Silent Witness penultimate episode ends in major cliffhanger

There's certainly no shortage of suspicious figures in the home – both staff and residents – and the case has been made all the more tense by a terrible storm raging outside. Given the risk of flooding it looks like Jack and new recruit Simone are going to be trapped inside the home for a considerable time, not ideal given the latter has received a rather threatening text from the murderer claiming they think they're going to kill again. Even worse is the fact that both DS Steve Galloway and Nikki Alexander (who is, ahem, otherwise engaged) are unable to reach them, creating an altogether rather spooky atmosphere that looks set to be dialled up yet further tomorrow.

But that's not the only cliffhanger from the episode – poor Connor Hodgson has had a pretty torrid time in the last couple of weeks. Punched by his own son Ryan last week, he's now suffered a nasty fall in his home – while his house is slowly filling up with water from the bath, no less. The final moments show him trying to grab his just out-of-reach phone – presumably in an attempt to call for help, but he's not in a great position and there's unfortunately no chance that Jack's going to arrive on the scene any time soon.

And speaking of Jack, what about this week's romantic developments? After last week seemed to hint that he and Nikki might be getting together (something which would certainly cause celebration among the fanbase) this week has gone rather the other way. When asked by Simone of a possible romantic connection with Nikki, Jack denied any such thing, before being set up on a blind date by his new colleague. A night of Irish dancing followed, and Jack certainly seemed to strike a connection with his date – with the pair waking up together the next morning.

Meanwhile, Nikki had some romantic developments of her own. Her rather forward young student Ollie, who was previously seen singing her praises in the opening double-header Redemption, really seems to have taken a shine to her, and rather suggestively invited her to what looked like a very lively Halloween party. Well, one thing led to another and the pair ended up spending the night together, with the team's attempts to reach her falling on deaf ears.

Now, the question is, are these romantic involvements, from both Jack and Nikki, merely an attempt to deflect from their feelings for each other? Or is last week's episode the closest we'll get to the pair actually becoming a couple? I suspect we'll find out in tomorrow's concluding chapter...

Silent Witness series 24 concludes on Tuesday 5th October 2021 at 9pm on BBC One. Check out what else is on with our TV Guide, or visit our Drama hub for all the latest news and features.