Who Killed Danny Latimer?
So, over the past 7 weeks it has been a murder mystery that has gripped the nation. With almost every member of Broadchurch being a suspect for killing Danny, it has pretty been much been impossible to pin it on someone with there being solid evidence to support it. This is our theory as we approach the final episode...
Danny's Killer: Mark Latimer
Explanation: In the first episode, one of the first shots we see is the clock in the Latimer's bedroom ticking. The time is exactly 03:20:40 and the seconds hand is moving, I can also point out that both Beth and Mark Latimer are in bed at this point (Mark on the left, Beth on the right). The camera then shows a shot of Danny on top of the cliff, however, when it cuts back to the Latimer's bedroom when Beth wakes up, we see the stopped wind-up clock at 03:20:45, along with Beth on the opposite side of the bed to when we saw her in the shot of her and Mark in bed together at 03:20:40.
At this point, it's important to mention that when the (wind-up, non-electric) clock stopped at 03:20:45, we see Danny on top of the cliff, which suggests he didn't die when the clocks stopped.
When Beth then goes downstairs in the morning and asks Mark why he didn't wake her, he said he did, but she doesn't have any recollection of it at all (you would remember something like this happening). Also; if the clocks stopped by themselves, how did Mark get up on time and why was he fully dressed as if he'd been up for a while?
Our theory is that Mark got up, stopped the clocks and left the house early. In doing so, he killed Danny (who had been out with Nige stealing the tractor diesel) because he had found out about his affair with Becca Fisher - he could have killed him accidentally. After killing Danny, Mark and Nige cleaned his body with the drain cleaning products they house in the van at the Cliff Hut. Mark then got Nige to dispose of the body on the beach (hence what Susan saw).
Even though Mark was with Becca Fisher that evening, there is no evidence to support him being at home from 3:20:45 until the early hours of the morning. The fact Mark could use Becca Fisher as a cover up made the police not want to probe any further.
We also think that Mark has Danny's missing smartphone. The chances are that he asked Nige to go to the Hut on the cliff to get something. This way he could frame him for the murder, as he then called the police to alert them somebody was in the hut.
I think the writers have done such a good job, and they've made it so people think it's Joe Miller, who may have something to do with it (along with a lot of other characters), but the person that killed Danny has to be his Dad - a twist that nobody would expect. Watch back the first few minutes of the first episode and the clues start building up.
I suppose we won't know for sure until Monday, but this is probably a lot more evidence than you can give for a lot of the other characters. Excellent work from the writers, and a big well done to ITV.
