OUTRAGEOUS Recap: (S01E04) Episode 4

Geek Girl Authority

03-07-2025

One by one, the Mitford girls grow up, nurtured in the same home, yet all choosing vastly different paths. As noted before in Outrageous , it's remarkable how different those paths turned out to be. In Outrageous Episode 4, Unity (Shannon Watson) provides Diana (Joanna Vanderham) with a way to secure her place at Mosley's (Joshua Sasse) side while the rest of the family remains stunned by the two women's fascist allegiances.
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Nancy's (Bessie Carter) domestic situation improves somewhat in Outrageous Episode 4. Jessica (Zoe Brough) comes out in society to mixed results. Meanwhile, financial troubles continue to plague the older Mitfords. The only family members who seem content at all are the blissfully idealistic Deborah (Orla Hill) and the takes-care-of-herself Pamela (Isobel Jesper Jones). But they land in a strange threesome by weird happenstance. Never a dull moment, indeed, when life is this outrageous. Photo Credit: Sally Mais/Courtesy of BritBox – Outrageous Outrageous, Episode 4
It's January 1935, and Farve (James Purefoy) is teaching Deborah how to drive while Jessica reads a book in a tree. Nancy's voiceover explains that because Farve taught all his children to drive, it afforded his daughters a measure of independence many women of the time didn't have. Jessica is about to come out into society. Deborah would do the same in two years' time.
In the Fortress, Muv (Anna Chancellor) reads a letter intently. Nancy comes down the stairs and asks if everything's all right. Muv tells her it isn't really, never looking up from the letter. When Farve, Jessica, and Deborah arrive, she hands the letter to Farve.
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At the dining table, Farve reads the letter to the family. It's Unity's account of meeting Hitler (Paul Giddings). The family listens in disbelief. The reading segues into Unity's voice, the scene shifting to her riding a bicycle in Munich. She returns to her school, where Diana's waiting for her. They embrace. Unity's ecstatic about meeting and talking with Hitler. She insists that Diana needs to meet him, too. Family Matters
Back at the Fortress, Nancy meets with the rest of the sisters, wondering why Hitler would single out Unity in a restaurant full of people. Pamela shares that Diana drove the car Mosley bought her to see Unity in Munich. When asked about their falling out, Nancy insists they'll reconcile when Diana cools off. Jessica, poring over Unity's letter, concludes that persistence works.
At bedtime, Farve wonders aloud what Hitler wants with Unity. Muv tries to brush it off as a one-time occurrence. She then asks him why he'd been to see the estate agent. He reveals that someone is interested in renting the Fortress for six months. They argue about the state of finances and the family. Muv goes to sleep after insisting that Farve discuss the big decisions with her before making them. February 1935
Nancy returns to her mostly empty home. Peter's (Jamie Blackley) whistling in the dining room. He greets her as he polishes his shoes, explaining that he's starting a new job. He apologizes for how things went before she left. Mary (Ruby Thomas) and Tony saw the house after the bailiffs had repossessed their furniture and told Peter he needed to make things right. Tony helped him get a new job.
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In Munich, Unity can't wait to introduce Diana to Hitler. She asks if Diana's told Mosley that she's going to meet him, and Diana reveals that Mosley's resumed his affair with his late wife's sister. Unity sympathizes. Diana excuses the behavior, calling it a compulsion he can't control. Because the other woman knows nothing about politics, Diana believes that if she can secure him a meeting with Hitler, Mosley will see her as an indispensable asset. Becoming a Woman: Decca
March 1935: A black and white newsreel shows the line of cars waiting to bring their daughters to Buckingham Palace for presentation at court. Muv, Nancy, and Jessica are photographed for the occasion. The photographer (Tristan Beint) is having a hard time getting a good picture of Jessica as she refuses to smile. She's incensed at the meaninglessness of the ceremony and rages at the idea of hundreds of girls being herded in to be judged and married off.
Muv argues that being presented at court is the beginning of her social life, and how incredibly important it is to meet and mingle and make connections. When Nancy reads in the newspaper that Esmond Romilly (Joseph Potter) has been sent to prison, it captures Jessica's attention. He was incarcerated for showing up drunk at his parents' house. His mother called the police on him. Her testimony to the judge the next day netted Esmond a six-month sentence in a juvenile home. Nancy reports that Romilly is unrepentant and plans to use the time to further his revolutionary studies. This delights Jessica, who smiles widely, and the photographer quickly snaps a picture, then dismisses the women with relief. Becoming a Woman: Debo
Out on the family's land, Deborah's out riding when Derek Jackson (Jack Michael Stacey) rides up beside her and introduces himself. He went to school with her brother, Tom (Toby Regbo). They talk a bit. Derek reveals that he's a jockey, having ridden in the Grand National, but works as an atomic physicist at Oxford. They develop an easy rapport. Deborah is quite impressed with him.
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At Diana's residence, Mosley lies with his head in her lap. She tells him she secured him a face-to-face meeting with Hitler. He's initially excited but quickly becomes jealous when she mentions that Hitler invited her to the opera in Berlin. She points out that he spends time with people she'd prefer he didn't, so it's tit for tat. July 1935
Nancy's book, Wigs on the Green , comes out in print. She and Peter celebrate with Mary and Tony in their garden because she didn't want a big party over a book that has caused a rift between her and Diana. They toast their friendship.
