust of Joe\u2019s wife Julianne (Camilla Beeput) and plant a bomb in their basement. (Rather convenient that the O\u2019Loughlins were suffering from dodgy plumbing, allowing DJ the perfect opportunity to insert himself into their lives\u2026)<\/p>\n

As a young teen, DJ was subjected to horrific abuse by his mother \u2013 when he fled the family home, Bobby became her next victim, something that had haunted DJ his entire life. In an effort to atone for abandoning his brother, DJ went along with Bobby\u2019s horrific plan to frame Joe for Catherine\u2019s murder.<\/p>\n

DJ was also the mysterious figure who paid \u00a3500 to outbid Joe for his daughter\u2019s drawing of a whale \u2013 it\u2019s that same sketch\u2019s presence in his family home that first tips off Joe to the plumber\u2019s deception \u2013 and, presumably, was also paying for Bobby\u2019s high-price lawyer. (His plumbing business must be doing well.)<\/p>\n

Why was Joe framed?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Aidan Turner as Joe O\u2019Loughlin in ITV\u2019s The Suspect<\/span><\/figcaption> ITV\/World Productions<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Though DJ committed the actual killings, explaining how his brother could have an alibi for the killing of both Catherine and Cara, it was Bobby who was the mastermind behind the plot to frame Joe.<\/p>\n

Years earlier, Joe made a terrible mistake when he falsely accused Bobby\u2019s father of abusing his son \u2013 unaware that it was in fact Bobby\u2019s mother inflicting the abuse. Lenny Morgan ended up being separated from his son and later took his own life.<\/p>\n

Having accessed his social services file, Bobby read up on those involved in his father\u2019s case and decided to take revenge. A social worker who pushed through the paperwork saw his daughter poisoned, the wife of the judge who ruled Lenny could no longer see his son was deliberately knocked off her horse and broke her neck, Bobby\u2019s psychologist Rupert Erskine was attacked, gagged and left to die of dehydration, and Joe\u2019s colleague Melanie (Angela Griffin) lost her partner Boyd in a deliberate traffic collision.<\/p>

For Joe, who signed the court report on Lenny\u2019s case, Bobby planned a different fate \u2013 like his father, Joe would be accused of a terrible crime he did not commit and, once he\u2019d suffered enough, would eventually perish in an explosion, hence why DJ planted a bomb in the O\u2019Loughlins\u2019 basement.<\/p>\n

Having befriended Joe\u2019s dad (Dermot Crowley) and learnt all about Dr. O\u2019Loughlin from his chatty father, Bobby decided to murder Catherine \u2013 someone that Joe would, in the police\u2019s eyes, have a motive to kill, since she falsely accused him of sexual assault \u2013 and dumped her body in the cemetery around the time he knew Joe would be visting his mother\u2019s grave. (It was almost certainly Bobby who dumped the body, or at least assisted DJ in doing so, given that Joe smelt chloroform on him, the same substance found on Catherine\u2019s body.)<\/p>\n

Was Jack Owens involved?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Adam James as Gerald \u2018Jack\u2019 Owens in ITV\u2019s The Suspect<\/span><\/figcaption> ITV\/World Productions<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Prior to DJ being revealed as Bobby\u2019s brother and co-conspirator, Joe suspects that his old friend Dr. Gerald \u2018Jack\u2019 Owens (Adam James) might be the older male figure who was identified as having poisoned the social worker\u2019s daughter and who forced the judge\u2019s wife off her horse.<\/p>\n

In fact, it seems the only thing Jack was really guilty of was lying about his previous romantic association with Catherine McCain. That and harbouring a decades-long crush on Joe\u2019s wife Julianne. He might\u2019ve been a bit of a creep but we hope Jack got an apology from Joe for having served his friend up to the police as chief suspect.<\/p>\n

What happened at the end of The Suspect?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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ITV\/World Productions<\/i> <\/span>\n<\/div>\n

The series reached an explosive climax \u2013 literally \u2013 when DJ\u2019s conscience got the better of him and he released a captive Joe and family from their home. DJ returned to the basement and was killed in the resulting fireball, while Bobby escaped but was taken into custody by the police, who no longer suspected Joe of being involved in anything illegal.<\/p>\n

The final scenes see Joe continuing to cope with his Parkinson\u2019s diagnosis, living in a new home with Julianne and daughter Charlie (Uma Warner). A happy ending? Perhaps, though one that leaves us with a few questions\u2026<\/p>\n

Why was Bobby apparently obsessed with the number \u201c21\u201d if it was DJ who committed the murders and somehow made Catherine stab herself that many times? Was he just taunting Joe with the number during their sessions, knowing what his brother had done and the fate that was about to befall the psychologist?<\/p>\n

And what happened to Bobby on Waterloo Bridge, where he was found by police, anxious and badly beaten, in episode two? Was this also somehow part of his plan? It\u2019s hard to imagine DJ harming his brother\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

Ah well \u2013 maybe we should be more like DI Ruiz and stop expecting everything to fit together quite so neatly.<\/p>\n

Read more about The Suspect:<\/strong><\/p>\n