TV & Showbiz

Happy Valley viewers share brilliant fan theory ahead of season finale

This would be such a good plot twist. *Spoilers lie ahead*

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 30th January 2023

Happy Valley fans have been left on the edge of their seats again with just one week to go until the final episode airs – and one fan theory has just blown our minds.

Needless to say, spoilers lie ahead…

The renowned BBC drama aired its penultimate episode last night, showing the aftermath of Tommy Lee Royce’s escape from prison.

The terrifying TV villain, played by James Norton, was seen fleeing disguised as a cyclist to the beautiful Calder Valley countryside, before being picked up and going into hiding.

Meanwhile, Catherine Cawood (Sarah Lancashire) was rounding up her family as fears grew that Tommy would come for his son Ryan (Rhys Connah).

Throughout last night’s Happy Valley, Tommy repeatedly referred to his unfinished business with ‘that policewoman b*tch’, and asked gang leader Darius Knezevic for a gun.

Given his fraught history with Catherine (he abused her late daughter, beat Catherine up, and doused little Ryan in petrol in a failed homocide-suicide stunt) we’ve all assumed that we’ll see a Tommy-Catherine face-off on Sunday.

James Norton as villain Tommy Lee Royce in Happy Valley. Credit: BBC
Charlie Murphy as Ann Gallagher in Happy Valley. Credit: BBC
Scenes from last night’s penultimate episode of Happy Valley on BBC as fans share a theory about the finale.

But a few fans have floated a new theory, pointing out that Tommy hasn’t actually said which police officer he’s after…

Jenny Ryan from The Chase said: “Hey, any other #HappyValley fans lying awake worrying that the phrase “that policewoman” could refer to someone other than Catherine?”

Another person said: “Is anyone else thinking he hasn’t actually said which policewoman he wants to kill? It was Anne who gave evidence and got him sent away…”

Someone else posted: “Happy Valley perfect script and acting as always. Ann’s monologue was just incredible. It occurred to me though that Tommy and Darius kept talking about sorting out ‘that policewoman bitch’. We are all expecting it to be Catherine but what if he means Ann?!!”

And one user pointed out: “As for Tommy going after Catherine, she isn’t the only “policewoman” he may have a grudge against..”

My nerves can’t handle the wait for Sunday’s episode after that…

One particular scene has had fans celebrating the phenomenal script-writing and acting again, and for once it’s not Sarah Lancashire being showered with all the praise.

Charlie Murphy, who plays Ann Gallagher in Happy Valley, has been labelled ‘outrageously good’ after delivering an impassioned monologue to Ryan.

Rhys Connah as Ryan in Happy Valley.
Rhys Connah as Ryan in Happy Valley. Credit: BBC

The powerful scene, which some viewers said was ‘cruel’ and ‘brutal’, saw her deliver some harsh home truths to Ryan about his father’s past.

One person wrote: “Wow! What a piece of acting that was by @CharlieBMurphy explaining to Ryan about Tommy. Gripped!”

Another said: “@CharlieBMurphy was outrageously good in Happy Valley tonight. Sarah Lancashire deserves many plaudits but this show has strength in numbers. The trauma is real and next weeks finale I’m sure will ruin me.”

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Someone else posted on Twitter: “The Ann Gallagher monologue/rant in #HappyValley tonight was up there with the best scenes in any of the episodes. Brilliant.”

One user tweeted: “Ann threw at Ryan everything that was building up in her for years. YEARS of seeing his affections towards her abuser.All her rage & pain.And to all of this she stood up for Cath & the memory of Becky. Surely one of the best & most important scenes of S3 if not whole #HappyValley.”

And someone else added: “‘HE DOESN’T GIVE ONE TINY, SHINY F*CK ABOUT YOU!!’ #HappyValley belonged to Ann tonight. Jaw dropping couple of minutes of dialogue yet again by @spiceyw.”

The final Happy Valley will air on Sunday 5 February.

Featured image: BBC

TV & Showbiz

The adopted Manc indie pop star with that we’re backing to win the Mercury Prize this year

Danny Jones Danny Jones CMAT Mercury Prize shortlist 2025 favourites

The 2025 Mercury Music Prize shortlist is officially out, and we’re proud to say that the North has been well represented once again this time around, with multiple names from the top end of the nation featured among the nominees – including an adopted Manchester-based rising star.

You know what, cratch that: she might as well be a Manc music queen at this point, if you ask.

We may be heavily biased here, but with indie and alt-pop artist CMAT making her way onto the Mercury Music Prize award shortlist this year, our vote is practically already cast.

If you haven’t listened to CMAT yet, then you’re seriously missing out, and following the release of her latest LP, Euro-Country, at the end of August, it’s little surprise she’s earned the Mercury nod.

What is CMAT’s connection to Manchester?

She may be Irish-born, but the ‘Dubyone Diana’ truly started to make a name for herself in Manchester, and you’re damn right we’re taking her as one of our own.

Moving to 0161 as a teenager with her old band, Bad Sea, she was just 17 when she got here; now 29 and making fairly different music to the kind she did as part of the previous duo, she’s grown massively in popularity over the last few years – and she’s done a lot of it from right here in Greater Manchester.

