Trigger Point season 2 recap: What happened at the end and who died in the Vicky McClure drama?
There was more death and destruction in season 2 of this hit ITV bomb thrillerTrigger Point season three is arriving on screens imminently, so here’s a recap of all the season 2 drama.
Led by Vicky McClure, produced by Line of Duty’s Jed Mercurio, and packed full of plenty edge-of-your-seat action, Trigger Point was always going to be a viewing success.
Season 1 was one of ITV’s biggest shows when it dropped back in 2022. And that huge audience following tuned back in for season 2 last year, seeking more hold-your-breath moments from EXPO extraordinaire Lana Washington.
Thankfully, fans haven’t had to wait too long for another instalment, with ITV confirming Trigger Point season 3 will be released on Sunday, October 26, 2025. Remind yourself of what happened with our Trigger Point season 2 recap ahead of your next season viewing.
***Warning: spoilers from Trigger Point season 2 ahead***
Trigger Point season 2 recap: How did it end?
Lana Washington was a broken woman at the start of the finale, having lost more loved ones and arriving too late to save several members of the public from the latest bomb drama. Lana was also newly unemployed, having told the new Commander John Francis (Julian Ovenden) to stick his job after telling her off for ignoring protocol.
But that’s really the least of her problems. The episode opened on Lana being held against her will by Hope (Bethan Cullinane) and the terrorist group The Wave at their HQ. Hope informed Lana that she had to carry out an attack on The Wave’s behalf. Failure to comply would result in her parents killed by a bomb that had been placed in their house.
Lana reluctantly agreed to carry out Hope’s plan to get into the Counter Terrorism Headquarters and kill the Home Secretary. Security was amped up at HQ ahead of the visit, making Lana’s task seem even more impossible. As a result, The Wave abandoned the original plan to arrive armed with explosives. Instead, Lana convinced Hope she could make a bomb inside from previous bomb devices.
A bombshell ending
Once inside HQ, Lana got to work making the bomb, while wearing an earpiece that allowed Hope to talk to Lana. Conveniently though, the earpiece didn’t allow Hope to hear Lana back. Lana was able to look like she was carrying out the plan while alerting her colleagues Danny (Eric Shango) and Francis Sonya (Kerry Godliman) to send a car and get her parents to safety.
Lana then headed into the meeting with the Commander and the Home Secretary. She claimed she was stepping in for Sonya who was otherwise unavailable. Sonya’s absence raised DI Helen Morgan (Natalie Simpson) and DI Amar Batra’s (Maanuv Thiara) suspicions who quietly evacuated HQ.
Back in the meeting room, Lana had Hope screaming in her ear, demanding she place the bomb. Lana positioned the bomb at the Home Secretary’s feet and Hope went to detonate it. But upon detonation, the bomb exploded the van harbouring Hope and the rest of The Wave, killing them instantly and leaving HQ unharmed.
It turned out that while traveling to the Counter Terrorism HQ, Lana had found a way to rig Hope’s phone that was supposed to set off the bomb intended for HQ. When it came to the big moment, Lana was successfully able to divert the call from the phone they gave her and gain command of the other device, setting the bomb off in the van instead.
Trigger Point season 2 recap: Who were The Wave?
The villains of Trigger Point season 2 were the terrorist group The Wave, seemingly headed up by Hope. The Wave were angry about the state of society – from lying politicians to wealth inequality – and had a general discontent for the capitalist system. They were behind the various terrorist attacks throughout season 2, hoping to overthrow the government and enact change through their actions.
What happened to Alex in Trigger Point season 2?
Alex (real name Benjamin) died in the penultimate episode of Trigger Point season 2. After discovering that Alex was working with Lana, Hope and The Wave hatched a fake plan that would see Alex reach out to Lana.
Alex rang Lana and told her that he’d been given a bomb to blow up the London Stock Exchange. He added that he would likely die in the explosion too, as they knew he was a mole. Lana agreed to meet Alex at an abandoned workplace where they could diffuse the bomb. There, Lana successfully deactivated the device, but only confetti came out. That’s when the pair realised they’d been set up.
Hope then turned up and tasered Lana, taking the pair back to their HQ. When Lana awoke, Alex was rigged up to a bomb. Hope ordered Lana to chose a switch to trigger the device and as the two argued, Hope lost her temper and pulled a switch which instantly killed Alex.
At least Alex is reunited with his late daughter, who committed suicide after becoming a victim of cyberbullying. Her death is the reason Alex became involved in the terrorist group. He wanted to bring down the tech companies but ultimately ending up in too deep.
Did Thom die in Trigger Point season 2?
We said goodbye to a few other faces in Trigger Point season 2. Most notably Lana’s on-and-off boyfriend DI Thom Youngblood.
Thom died in a heroic moment in episode 2, when Lana and the police were called to a bomb threat at an office block. Lana and Thom worked together to successfully evacuate workers trapped in a lift between two floors. But a female troublemaker disguised as a firefighter appeared and informed them that a bomb had gone off upstairs.