At the Fortress, Deborah tries on lipstick and puts her hair up. Pamela finds her and warns her that Farve will not be happy to see her looking so grown up. Deborah tells her she's going fishing with Derek and invites her to come along because he's expressed interest in meeting Pamela, the 'least bonkers' of her sisters. The three of them walk out to a trout stream for a picnic. Their banter has an edge to it. Derek has opinions. Pamela disagrees with those opinions. Deborah points out that Derek expresses his opinions no matter what and doesn't care that it makes him sound arrogant.
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In a cinema, Jessica watches a newsreel reporting that Goebbels is reintroducing conscription in Germany, in contravention of the Versailles Treaty. She is visibly upset by the images she sees. In Germany, a young SS officer shows Unity where Hitler lives. He tells her that Hitler's at home today and spending time with Eva Braun. Unity's shocked that he would have a relationship with someone who has no understanding of Germany's politics. The officer tries to flirt, but Unity is oblivious, completely focused on learning about Hitler's personal life. He says they should go and heads off. She catches up and affectionately grabs his arm, asking him to help her write a letter in German to the newspaper, Der Stürmer . To convince him to help her, she kisses him. He kisses her back. The Letter
Her letter begins: Der Stürmer, I am a British woman fascist who has lived in Munich for several months. I should like to express my admiration for Germany's approach to the Jewish Problem. Unfortunately, the English have no notion of the danger…
In the Fortress, the phone rings. Muv answers and gestures to a servant to bring her a newspaper. The headline reads, 'ENGLISHWOMAN ATTACKS JEWS.' After hanging up on the caller, the phone immediately rings again. Muv opens the paper and sees a picture of Unity with Hitler and a headline declaring her to be an avid supporter.
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Outside the House of Lords, Farve is beset by reporters wanting him to respond to Unity's letter. Muv calls Unity and demands she return home immediately. Every newspaper carries the story. Jessica, Deborah, and Nancy all read about Unity, Britain's most hated woman. Unity's Return
Upon her arrival home, Unity declares that she doesn't care what people think and she refuses to apologize for writing the letter. While Farve is lecturing her in his study, Nancy arrives. Unity storms out of the study, grabs her bag, and heads to stay with Diana. Muv and Farve are at a loss for how to deal with the situation.
Nancy finds Jessica curled up in the bedding closet with Esmond's book, crying and confused about why Unity wrote the letter. Nancy tries to comfort her. Pamela joins them. She describes her visit with Unity a few weeks previous in Munich, where they dined with Hitler. Pamela found him to be very ordinary. She tells them that he finds Unity enchanting, that Unity behaves perfectly naturally with him, her love for him an obvious thing.
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Jessica proposes that she get Unity to introduce her to Hitler, too, so that she can kill him. Nancy and Pamela discourage this plan. Jessica feels hopeless, wondering if she can keep loving Unity despite the horrible things she's said and written. Pamela suggests they don't get a say on whether they love their sisters. Nancy considers these words deeply. Peace Talks
On her way out, Nancy offers to try talking to Diana and Unity. Muv wonders if that'll do any good considering the tension between them. Muv thanks her for the effort, warning her to tread softly.
The conversation doesn't go well. Unity refuses to see Nancy. Nancy apologizes again for offending them with the book. She tells Diana that the sales have been poor and the reviews indifferent. Diana rushes her out the door, saying she has a dinner party to attend and needs to pack because she's driving to Mosley's straight afterward. Nancy asks her on Muv's behalf if she would speak to Unity about the letter. Diana refuses.
Nancy loses her temper and accuses Diana of condoning the things Unity wrote in the letter. Diana defends Unity's right to her own opinions. They descend into a shouting match. Diana throws Nancy out in a fit of rage. As Nancy strides away from the house, Diana pours herself a drink.
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Nancy walks to Joss's (Will Attenborough) and talks him into going out for a drink with her. At the club, she talks out the issues with her sisters. Joss offers her a perspective on the slippery slope of power. He tells her about his grandparents who immigrated to England from Ukraine. They had to hide any signs of being Jewish in order to provide their children and grandchildren a sense of belonging and safety. Consequences
Elsewhere, Diana swans out of the dinner party. She gets in her car and drives off. Nancy's voiceover: Did I go too far in accusing her of being Mosley's mouthpiece? Possibly. Should I have been able to keep my cool when provoked? Probably. And was it my fault she was so upset that night that she drank a lot more champagne than she should have? A car smashes into Diana's. Definitely.
In the aftermath, officers pull Diana's bloody and glass-ridden body from the driver's seat. They lie her by the side of the road, rolling her onto her side, where she takes a single labored breath.
Outrageous streams on BritBox, with new episodes dropping every Wednesday.
New Release Radar: New Books Coming Out on July 1 Diana lives in Vancouver, BC, Canada, where she invests her time and energy in teaching, writing, parenting, and indulging her love of all Trek and a myriad of other fandoms. She is a lifelong fan of smart sci-fi and fantasy media, an upstanding citizen of the United Federation of Planets, and a supporter of AFC Richmond 'til she dies. Her guilty pleasures include female-led procedurals, old-school sitcoms, and Bluey. She teaches, knits, and dreams big. You can also find her writing at The Televixen, Women at Warp, TV Fanatic, and TV Goodness.