Ghosts Pineapple Day reveals more and more about our spooky friends, making us love them even more, writes GEMMA JOHNSON
Pineapple Day Ghosts BBC Episode Review
Spoilers Alert!
Some would say that a review of a programme should be critical, but being critical about Ghosts is incredibly difficult because it is genuinely wonderful and treasured by many, including me. Within the reviews of this series, I have opted to focus on the key parts of each episode that have brought the most delight and entertainment.
Episode three featured the return of misogynistic neighbour Barclay, who is delighting at the prospect of taking monetary advantage over Alison and Mike. Although I loathe Barclay, Geoffrey McGivern plays the character so very well, so well in fact that I was actually disappointed when Barclay broke character and did the right thing once.
Thomas has now firmly cemented his place as my favourite character of all time; last week it was the revelation that he was Scottish, and this week it was the casual swearing that he used in reference to Kitty’s sister. In the early series, I found Thomas rather irritating, and the obsession with Alison was a key factor in that. Now he is very much a character in his own right, and I love that we have had the opportunity to really get to know him. My only wish for Thomas is that this would have happened much sooner.
Speaking of Kitty’s sister, we see a team of detectives forming to try to figure out how Kitty died. In an early series, we are led to believe that Kitty’s sister played a key role in her death because of the hatred that she held towards Kitty. Pat, Captain, Julian, and Thomas (Quincy, Columbo, Ironside, and Monk, as we called them) begin their investigations – it obviously was Kitty’s sister, wasn’t it? Robin wasn’t for being interviewed without his lawyer.
Why is it called Pineapple Day, I hear you ask? It was the anniversary of the first time that Kitty had tasted pineapple, and it marked the lead-up to the last few hours of Kitty’s life that may or may not have involved Kitty’s sister.
The substory taking place in the background this week is centred around a blue plaque after Julian finds out one of his MP colleagues has been honoured with one. Kitty has also developed an obsession with the Netflix show ‘Is It Cake?’ Having watched all the series, there is no judgement here, Kitty.
I appreciate the gentle nod that the writers give towards current popular trends, and it is something that has been present within all of the series; it helps to build a connection between the audience and the characters.
Speaking of characters, it was a revelation to see Mike standing up for himself and Alison. Mike has been the comedic character of the two throughout, and so this was a nice change – pending fatherhood seems to be changing him. Oh, and Mike carries a Waggon Wheel around in his coat pocket, which is another bonus. That yummy circular chocolate snack proves quite central to the plot of the episode.
The takeaway from the episode is: don’t overlook the snacks that you have with your brew; they could be life-changing.
Tell us your thoughts about this Pineapple Day episode of Ghosts in the comments section below!
Ghosts BBC’s fifth and final season, including all episodes, is now available on BBC iPlayer.
