If you’ve been tuning into the weekly episodes of Sky’s The Third Day so far, you’ve probably become used to seeing some seriously creepy stuff play out on screen. 

The show’s first three episodes – which formed the series’ first part, called ‘Summer’ – saw Sam (played by Jude Law) find himself becoming increasingly intertwined in the dark rituals of Osea Island’s mysterious inhabitants.

Following a series of messed-up interactions and near-death experiences, Sam finds out he’s actually a direct descendant of the island’s founder Frederick Nicholas Carrington – and is forced to take on the role of Osea’s ‘Father’ after their previous leader dies. 

All in all, watching The Third Day has been akin to some kind of creepy rollercoaster. And the show’s second part ‘Autumn’ – which aired yesterday – was similarly unnerving.

The 12 hour “live theatrical event” which was streamed yesterday (3 October) gave fans of the show a closer look at the unique traditions and rituals of Osea island. The production – which was put together by experimental theatre company Punchdrunk – was filmed in one continuous shot and streamed live online and on Sky Arts.

Although the nature of the production was rather unorthodox – at one point, the stream showed Jude Law dig a hole for over an hour – it was a truly unique experience which certainly raised some big questions ahead of the show’s final three episodes.

In a nutshell, the 12-hour live stream depicted life on Osea island during the annual ‘Esus and the Sea’ festival, which “marks the passing into adulthood of the children of the island”.

The show’s synopsis explains: “Each year a boy or girl is chosen to take the path of Esus, a trial akin to the Christian stations of the cross. But on special years, when Osea needs a new leader, the prospective ‘Father’ also undergoes the trial. They took take the path of Esus to ensure that they are fit to lead the island and that the island accepts them.”

Essentially, because Sam was forced to become the island’s new leader after the previous ‘Father’ died, he has to undergo a series of challenges before he can take on his new role. And that’s what ‘Autumn’ depicts. 

Throughout the 12-hour live stream, we saw Jude Law being put through some serious hell in the guise of these ‘trials’. Honestly, you can’t fault his commitment – from digging his own grave for over an hour to dragging a wooden boat through a series of muddy fields, he really took his role seriously. Can we give this man all the awards, please? 

If you’ve got time to watch some of the live stream, we seriously recommend giving it a go: the whole 12-hour spectacle is now available to watch on Sky TV’s Facebook page if you’re up for it, and you don’t need to watch the whole thing to get an idea of what’s going on.

For now, however, we’ve gone ahead and summarised the three key moments you need to know about ahead of part three of The Third Day, which airs on Sky Atlantic this Tuesday at 9pm. So, without further ado, here’s what you need to know about the events of ‘Autumn’. 

At the end of episode three, we learnt that Jess isn’t quite the objective outsider we first assumed her to be. As Sam tries to escape from the island with Jess, she reveals her husband (who we already know is super controlling) has some kind of relationship with the leaders of Osea – and that to keep her daughters safe, she mustn’t disobey their wishes.

Although during ‘Summer’ Jess said she was simply on vacation on the island, come ‘Autumn’ she is still on Osea – from the beginning of the live stream, we see her sat among the villagers during preparations for the festival.

Throughout the live stream, however, we begin to learn more about why Jess is still on the island. She makes a series of phone calls at different moments throughout the stream, which we presume are with her husband – in the first, she says her flight was delayed and she’s not making excuses to stay on the island. 

Later on, however, after it is revealed she has a relationship with Epona’s father (the man who almost shot Sam in the first part of the series), we see her get increasingly resolute in her wish to stay on Osea. This culminates in a final phone call with her husband, in which she tells him to come and get her if he wants her to return.

Because Jess is set to make an appearance in part three of The Third Day, we hope to learn more about her background and what’s going on with her children – if ‘Autumn’ is anything to go by, there’s a lot still to be uncovered when it comes to Katherine Waterston’s mysterious character. 

Although he may have moved past the murderous intentions he displayed in part one of The Third Day, Larry (John Dalgleish) still isn’t a fan of Sam’s being on the island.

Throughout the live stream he is shown sulking in the background and calling for the islanders not to make Sam the ‘Father’. He engages with a girl who arrives in the village to warn the islanders that Osea is going to “burn” and begs the people putting Sam through the path of Esus to rethink what they’re doing.

Even after Sam has supposedly proven his “worth” and taken on his role as the ‘Father’ Larry is shown scowling at islanders’ celebration. Could his anger towards Sam mean something as we head into part three?

The majority of ‘Autumn’ sees Sam being put through his paces in order to prove his “worth” and ascend to his position as the ‘Father’.

From attending a ‘last supper’ style gathering in the sea and digging his own grave for over an hour to dragging a boat around the island and somehow being resurrected, Sam completes all the tasks expected of him and emerges the island’s new leader. 

The big question, however, is whether Sam has actually accepted any of the islanders’ beliefs – or if he’s going along with it because he has no other choice. In episode three we see him denounce the theology of Osea and try to make an escape before he was brought back onto the island, where he is given no other option than to become the ‘Father’.

Throughout ‘Autumn’, it’s hard to tell whether Sam willingly believes in the path of Esus or if he’s terrified of what might happen if he doesn’t take part – at the end, when he’s officially been named the new ‘Father’, we see his face switch back and forth from disbelief to joy and excitement. What’s going on here?

The Third Day’s “live event” ‘Autumn’ is now available to watch online via Sky TV Facebook. The series continues Tuesday’s 9 pm on Sky Atlantic.

Image: Sky