Ridley viewers will know that there’s a terrible tragedy at the heart of the ITV drama – the death of the detective’s wife and daughter.
Each episode revealed slightly more about what exactly happened to Ridley’s family.
We’ve slowly learnt more and more details about how Ridley lost his beloved wife and grown-up daughter, leading him to go into retirement.
Here’s everything we know about the heartbreak in retired detective Alex Ridley’s past.
***Warning: spoilers from series 1 of Ridley ahead***
What happened to Ridley’s wife and daughter?
The audience first met tortured ex-detective Alex Ridley (Adrian Dunbar) as he stared down at a picture of his dead wife and daughter during his reluctant retirement.
The first episode revealed that his wife and daughter – Kate and Ella – had died in an arson attack.
Not only that, but Ridley regularly visits the man convicted of the crime.
Totally baffling, right?!
The rather mysterious Micheal Flannery, played by Aidan McArdle in the cast, was in jail for murder.
We also heard Ridley’s friend Annie telling him that “Michael doesn’t deserve your forgiveness”.
But why would Ridley forgive the man who killed his wife and daughter in the first place?
All would eventually be revealed.
We also found out that the fire was started intentionally – and the target was Alex Ridley.
Ridley told Annie that he should’ve burned that night, because of his “unfinished business” with Michael Flannery.
So what happened between Michael and Ridley?
More was revealed at the end of series one.
Who killed Ridley’s family and why?
In the first episode, Michael Flannery told Ridley: “You’re serving this sentence with me.
“It’s your fault, what I did that night.”
Viewers wondered what did Ridley had to do with the arson attack that killed his family?
Whatever happened, Ridley was clearly haunted by the tragedy, as he regularly spoke to the ghost of his dead wife.
When Ridley visited Michael in episode 2, Michael said to him: “I shouldn’t even be in here.”
Although Ridley didn’t respond, the comment clearly struck a chord.
So was Ridley somehow complicit in the crime? We found out in episode 4.
Read more: Ridley on ITV: Is Adrian Dunbar really singing on the show?
What does episode 3 reveal about the arson attack?
Opening up to jazz singer Eve in episode 3 (Sunday September 11 2022), Ridley shared that “he was the target” of the fire, but he wasn’t home.
Ridley later visited Michael in jail where the prisoner shared his distress over his mother’s stomach cancer diagnosis.
The bereaved copper refused to help Michael, telling him it was time he felt the pain of losing his family…
Series finale revealed what REALLY happened to Ridley’s wife and daughter
The last episode of the new ITV drama series aired gave viewers all the answers they’d been looking for.
Ridley was forced to face his past, and we finally found out how Ridley’s wife and daughter died.
Ridley and the team got called to the murder of a doctor who was thrown off of his balcony – and he soon realised the case was connected to the arson attack that killed Ridley’s wife Kate and daughter Ella.
While the team initially thought that the murder of the doctor was a hate crime by local teens, Ridley made a connection between the victim, Dr Patrick Elliot and Cal Flannery…
Cal was the brother of Michael Flannery, the man in jail for the arson attack on Ridley’s home.
As Ridley made the connection, flashbacks showed us how Michael and Ridley knew each other before the attack.
Ridley was using Michael as an unofficial source in court against local gang leader Adam Donnelly.
But, this put Michael in danger as Adam Donnelly was jailed and his family and gang were out for Michael.
As Ridley didn’t use official means to make Michael Flannery a source, he wasn’t guaranteed witness protection.
Ridley always assumed that Michael burned down his home, with his wife and daughter in it, to get revenge for what had happened.
But as we learnt more about Michael’s brother Cal, it was clear who was the real criminal in the family.
Micheal’s brother Cal killed Ridley’s wife and daughter
Cal was a vulnerable adult under the care of psychologist Dr Patrick Elliot, but Cal later snapped and killed him – because he’d confessed to his part in the murder of Ridley’s family.
As Ridley visited Michael with his evidence, he pushed Michael to finally tell the truth.
Michael finally revealed the truth, that Cal was the one who burnt down Ridley’s home to punish Ridley.
Michael took the blame to protect his brother.
Knowing Ridley was getting close, and with nothing to lose, Cal took Carol and Geri’s son Jack hostage as well as Ridley.
A deadly battle broke out between Ridley and Cal, and our hero was shot in the stomach – but the police eventually arrived to release the fatal shot that killed Cal.
Ridley later visited Michael in prison and told him witness protection would be secured for him and he would be safe from Adam Donnelly.
Why do we need a series 2?
Ridley happily sailed into the horizon with friend and fellow jazz club owner Annie at the end of the series.
But surely we have more to explore with the crime drama.
While we never saw this mysterious Adam Donnelly character, he is bound to come back for revenge for Ridley putting him away.
And why did Adam Donnelly leave flowers at Kate and Ella’s grave with a note “in loving memory”.
Was he teasing Ridley? Or was there more to how he knew Ridley and his family?
These are the questions we need series 2 to answer!
And could DCI Paul Goodwin really be a baddie?
Cal suggested that Ridley was just as mad at the police as he was, and Ridley agreed, saying how could Goodwin let his family die?
At the end of the last episode, Ridley also visited Dr Samantha Larson, Suzanne Packer‘s character.
She is presumably giving him therapy, but could she return for another series in Sopranos-style scenes?
Whether she does or not, there is still plenty of potential for a second series of Ridley, so hopefully ITV will confirm it soon!
And is it just us, or do Julie Graham‘s character Annie and Alex Ridley make a cute couple…?
Watch this space!
Ridley series 1 is available to watch on the ITV Hub.
Would you like to see more series of Ridley in the future? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix and let us know.