Bay Of Fires

Bay Of Fires

Full series drop available on ITVX here

Series overview

Showcasing Tasmania’s rugged west coast, Bay Of Fires, tells the story of Stella (Marta Dusseldorp), who unexpectedly finds herself in a small, remote community. But it’s not the kind of place they put on postcards – it is instead rife with simmering feuds, crime and sometimes, murder.

Anika Van Cleef is the last person you would expect to find living in a remote community in Tasmania. Betrayed and in danger, she has no other option but to trust a stranger who claims to be on her side, accept a new name she hates (Stella Heikkinen), and move her family to Mystery Bay — a town so remote it eludes GPS.

Mystery Bay isn't the kind of place they put on postcards. There are no waterfalls, murals, or floral clocks, and the natural beauty that is there (a dense, primordial forest) — the town does its very best to hide.

Episodic synopses

Episode 1
Targeted by two hitmen, successful CEO of ProperAus Finance, Stella narrowly escapes with the help of a mysterious woman called Airini. Stella is instructed to pick up her kids, Otis and Iris, and prepare to leave town immediately if she wants to stay alive. After sneaking home to pack a bag, Stella is horrified to discover that her boyfriend, Johann, is leading the hitmen trying to kill her. She meets with Airini and is given a new identity, a burner phone, and three one-way tickets to a small town in Tasmania- Mystery Bay. They are to remain there until further notice. The family arrive in Mystery Bay- fondly renamed as Misery Bay- a strange town with equally strange inhabitants. The locals aren’t exactly welcoming of the new arrivals and are mostly unhelpful, hostile, or just downright confusing. They meet Jeremiah, a rough tow truck driver, Jodie, the owner of the rarely frequented pub, Connor, the local mechanic and Magda and Heather, who have a beloved pet pig called Truffles. Francis- a dodgy real estate agent, eventually gives them keys to their new house, which Stella tells the kids they will be living in longer than expected. They soon discover it is falling apart- the floorboards are rotten and there are gaping holes throughout various rooms. During the night, the family are woken by trucks passing through the property’s front yard. Just as Stella decides to go outside and assess the danger, she falls through the floor to a cellar below.

Episode 2
Jeremiah turns up at Stella’s house to fix the rotten floorboards, so Stella and the kids go to stay in the local motel until it’s done. Frankie the town matriarch, and her younger brother Arthur, begin asking questions about Francis selling Stella the house. Frankie introduces herself to Stella. In the spirit of being neighbourly Frankie brings Stella a casserole. Stella, Otis and Iris get more acquainted with the townspeople. Iris befriends Graham, an older blind man who lives in the motel. Otis meets Elysha, the daughter of Thaddeus and Bethel who run “The Community” on the edge of town, and Stella finds herself somewhat less irritated by Jeremiah. They also meet Bong Cha- the discerning motel owner and her helper Sammi, a young tech guy also living in the motel. When Stella and Otis relationship becomes particularly strained, she calls Airini in the hopes of leaving, but Airini insists that the family must remain in Mystery Bay. Stella decides to reveal the truth to Otis in the hopes of regaining trust and connection. However, it only adds to his criticism of her parenting skills and resentment towards her. Upon returning to the house when Jeremiah is finished, the floorboards have been redone, and to Stella’s surprise - it’s beautiful. Stella begins to feel more comfortable with Jeremiah who is proving to be more helpful and less grumpy than she initially thought. She takes the kids for a picnic by the lake, and for the first time since the beginning of the ordeal, Stella feels somewhat happy but that feeling doesn’t last long.

Episode 3
Robin, a public servant is sent to Mystery Bay to investigate suspicious government payouts to people in town. But when she tries to locate the people listed in the file, she is left with more questions than answers. Stella, Otis and Iris attend an uncomfortable dinner Frankie’s and meet her gang of adopted children. Frankie tries to get more information around why the family has come to Mystery Bay and grows increasingly suspicious of Stella. Otis and Iris start attending the local school where Otis finds himself increasingly drawn to Elysha. Stella and Jeremiah get further acquainted when he gives her a lift home from town. She also meets his father, Joseph, and learns about his brother Billy. Stella persists in trying to get out of Mystery Bay and sends Airini the USB that Kumar had left her in the hopes of it giving some much needed answers.

