The Rumour on Channel 5 ending: Convicted child killer exposed

The Rumour on Channel 5 came to a completely bonkers ending this week – with the truth about convicted child killer Sally McGowan finally revealed.
But she wasn’t the only person with a deadly secret in Flinstead – everyone did! Debbie had been sending Joanna nasty hate mail, while her husband was having an affair with Fatima. Sonia had killed two people drunk driving, and Kay had “unforgivably” told her daughter’s ex where to find her (unaware of how violent he was). Of course, Liz had given up her son Henry for adoption – and forever regretted it.
Joanna herself had verbally attacked a child in London, prompting their move to Flinstead. And her mum Bea? Well, she was at the heart of the whole plot.
Here’s the ending of The Rumour explained, including “monster” Sally McGowan’s real identity, why she did what she did, and the person who had killed Sonia.
***Warning: spoilers from the ending of The Rumour on Channel ahead***
Chilling footage of Sally McGowan walking Robbie Harris to his death in The Rumour [Credit: Channel 5]
The Rumour on Channel 5 ending explained
In the five-part Channel 5 thriller, Joanna arrived in Flinstead with her son, Alfie, eager for a fresh start. But when she ‘accidentally’ started a rumour about a child killer living in the town, things took a dark turn.
We discovered that a convicted child killer called Sally McGowan was potentially living in the village under a new identity. And, as suspicion spread, Joanna became increasingly certain of who the real Sally was – but she was wrong every time.
In fact, the real Sally McGowan had been under the nose all along… In episode 5 of The Rumour, Joanna reeled from the truth she’d discovered at the end of the previous episode, while her mum Bea faced the fallout – her past as Sally McGowan was about to be exposed, and with it, the threat of a killer closing in.
A synopsis of the finale told us: “Joanna discovers Rachel has taken Alfie. Desperate, she tracks them to a derelict house, where Rachel demands Bea’s confession. Flames erupt, chaos ensues, and Joanna seizes the moment to escape with Alfie. The next day, the town is buzzing with blame as Joanna, Michael, and Alfie pack up to start again.”
Read on for a detailed recap of the final episode.
The Rumour Channel 5 ending: Who was Sally McGowan?
We found out at the end of the penultimate episode that Joanna’s mum Bea was the real Sally McGowan – a convicted child killer. As a 10-year-old child, Sally had murdered five-year-old Robbie Harris and been convicted to (a rather measly) 10 years imprisonment. Understandably, Joanna was devastated to discover her “whole life had been a lie”. In fact, her real name was Lucy.
Furious, Joanna called her mum a “monster” and told her “you should never have had me”, adding: “You had no right.” Not prepared to hear her out, she also told Bea that she’d never see her grandchild Alfie again.
The truth was that there had been no fire which had destroyed their family home and all personal belongings therein. In fact, Joanna’s dad had found out who Bea really was. That meant that mother and daughter had had to change their identities and move on again.
In the final episode, Joanna tried to come to terms with the shocking revelation. As she packed to leave Flinstead and her mum behind, she knew there was another killer on the loose. Whoever killed Sonia and attempted to gas Kay was actually trying to kill Sally McGowan. So Bea’s life was in serious danger… Could Joanna really leave her mum to that fate?
Joanne Whalley as Joanna’s mum Bea in the all-star cast [Credit: Channel 5]
Who killed Sonia and tried to gas Kay to death?
During The Rumour ending on Channel 5, we discovered – as some of us had suspected – that prison warden Rachel wasn’t as sweet and friendly as she’d appeared to be. She’d certainly been very keen to get Joanna on side, hadn’t she? And Rachel asked a LOT of questions… Red flag, anyone?!
Rachel was in fact the daughter of Marie Harris. As in, the mum of Robbie Harris, the boy Sally McGowan had murdered when she was also a child. So Rachel was in fact Robbie’s sister.
So no prizes whatsoever for guessing that Rachel was the person who killed Sonia, which she described as “an honest mistake”. Rachel believed Sonia was Sally McGowan. She later tried to kill Kay, for the same reason. And, as we soon found out, she didn’t stop there.
Meanwhile, Bea knew that whoever killed Sonia was getting closer to finding out her real identity. She knew she would have to move on again, before the Flinstead vigilante discovered who she was. However, she didn’t have time for that before Rachel made her move.
The Rumour ending on Channel 5: Rachel kidnapped Alfie
In the gripping – and often preposterous – season finale, Rachel abducted Joanna’s son Alfie. Of course, she often looked after her so-called friend’s son while she was working.
Once she had Alfie in her clutches, Rachel called Bea to arrange a meeting. And she had one clear motive in mind – revenge for her brother Robbie’s death.
By this point, Rachel was borderline hysterical (more than usual anyway), which was understandable in the circumstances. But Bea seemed remarkably calm. It was as if she knew her past had finally caught up with her, and she had to face the music – if it meant saving her grandson.
Rachel was in the abandoned house on the crescent. That’s where she had a sedated Alfie. The poor boy lay unconscious on a blanket soaked with petrol – and Rachel had a lighter which could have blown the wooden structure sky high.
During the tense denouement, Rachel explained how her grief-stricken mother had looked for Sally McGowan for years. And had even come close once, until they moved her on. Rachel took over the search when her mum Marie got sick.
She also revealed the sad truth that she’d been born to compensate for Robbie’s death – a “replacement that never managed to fill the void”. It also explained why she’d gone into prison work – in an attempt to find another guard who’d known Sally. Truth be told, Rachel’s whole life had been shaped by the death of the brother she’d never even met. It was a shame, but not an excuse for what she went on to do.
