The Listeners ending explained: What is The Hum?

A series of eerie events follow as Claire and her fellow "listener" Kyle (Ollie West) find themselves venturing deeper into "The Hum" as those around them grow increasingly concerned for their wellbeing.

The final episode of the miniseries presents an answer to what exactly the confounding noise is, but alas, it also throws up a whole load of questions.

Here are some possible interpretations of The Listeners ending. Major spoilers follow!

The Listeners ending explained: What is The Hum?

The Listeners comes to a devastating conclusion in its fourth episode, which reveals that the source of The Hum, which has driven Claire to largely destroy her once-stable life, is little more than a natural gas pipeline.

At least, that's the verdict of the local council. The Listeners sustains an air of ambiguity throughout, so it's quite open to interpretation whether there is more to the sound than this mundane explanation suggests.

The bleakest reading of the finale is that Omar and Jo were manipulative abusers, who whipped their group into a frenzy over nothing in order to secure their cult-like loyalty, but it's for the viewer to decide if they agree with this.

In any case, the story ends in tragedy as the police close in on the enigmatic couple's house, where Claire, her student Kyle, and fellow members of the group were engaged in their deepest listening session yet.

Claire is lost to a flood of ecstasy until armed officers storm the garden, shooting paranoid ex-soldier Damian (who had brought a gun to the meeting) and innocent young Kyle, who was fired on for no apparent reason in the chaotic raid.

Kyle bleeds out in Claire's arms as she sobs uncontrollably, seemingly experiencing the pleasure of The Hum and the anguish over his death simultaneously (it's a powerhouse moment for star Rebecca Hall).

Omar and Jo are arrested while Claire is institutionalised for a period, receiving medication for what is clearly regarded as a psychosis, before salvaging a fragile relationship with her husband, Paul, and daughter, Ashley.

Though she tells them she can no longer hear The Hum, this does not appear to be entirely true as she remains fixated on her experiences with Kyle – searching online for answers on whether she can die from grief or from "wishing it".

More worryingly, her history also shows a recent search for "how long does a body take to smell?", which could indicate that she is having dark thoughts and/or obsessing over the state of her deceased student.

Lastly, Claire searches "is time linear?", before heading to the ramshackle shed where Kyle was living in his final days, where she seems to reconnect with The Hum and witness a vision of him staring at her intensely.

It takes her back to a moment they shared while lying on the grass together, where Kyle said that the most beautiful sound he ever heard was his grandmother's neighbour mowing his lawn in the distance.

He explains that it had an eternal quality, making him feel that time was "limitless".

When we return to Claire in the present, she is staring out at nothing but an empty field, yet she appears rather content with a growing smile on her face.

It might be that she can still see Kyle, although we can't, which would suggest that she remains in the plausibly delusional and hallucinatory thrall of The Hum.

Alternatively, perhaps she accepts that Kyle has gone, but finds the memory to be a comfort as it provides a way of interpreting The Hum that is peaceful and brings her lost friend to mind – ie as the "limitless" sound of the lawn mower.

Once again, the final interpretation lies with you. So, what do you think?

The Listeners is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

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