Episode 4
Stella receives help from Jeremiah to dispose of a body in the Tasmanian wilderness. However, after becoming separated from Jeremiah and losing the raft, Stella finds herself lost. When Jeremiah comes back for her, they spend the night in an abandoned hut where their curiosity in each other increases. Meanwhile, Frankie now feels her control of the townsfolk is under threat and orders Stella to be picked up. Seeking answers Airini enlists the help of an old friend to try and make sense of ProsperAus Finance and have the hitmen arrested.

Episode 5
To reassert her power, Frankie puts Stella on trial in front of the townsfolk, however Stella negotiates to pay the entire town a large sum of money every two weeks with no idea of how she is going to do it. Now threatened by the townspeople’s growing disloyalty to her, Frankie orders punishments to those who sided with Stella during the trial. As Airini continues her investigation into ProsperAus Finance, she calls upon an old colleague to help decode Kumar’s USB vindaloo recipe. Getting dangerously close to solving the case, she begins preparations for the trial and organises a private plane out of Mystery Bay for Stella and the kids and tells her to prepare to leave at a moment’s notice. Tensions rise between Otis and Stella, and his resentment grows when she forgets his birthday. Otis and Elysha’s interest in each other grows as the pair deepen their connection. However, Elysha informs Otis she can only be with someone from inside The Community and is already promised to another. As Stella, Otis and Iris make try to make their escape from Mystery Bay, things start to unravel.

Episode 6
Returning to Mystery Bay after their failed attempt to escape, Stella receives important documents Airini posted to her only to find its contents unreadable. She calls upon her allies in the town- Sammi, Magda and Heather, who use their former skills to help her crack the code. Frankie continues to lose support after punishing several townsfolk for being disloyal to her. After an awkward dinner party, Jeremiah and Stella come together to take action against Frankie’s Bay of Fires operation and find themselves closer than ever. Stella’s father, the former CEO of ProsperAus Finance, appears in Mystery Bay attempting to convince her to return home with the kids. Wary of his intentions and who he may be working for, both Stella and Iris are dubious. Meanwhile, Johann starts trying to locate Stella’s whereabouts. Meanwhile, Otis runs away to pursue Elysha and after refusing Stella’s wishes to come back home, he comes face to face with the dangers of Thaddeus and The Community.

Episode 7
With her ‘Bay Of Fires’ operation sabotaged by Stella and Jeremiah, Frankie finds herself in hot water when unable to pay her ‘business partner’ or the townspeople who grow increasingly impatient with her. Furious and desperate, she launches a violent investigation to find out who is responsible. Knowing that Frankie will be on a warpath, Jeremiah hatches a plan to protect Stella by steering attention off her and onto himself. While Jodie seeks to protect Jeremiah and convinces him to leave Mystery Bay with her for good. As they plan their escape, Jeremiah says goodbye to a confused Stella, but also pays a visit to police officer Jason- leaving him with a specific set of instructions. Meanwhile, the hitmen arrive in Mystery Bay to kill Stella and the townsfolk rally to protect her. Magda and Heather finally crack the code to get into the ProsperAus account- only to discover a crime so large that Stella doesn’t know what move to make next. Meanwhile, Otis is held captive by Thaddeus and The Community and Elysha takes a risk to help him. After his terrifying experience during the ‘Bay of Fires’ operation, Jack runs away from Frankie and seeks comfort in his newfound friendship with the postman, Charlie.

Episode 8
After several failed attempts to have Stella murdered, Johann and his hitmen arrive in Mystery Bay and he is determined to finish the job himself. When Stella is informed of her ex-lover’s arrival, she leads him to Frankie’s farm. Meanwhile, Stella plans to take the get the townsfolk the money she promised them and the townspeople all come together to help her – but will they be able to pull it off? And just how far is she willing to go? Unable to shake Stella from his mind and accidentally receiving love advice from Johann, Jeremiah returns to Mystery Bay to be with Stella. While Frankie, left scrambling for support and desperate to regain control, goes to Thaddeus for help. Now bonded through their experience at The Community, Otis and Elysha are closer than ever. Elysha begins to learn what a life outside of the Community looks like, and Otis begins to reconcile his relationship with his mother. Jack pays a visit to Frankie in inform her he is staying with Charlie.