So we're now 18 days into Hunted and with Lolly being caught last week, we have three groups of fugitives on the run: solo fugitive Nick and the two pairs Ayo and Madu and Anna and Elizabeth.
Just like last week, Anna and Elizabeth take a back seat in this episode. After hitchhiking over 2000 miles, they decide to stop in Windsor for the Queen's 90th birthday celebrations and that's all we know for this episode.
When first introduced to Nick Cummins, I had described him as bumbling Englishman, sweet and likeable, but utterly incompetent. However, he has continously left me eating my words, as he's managed to evade the Hunters for close to three weeks now.
The Hunters struggling to pin anything on him, having identified that he is a family man, suspect that that he is staying close to home. Afterwards they interview his wife and bug his home. Their suspicions are proved correct, when it is revealed that Nick is only 30 miles from his home. Camping in public camping grounds, before being taken in by stranger Richard and his family, Nick decides to return home to get money from his wife, Joanne. Nick plays it safe by staying in the garden and having his son go fetch her. This is where Joanne shows her loyalty and intelligence. She warns Nick about how the Hunters know about his workman costume and have probably bugged her phone. That's it. No prolonged goodbyes, just a quick exchange of information and a fierce display of loyalty from Joanne.
However, this is when Nick makes a mistake. After he has Richard drive him to a camping site, he uses Richard's phone to call a neighbour to call a friend to tell Joanne that he's lost his camping equipment and money and he wants to meet her his gym, so that she can help him. The Hunters latch onto this and immediately send a team to intercept NIck at the gym. The Hunters see a man of Nick's description complete with wig and blue boiler and suit and catch him. Can it be? Was I right all along? Did Nick break every every rule about being on the run? No, of course not. Once again Nick proves why he should not be underestimated, especially by the Hunters. The man whom the Hunters caught was actually Richard. Nick having been tipped off by his wonderful wife, Joanne, knows that to escape, he needed to create a diversion. Quite rightly he suspects that the Hunters are monitoring Joanne's phone and so calls her up to lay a little trap, whilst he is escaping 250 miles away to Tring, Hertfordshire.
For me, Nick has proven his worth. Seeing the Hunters being so completely outsmarted was brilliant to watch and has exposed their own ineptness. Oh how the tables have turned. Last year, Ricky Allen lasted three weeks before being caught and Nick is proving himself to be as every bit as cunning and devious.
Whilst Nick now stands a chance of winning, I'm not too sure about Ayo and Madu, or at least Ayo. I predicted last week that like last year's eventual winners Emily and Lauren, that Ayo and Madu's personality clashes would cause them to split up. And I was right. The organised, methodical Madu has had enough of the loose cannon Ayo and walks off, with Ayo doing little to stop him. The rest of the episode focussed on Ayo with Madu being the centre focus of next week.
We've already seen Ayo's cockiness and his desire to the centre of attention. The Hunters aim to exploit this by provoking Ayo into making a mistake. They do this by buying his baby daughter a toy car and then tweeting about it. Meanwhile, Ayo has charmed his way into staying with the family of a Subway employee in Shropshire. And when he sees what the Hunters have done, he completely rises to their bait. Angry at how they've used his family. Ayo decides to take revenge by going into London and seeing daughter all without getting caught.
But firstly he lays a trap for them. He has photos of him and the his hosts posted on social media and in an outrageous display, creates wanted posters of the Hunters. Finally he tauntingly calls Chief Inspector Peter Becksley. All of this is to trick the Hunters into thinking that he is still in Shropshire when he is actually travelling to London. However, unlike, Nick's plan, Ayo's doesn't work. The Hunters suspect that it's a trap and think that he will return to London.
This is exactly what happens. Ayo hitches a lift into London with the Hunters right on his tail. Succumbing to paranoia and realising the recklessness of his plan, Ayo ditches the car and decides instead to see his brother for help. Instead he runs into one of his friends who holes him up in his flat. However, the Hunters are one step ahead. They have pinpointed his location, and whilst not knowing exactly where hs is, they decide to smoke him out through helicopters, ground teams, dogs and drones. Will Ayo get out? Honestly, I'm not too sure. His cockiness has always been his downfall and the fact that there are two episodes left, means that I think that somebody will be caught next week. If not, I will be having serious doubts about the people who are supposedly safeguarding our nation.
Top tips for going on the run
Whilst no glaring errors were made in this episode, here are some small things to aid in your success.
1. Be careful in trying to outwit the Hunters. It worked for Nick, because the Hunters underestimated him. But they were suspecting Ayo to try something like this.
2. Stay away from crowded areas. Anna and Elizabeth may regret going to the Queen's birthday celebrations in Windsor.
3. Find the Richard who helped out Nick. This man is a legend.
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