Two Weeks in August ending explained: Zoe's fate after breakdown of her marriage, and news on series 2
It was a hot mess. Literally!
Two Weeks in August came to a blistering end on BBC One, with Zoe and her so-called friends having to flee their disastrous holiday in Greece – but how was it left with the main characters?
The eight-part series centred around four university friends and their families, who travelled to a Greek island for a relaxing holiday (cough, cough). Throw in a sulky nanny, the intense heat, a wild-eyed goat, and years of unspoken resentments, and you’re halfway to imagining the pressure cooker atmosphere.
The central focus of the show was the evolution of mum-of-two Zoe, who arrived in Greece hoping to rediscover joy in her life. Instead, a single act caused Zoe’s painfully polite composure to crack and spill.
Viewers watched in mild horror (and glee) as she hit rock bottom, before rebuilding herself again and confronting a difficult past. So what happened to Zoe, and who did she end up with? Here’s the ending of Two Weeks in August unpacked.
***Warning: spoilers from the ending of Two Weeks in August ahead***
Two Weeks in August ending explained: What happened to Zoe?
At the beginning of the series, it was clear that Zoe was a woman on the cusp of breaking. She was relentlessly polite, and constantly stifled her real feelings to make everything okay within the friendship group. It was obvious she was a simmering pot capable of reaching boiling point.
Talking about the protagonist, writer Catherine Shepherd told us: “Most people, not just women, will relate to a female protagonist who has spent a lot of her life looking after everyone else. Zoe pushes down her own needs for her parents, family and friends. I think that’s a common thing with a lot of women. We’re trained to do it from birth.”
However, after witnessing her husband Dan kiss their mutual friend Jess on THE VERY FIRST NIGHT, Zoe’s behaviour began to change. She stopped being a people pleaser and a nurturer, and became someone more truthful. Zoe shed her skin, and metamorphosised into someone who was prepared to go for what she wanted. Her repressed inner self started to emerge, and it was a lot darker than any of her friends could have imagined!
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In the words of Flick, Zoe was “a bud, trying to bloom”: “A caterpillar trying to wriggle out of your chrysalis and became a big sexy butterfly.”
Did Dan and Zoe break up?
After seeing her husband kiss Jess, Zoe allowed a quiet rage to take her over. Viewers discovered that Dan had recently had a mental breakdown, and had attempted to take his own life. Zoe had continued to buoy him up, while also taking care of the kids, her needy mother, and being the sole breadwinner.
So, seeing him kiss Jess after all that broke something inside Zoe. After revealing her true feelings for uni friend Solomon, and having sex in a chapel with a boy half her age, she realised she didn’t love Dan anymore. She told him she wanted a divorce. Although their relationship was at rock bottom, they finally spoke to each truthfully. Perhaps for the first time ever.
She told him: “I have to look after me now. I’m not your mum.”
Turns out they’d both been lonely and miserable in their marriage. After the events of the holiday, they both knew their marriage was over. But it was clear they still loved each other, and would be able to continue as friends and co-parents to their two children.
Did Solomon and Zoe get together?
During the course of Two Weeks in August, it was clear Zoe and Solomon had a great friendship. But there was also another type of closeness between the old university friends. Call it sexual chemistry.
As the series continued, both admitted they had feelings for each other and they talked about a future together post-divorcing their current spouses. But, in the Two Weeks in August ending, it was pretty clear that wasn’t going to happen.
After all, Solomon really only loved one person – and that was himself. The actor was offered a two year contract playing a centaur in Los Angeles, and he couldn’t turn it down. Or rather, he didn’t want to. Not for his daughter, not for his wife, his son, or Zoe. He gleefully told his daughter: “I got the part. They’re replacing the actor because he wants to spend more time with his family.” Irony totally lost on Solomon, who was happy to spend less time with his family for his own self-interest.
And, despite her feelings for him, it was clear that Zoe had made peace with saying goodbye. And we all knew she was way too good for him anyway. More importantly, we knew Zoe didn’t need Solomon, or Dan, or anyone else to make her happy. She was empowered, and wouldn’t be content with being a “supporting character” in his life.
