The Ice Cream Girls.

Did anybody catch The Ice Cream Girls on television over the weekend? I am hooked already! Many TV critics have already dismissed the show due to the hold Broadchurch has on the nation. It seems some people can't handle two seaside murder mysteries at once. Fortunately for me, I can, and I will continue to watch The Ice Cream Girls. The shows are on different days, it's easily manageable!
The show documents Serena (above right) as she returns to her hometown of Brighton with her husband and teenage daughter, as her mother is seriously ill. It is obvious from the start that she is terrified of going back, but why?

The show works on a series of flashbacks, which reveals exactly why she is terrified of going back. It seems that what started as a teenage crush on a teacher at school led to a full blown affair and relationship. This already complicated scenario is further complicated by the introduction of Poppy, an 18 year old waitress who develops a crush on the teacher also, and then becomes his bit on the side. Needless to say, Serena catches them, and this leads to a pretty brutal rape from the teacher as he says he loves her. There's something definitely wrong with this guy, which makes me think he deserved what happened to him!
In the present, Poppy has just been released from jail (can you guess what she was in there for yet?), and discovers Serena is back home. Is she seeking revenge, or simply an explanation, when she 'coincidentally' visits Serena's husband's surgery? My bet is on revenge, as she plants the idea of visiting the estate the teacher used to live in to the husband, describing the area as Serena's "teenage dream".
As you can see, a lot happened in the first episode. I'm a little bit doubtful simply because it seems maybe too much was given away too soon. We already know that the teacher was stabbed, both girls were present at the murder yet only Poppy was convicted. I don't know if this can last even another 2 hours, but I will continue watching to see if this was done for a reason; maybe there's a monumental twist lurking in the shadows. I hope so!
Despite this, The Ice Cream Girls is definitely worth a watch. You can't go wrong with a murder mystery show, and with the finale of Broadchurch imminent, we need a replacement to sink our teeth into!

Catch the first episode of The Ice Cream Girls here.
The second episode will be broadcast on ITV1, Friday 26th April, 9pm.