One of the best thriller series ever made has finally hit our Netflix screens once more with the new series of Black Mirror. Black Mirror season 6 is more of the same world-weary stories and anti-tech tales that we’ve been missing so much.
Out of this new series, one episode has stood out as being particularly grim: Loch Henry. The dark comedy take on true crime obsessives and creatives has stuck in the mind of viewers since watching, due to its grim nature and unforgettable twist.
But there’s one detail in the Black Mirror season 6 episode 2 ending that’s worth noting, mainly because it’s one of the few things in the Black Mirror universe that’s not down to Charlie Brooker’s imagination. (Spoilers ahead!)
One main element of the episode involves the characters, Davis and Pia, using old videotapes to film a true crime documentary and include in their footage. Davis’ family just happens to have plenty of tapes to go around, since his mum Janet used to re-watch episodes of an old TV series named Bergerac.
However, the main twist of the final episode reveals that the mum is in fact behind the grisly tortures and subsequent murders of the victims over the years, alongside Davis’ dad. The footage is revealed in a shocking scene that involves Pia using an old Bergerac tape to digitize for the documentary.
If you thought Bergerac was just a made-up series to use as a placeholder for the final twist, you’d be wrong. In fact, that show very much exists, and did so in the UK from 1981 to 1991. It was a crime drama that ran on the BBC, and did in fact star John Nettles as Jim Bergerac.
In the series, Bergerac was a detective sergeant in ‘The Foreigner’s Office’, a fictional department of investigation that dealt with non-Jersey residents. (For those who don’t know, Jersey is a self-governing British Dependency island located near north-west France.)
If you were interested in watching the drama series, you can view the episodes on the streaming service ITVX in the UK. And you may wish to do so, since there may even be a Bergerac reboot in the works, according to the BBC.
For more Black Mirror, check out our guides on the Black Mirror season 6 episode 1 ending explained and season 6 episode 3 ending explained. You can also check out our list of the best horror series to watch now, and see what else is new on Netflix this month.