Former soap star Lucy Speed as Rachel in The Rumour ending [Credit: Channel 5]
The Rumour ending on Channel 5: How did Rachel find Sally McGowan?
During her work as a prison guard, Rachel got lucky one day. Ridiculously lucky one might say. She heard the name of the town Flinstead used in connection to Sally McGowan. And that’s why she and her mum moved to the village.
Of course, she had to kill Sonia and harm Kay before she discovered Bea was in fact Sally McGowan. Although we never quite found out how Rachel discovered Bea’s real identity as the convicted child killer.
So what did Rachel want? Well, she wanted the “truth” about her brother’s death. Rachel wanted to know “everything Sally didn’t tell the court”.
What happened in the series finale?
While held captive by Rachel (Lucy Speed in The Rumour cast], Bea pled her case. She told her captor: “I went to jail Rachel. I served my sentence.”
She went on to say: “Marie has poisoned your mind. It’s your life you’ll be throwing away if you do this.”
But Rachel was intent on getting her revenge via a full confession from Bea/Sally. After that, she expected Bea to light up the derelict house in what she hoped would look like a suicide. Of course, all this time, the life of unconscious Alfie was in Bea’s hands.
As Rachel set up the camera to film Bea’s confession, Joanna was on her way to the house after a tip off from Fatima. Luckily, she’d seen Rachel’s car outside the building after one of her rendezvous with Stephen.
Rachel Shenton’s character Joanna was devastated to discover the truth in The Rumour [Credit: Channel 5]
Was Sally ‘evil’? Why did she really kill Robbie?
Rachel turned up just as Bea was being forced to film her confession. So was she “evil” and a “monster”? Well, that’s up to you to decide…
We heard her say: “That day I knew what I was going to do. It wasn’t anything Robbie did. I just picked him because he was small. He was always hanging around, wanting to play with the older kids. I knew he was weak, and he wouldn’t fight back.
“I waited until the other kids had run off to the swings, and I told Robbie to stay behind with me. Of course, he did. He would have done anything I told him to. I took him to the old house at the end of our street. We held hands. I promised him a lolly when we got there.”
She added: “I had a knife that I had taken from the kitchen at home. I had to sharpen it on a rock. I’d seen someone on the telly do it. I never told the police that; only the lawyers. And they made sure the police never heard it, because it would have looked bad for me if they did.”
Frankly, at this point, Bea was looking and sounding every bit like a killer. While Rachel became more and more distressed as she listened. All while Rachel crept up from behind.
Bea continued: “He looked so surprised, that’s what I remember the most. As if he couldn’t really believe this was happening. But it was so easy. I remember I liked the feeling of it.”
Yep, it was grim. And so different from the mild-mannered Bea we thought we know. As for why she decidedly to kill the boy, she didn’t explain.
What happened to Bea and Joanna in the final episode?
As Bea made her shocking confession, Rachel became more and more upset and angry. As Bea made the rather horrible admission that she’d “liked the feeling” of stabbing Robbie, Rachel lost control. She lunged for Bea, with Joanna just behind her. All the while, Rachel had the lighter in her hand.
Amidst a tense scuffle between the three women, the lit Zippo fell to the ground setting the petrol-soaked carpet alight.
The wooden building caught fire immediately. In the struggle, Bea walloped Rachel over the head with something hard, and tried to focus on getting Joanna and Alfie out of the burning building. But it wasn’t long before Rachel reared her revenge-seeking head again, and grappled Bea down. All while Joanna seemed dumbstruck by the fire and unable to move.
Luckily, just in time, Joanna came to her senses and leapt to save her son Alfie. She managed to carry her son to safety. Meanwhile, both Bea/Sally and Rachel were left in the burning blaze. At first, we assumed that both Bea and Rachel had died. But this wasn’t actually the case.
In the closing minutes of the series, Joanna left Flinstead with her son Alfie and husband Michael. In the final scenes, Alfie was seen in the back of his parents’ car opening a letter. Inside was a painting of a robin (Alfie’s favourite bird), and a message signed ‘Nana’. The next scene was Bea and Liz walking arm in arm across a bridge together – with Bea very much alive!
Joanna and Alfie escaped harm in The Rumour ending -[Credit: Channel 5]
What else happened in the The Rumour ending on Channel 5?

Debbie discovered that her husband Stephen was cheating AGAIN. This time with her friend Fatima. Anybody see the appeal? Nope, us neither! Debbie and Stephen split up, with Fatima ostracised from the friendship group.
Rachel was presumed dead. But, if Bea could escape, surely Rachel could have?
Although Joanna worried that she might have her mum’s killer genes, Michael reassured her that she was “more than just her mum’s daughter”.

Will there be a series 2 of The Rumour?
Channel 5 has not confirmed whether there’ll be a potential series 2 of The Rumour. But there were plenty of loose ends dangling.
Channel 5 thrillers like The Inheritance, The Game, and The Feud are usually stand-alone series, with no sequels. But there’s no reason at all why The Rumour couldn’t return.
After all, viewers did not learn Rachel’s fate, while Joanna had no idea her mum was still alive. Would Sally, now presumably living under a new identity, ever be able to live her life without looking over her shoulder?
As well as a continuation of Joanna’s story, The Rumour also has the potential to be an anthology like The Teacher. After all, there’s a rumour in every village, town and city in the world…
Watch this space for more details, if and when we get them.
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