Leaving Lana to deal with the last office worker, Thom followed the fake firefighter upstairs to the elevator shaft where the alleged bomb had gone off. Thom stepped towards the edge of the shaft to inspect it. He was pushed from behind by the firefighter and fell to his death. Tragic.
Trigger Point season 2 recap: Who else died?
Back in episode one, audiences also said goodbye to Lana’s fellow EXPO squad member John Hudson. Despite being part of the team, John was a terrorist suspect in series one. This was on account of his views and friendship with the real bomber.
While not the most likeable character, Lana did feel bad for his death. He met a grisly end at the hands of a bomb that went off in a car park threat in the first episode.
Webster King also died in season 2, shortly before his honeymoon. The billionaire and baddie had a few too many links to the recent terrorist activity and saw his honeymoon as a chance to escape his crimes. The destination? Kuwait, which has no extradition treaty with the UK.
Aware that he could avoid arrest there, Commander Francis and DS Helen Morgan (Natalie Simpson) tracked him down at the airport. While giving a speech about his untouchability and being above the law, King answered an incoming call from his wife. His phone then exploded, killing King. The terrorists later claimed responsibility for the attack with a video that declared: “Hoisted by his own petard. Kill the rich.”
Trigger Point season 1 recap
Trigger Point’s first ever episode set the tone (and tension) of the series. We were introduced to the EXPO squad run by Lana Washington (McClure) and her then longtime colleague Joel ‘Nuts’ Nutkins (Adrian Lester).
First, the two attended a suspected bomb threat at a flat block in London. The team dealt with the bomb in the flat, which turned out to be a booby trap of fake fireworks. Back outside, they later found the real bomb attached to a man in a van which Nutkins attempted to disable. However, the bomb detonated, killing Nutkins and a group of bystanders instantly.
A devastated Lana attended the funeral of her late friend and made a new friend in Karl (Warren Brown). He offered to be there for her, having been a soldier in the army and losing colleagues in similar circumstances. Lana had little time to grieve though, returning to work as more bomb threats followed.
She uncovered an abandoned factory being used to produce bombs. The next target? A London mosque where a man was found tied up with a bomb and a timer counting down to detonation. Lana tried her best to disable it but ran out of time and ran out of the building before it went off. A Far Right terrorist group called The Crusaders later claimed responsibility for the mosque bombing.
Season 1: The Inside Man theory
There was no let-up as another bomb was subsequently discovered outside a popular LGBTQ+ bar in London. Lana and her new right hand man Danny (Shango) successfully disarmed the bomb despite smoke grenades and bullets being aimed at them as a distraction. They tracked the sniper to a block of flats but only found the bomber, Nic Roberts, who was killed on discovery.
Elsewhere, a policeman was killed after discovering a police vest connected to the bomb attack. This led Lana to believe that there was an inside man carrying out the recent terror attacks.
Lana’s new suspicions fell on fellow EXPO John Hudson who had Far Right sympathies. She broke into his locker and found a map marking out the locations of the bombings. Lana acted on her suspicions, publicly reporting him to her boss at the Counter Terrorism Command. She was asked to leave. Lana spent some of her new down time with Karl, whose relationship turned from platonic to romantic.
The next target was even more personal for Lana. The police informed her that her brother Billy had connections with The Crusaders and the bomber Nic Roberts. Lana tried to track Billy down who had gone AWOL before receiving a call from him.
Billy was in a locked car in the middle of a field with a bomb timed to go off imminently. Lana rushed to the scene and tried to diffuse the bomb but Billy panicked and opened the door, detonating the bomb and killing him.
Who was the bad guy in season 1?
In episode 5, after Billy’s death, another bomb was discovered at a venue for a by-election debate. Lana and Hudson worked together to dismantle the bomb, while the police took out the suspected bomber. However, as the EXPO team left, it was Hudson who detonated the bomb and escaped. But he’s not the real villain.
In the season finale, an MIA Hudson sent Lana a text with co-ordinates for the next planned attack. Now back on active duty, she led the EXPO team to a Town Hall where the by-election results were being announced. As the Labour MP was unveiled as the winner, Lana’s friend Karl jumped on stage and opened his jacket revealing a bomb attached to him.
Karl explained that he was out for revenge, wanting to kill the Labour MP who was responsible for covering up an ambush in Afghanistan that killed his colleagues. A shocked Lana bought some time by trying to talk Karl down, but he was resolute. Armed squad officers arrived on the scene and one was finally able to get a clear target. He shot Karl, killing him.
As for Hudson, it turned out he was being manipulated and set up by Karl the whole time in order to throw Lana off. Hudson’s map was just him working overtime to figure out the case in order to get a promotion.
Read more: Trigger Point series 4: ITV confirms explosive Vicky McClure drama will be back for more episodes