From playing the city centre music venue circuit to stunning crowds at the likes of Kendal Calling and Glastonbury Festival, she’s come a long way in a relatively short amount of time.

Come on, if this isn’t award-winning energy, then we don’t know what is…

We welcome her to keep leaning into country music as much as she wants.

There’s another reason we want CMAT to win the Mercury Prize

It isn’t just because we’re somewhat biased local fans that we’re putting our money on her winning the 2025 Mercury Prize: she nearly already did this time last year for her sophomore outing, Crazymad, For Me, having released three impressive studio albums in less than 36 months.

Further reflecting on the second shortlisting, Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson (ergo, ‘CMAT’) went on to explain: “I had a weird thing happen at the Mercury Prize 2024 when Annie Mac was announcing who the winner was.

“As she was reading it, I had this weird flip in my stomach, that I didn’t want to win the Mercury Prize for THAT record, because I had a feeling I could make something better.

“Two days later, I started to make EURO-COUNTRY. The Mercury Prize put a bottle rocket up my bum, to try and do something a bit more cutting edge and experimental and intense, if that makes sense.”

She signed off by adding, “I didn’t necessarily expect to be nominated again as a result, but I am very happy to have been.” We had a feeling she would, to be honest, hence why she was among our artists of the month – not even a fortnight before the shortlist was announced, no less.

Five Manchester artists we’ve been listening to this month | August 2025
You say CMAT was our headliner last month, and rightly so, Euro-Country is an absolute triumph.

Thompson joins the likes of resurgent Sheffield Britpop icons, Pulp, as well as Wolf Alice, FKA twigs and lots more talented acts on the list.

Not only are there plenty of Northerners on the list, but our friends over in Yorkshire have had another big year too.

Leeds jazz musician Emma-Jean Thackray has also been nominated, and with the story behind her most recent heartbreaking but brilliant material, it’s no surprise.

Unsurprisingly, the likes of Fontaines D.C. and Sam Fender are also on there after a standout 12 months for both artists, but we’re sticking with CMAT for our 2025 Mercury Prize winner. After all, surely she can’t miss out two years in a row?

You can see the full list of nominees down below:

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Raph_PH (via Flickr)/Publicity picture

TV & Showbiz

Stockport turns into Gotham as The Plaza stars in filming for a new Batman project

Danny Jones Danny Jones Clayface movie filming in Stockport at The Plaza

Greater Manchester is being used for big-budget filming once again, as none other than the stunning Stockport Plaza is starring in a new Batman project.

Cool. Just SO cool.

In case you haven’t seen the footage and roadside snaps circulating on social media, The Plaza Super Cinema and Variety Theatre (to use its rarely used full name),

Shared by local page community page, Stockport Online, this past Tuesday, you can see big, old-fashioned Hollywood spotlights hitting the front of The Plaza, a Gotham taxi cab, and plenty more happening just next to the Stockport Interchange.

As explained in the post, the filming outside The Plaza is said to be for the upcoming Clayface movie set within the Batman universe.

Real name Basil Karlo (though there have been many alternatives over the decades), the DC villain has been a sparsely used one in live-action adaptations of the classic comic book characters, but has appeared in plenty of animated Batman material.

Nevertheless, the new Warner Bros project has recently begun production here in the UK, with the likes of the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool also doubling for the ‘Vesuvius’ nightclub in this particular version of Gotham City.

Liverpool was famously used for several location shoots for 2022’s The Batman by director Matt Reeves, which saw Robert Pattinson don the cowl for the first time and ultimately helped revitalise the DCU, with the new Superman film releasing earlier this year.

Filming in the North West has been happening all month, but it was only this week that we saw the Clayface set shift to Stockport for these most recent scenes. There has also been some confusion over whether it is for a TV series or a film, but as far as we know, no such show is currently in the works at WB.

You can see more images of how the area surrounding the building was transformed below:

clayface tv series filming
plaza theatre filming stockport
clayface batman film 2026 filming in stockport
new clayface batman movie
We never thought we’d see the Batman universe filming in Stockport, but here we are. (Credit: Eve Cox/Stop in Stockport via FB)

With its stunning Art Deco design, this is by no means the first time The Plaza has been used for high-profile filming, as it was only a few years ago that we saw the period-appropriate structure as a backdrop for Peaky Blinders.

So far, what we do know about the upcoming Clayface film is that the scenes filmed in SK were actually a fictional movie premiere set as part of the story, which is said to be a rare take on body horror by James Watkins, who also directed Speak No Evil, The Woman in Black and an episode of Black Mirror.

There is plenty of horror/thriller pedigree elsewhere in the crew, too; the screenplay comes from acclaimed writers Mike Flanagan and Hossein Amini, with Welsh actor Tom Rhys Harries starring in the lead role. His particular iteration of the amorphous Batman villain made of, yep, clay is called Matt Hagen.

Other names attached to the project include Naomi Ackie, Max Minghella and Eddie Marsan. Set to release this time next year, just a few months after the new Supergirl movie, which is due to drop on June 26, 2026, it looks like Stockport could have played its part in a very big movie masterplan.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Eve Cox (via FB)/Stop in Stockport (via FB)/@mccajake (via X)

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