Two Weeks in August ending: Who were the Moirai?
Catherine Shepherd weaved in Greek mythology to the story of Two Weeks in August. This mythological aspect saw strange things keep happening to and around Zoe. Whether they were real or just part of her disintegration is up to the viewer to interpret.
The mythological flashes felt very real to Zoe, however. The Moirai – also known as The Fates – played a huge part in Zoe’s story. The Moirai were three figures of Greek mythology: the Maiden, the Mother, and the Hag.
In Greek mythology, the Moirai (or The Fates) are three goddesses who determine the thread of every mortal’s life, from birth to death. In the series, they appear as three staring women, sometimes topless. The three women “cut ties” in Greek mythology. And they were trying to tell Zoe something.
The three sisters controlled human destiny from birth to death. They decide your destiny when you’re born. The golden thread is your life. And when Atropos cuts the thread, that’s when you die. However, death in this case can mean transformation/change. So the Moirai spelled the death of Zoe’s marriage.
How was Zoe’s mum important in the ending of Two Weeks in August?
In Two Weeks in August, Zoe had felt the sense she’d been in Greece before, particularly the exact same island she’d returned to years later with her family and uni friends. As she travelled around the island, Zoe kept on seeing the same mother and child together.
In the penultimate episode, Zoe ‘met’ the woman and child. And it was, as some of us had guessed, her own mother and herself as a young child.
Whether it was a vision, or simply Zoe’s childhood memories coming back, it became clear that Zoe’s mum had also sacrificed her own happiness in life. At that point, Zoe was rock bottom. Her one night stand with Jon (later revealed to be Junis) had been exposed to the group, and she felt she’d “ruined everything”. So this reminder of her mum was well timed.
She later told Dan: “I can’t carry on being the same. Or I’ll turn into my mum. I’ve been being nice since I was born. No one ever asked if I’m alright. I lost myself. And now I’ve found myself again. And what I’ve found isn’t very nice. It’s much more Greek than that. I’ve opened my box like Pandora did. I think I’m meant to be happy.”
What else happened in the Two Weeks in August ending?
In truth, none of the characters in Two Weeks in August were likeable characters. But perhaps this was the writer’s intention. How nice are we all when our true selves are laid bare?
Jacob was a commitment-phobe who had ended it with Will before it got too serious. He feared letting anyone get close to him, because he felt “totally unlovable”. Although his past wasn’t explained, his relationship with Will ended on a more positive note. They would try to make a go of it back in the UK.
Meanwhile, Jess and Zoe cleared the air. Whether Jess and Solomon stayed together or not remained to be seen. She’d seen a side to him she didn’t like on holiday but, then, he did pay for her lifestyle. And, more importantly, the nanny.
The “tinderbox island” experienced its annual wildfires, causing the holidayers to flee the island. And if the island didn’t kill them, they would have killed each other. As they escaped, Nat said an emotional farewell to Jacob, and told him she was staying on the island. She had bought a ramshackle house, and decided to make her future in Greece and “have an adventure”.
Jacob and Nat had been each other “security blanket” for years, and it’s why they could never meet anybody else. But, having made this realisation, she told her bestie Jacob: “I don’t have anything to go home too. This is my home now.”
Is there a series 2 of Two Weeks in August?
BBC One has not revealed whether they’ll be a series 2 of Two Weeks in August. Although we’d love to see more of the characters here, the series tied up most of the loose ends. It works as a complete series, so it’s possible that it remains a standalone set of episodes.
Having said that, though, there’s still lots to explore. Would Zoe and Solomon ever manage to get together? And, if so, would she end up as unhappy as she was with Dan?
Could Dan and Jess even end up together? Now those conversations around the dinner table would be worth watching… Of course, we’d love to see more of Nat’s new life in Greece, if only for the views!
Watch this space for more Two Weeks in August news if and when we get it.
Read more: Two Weeks in August: Soundtrack to BBC drama includes music from Self Esteem, and Crowded House
