The Au Pair episode 2 recap: Sandrine reveals her shocking true identity

The Au Pair is following the devastating fallout after a seemingly happy family hired a mysterious nanny…

In the opening episode of the four-part Channel 5 thriller Sandrine (Ludmilla Makowski) started work for Zoe (Sally Bretton) and Chris (Kenny Doughty), but soon appeared to be plotting against them before trying to drown Zoe in the bath.

Now, in the second episode, Zoe cheats death but Sandrine’s war against her continues as the family holds a party for Chris' daughter Amber (Margot Pue), which results in an act of sabotage, a violent attack and a jaw-dropping claim.

Here is everything that happened in The Au Pair episode 2…

As the episode begins, Sandrine (Ludmilla Makowski) is still holding Zoe’s head under the bath water but then she suddenly drags her out and Zoe (Sally Bretton) revives. As Zoe recovers, she sees Sandrine’s scarred back and asks what happened but Sandrine doesn’t respond. Zoe asks her not to tell Chris (Kenny Doughty) about her nearly drowning as, with all that has happened, it could end their relationship. Sandrine then lays beside Zoe on the bed as she drifts off to sleep and whispers that even though she couldn’t kill Zoe, she will make her life hell...

Chris and his children Noah (Ripley Barden) and Amber (Margot Pue) come home early from their camping trip as Sandrine has called them as she claimed to be worried about what happened to Zoe. An anxious Chris speaks to Zoe who says she confused the sleeping pills with other medication and it was an accident and Chris later tries to reassure the children and says they need to pull together to help Zoe. Later, Zoe confides in Sandrine that she feels she needs to win back the family’s trust so she is going to make a tapestry for Amber’s upcoming birthday with messages from her friends and Sandrine can help her.

But Sandrine then tells Chris how she found Zoe under the water and that she feared she was dead and she was worried what would happen if the kids found her like that. Sandrine wants to believe it was an accident as the pill bottles are similar, but she is clearly trying to put doubt in Chris’ mind.

Zoe is better and is sewing Amber’s tapestry but she is hardly sleeping in order to get it finished. And just as she thinks it’s done, Sandrine brings her more messages from Amber’s friends. After it is finally finished, she shows Sandrine who looks upset as she says she knows what it’s like to be Zoe and always trying to earn people’s love and she confesses that her father was responsible for the scars on her back. Zoe responds by saying she is part of her family now.

But there’s a shock in store for Zoe when her doctor calls about the blood tests for her fertility treatment and reveals that she is already five weeks pregnant naturally but she must rest and stay stress-free. Cut to Sandrine putting fuel all over Amber’s tapestry…

As the party gets underway, Zoe tries to tell Chris about the baby but before she can get around to it, he says another pregnancy would be too dangerous and he doesn’t want to lose her, or for his kids to lose another mum. He reckons she is vulnerable and she asks if he thinks she deliberately took a pill before getting in the bath. He’s not sure…

Noah wants to light the firepits on the lawn – secretly urged on by Sandrine – and Zoe tells him not to do it. But Sandrine then tells him to light them just before Zoe gives Amber her tapestry.

Zoe’s frosty mum Lydia (Lesley Molony) turns up and questions her about the bath incident before Zoe’s dad George (Sir David Suchet) comes in and tries to be civil to his estranged wife. When they are alone, Zoe confides in George that she regrets going for IVF without Chris on board because she’s now in a big hole and he thinks she’s at risk physically and mentally. George says to give him time to get used to the idea and he may surprise her one day and suggest trying again himself.

Sandrine then sneaks in and turns up the oven on the pizzas Zoe is cooking and the fire alarm goes off. As Zoe tries to deal with it, Amber is angry it’s ruining the party. Sandrine says she will sort it and Zoe should go up and get ready. But when Zoe goes into the bathroom cabinet, she gets some pills out but sees one of Amber’s false nails on the sink… She angrily heads outside and tells Chris she thinks someone swapped the pills over, which Chris won't believe. Zoe is upset and says to Sandrine that she was right, you spend years trying to earn their love and for what?

When the tapestry is finally unveiled, Amber is thrilled but as she takes a selfie with it, in the background we see Sandrine putting a lighter to it and it goes up in flames. Panic ensues as everyone tries to stop the inferno and Zoe tells Noah off for lighting the fires but Amber defends her brother. As Sandrine tries to comfort Zoe, Amber asks if she can speak to Zoe in private but Zoe says she knows what Amber did with the pills.

Amber’s friend Raye (Ebimie Anthony) takes her away and asks what Zoe’s problem is and Amber says she is ‘mental’ and she got worse after Sandrine turned up. Raye worries that Sandrine will reveal all about her own secret pregnancy. But as Amber looks through the pictures on her phone, she sees one of the tapestry just before it went up in flames and Sandrine’s legs are sticking out of the bottom. She heads inside to search Sandrine's room for proof that she is not what she seems.

Zoe is on a stool trying to fix something as Sandrine tells her she should know when to quit and that she is being suffocated, but Zoe tells Sandrine to stop projecting her own tough childhood onto Zoe. An angry Sandrine kicks the stool and Zoe falls off clutching her stomach and fears she is losing the baby and she and Sandrine head to the hospital.

Raye and Amber are in Sandrine’s room and under the bed they find a bag with baggage labels saying ‘Stephanie Lacroix.’ They look up the name online and Stephanie is Sandrine and she is the subject of a newspaper report about an arson attack. But the charges were dropped so Raye says she might be innocent. Amber, however, wants to tell Sandrine what they know and that she will tell her dad Sandrine’s secret if she doesn’t leave.

At the hospital, Zoe has a scan and the baby is fine, but an upset Sandrine has to leave the room… In the car outside, before they head home, Zoe confides how alone she feels. But Sandrine says she has her. Zoe confesses she had another baby a long time ago but the baby died at birth. Sandrine looks confused… Zoe never got to see her baby and was told it was for the best and that this has brought it all back.

When they get home, Chris wonders where they have been, but Zoe doesn’t tell him. Back in her own room alone, a distraught Sandrine ponders on Zoe being told her baby was dead and angrily smashes a mirror…

Back outside, Amber confronts Sandrine and calls her 'Stephanie' and says that she never fell for her lies and she’s going to tell her dad. As Amber goes into the house calling for Chris, Sandrine hits her from behind with a chopping board and, panicking, Sandrine drags an unconscious Amber into the utility room. An unsuspecting George comes to the door and thanks Sandrine for helping him last week when he fell ill and Sandrine tries to get rid of him. When he is gone, Raye tries to get hold of Amber on her phone and Sandrine sends her a text as Amber saying she has gone for a walk with one of the boys.

As everyone gathers outside with Amber’s cake, Raye tells Chris she is worried that Amber and Sandrine are missing, she thinks Amber’s text was weird and she shows Chris and Zoe the arson report, but Zoe thinks there must be a mistake.

Sandrine meanwhile has dragged Amber outside and puts her into a cart attached to a bike and ridden off. A terrified Chris and Zoe drive off using a tracking app on Amber’s phone to try to find her. The signal takes them to the woods where Sandrine has laid Amber by a stream and is attempting to wake her up. As Amber suddenly revives, she gets away from Sandrine and runs into the road just as the car arrives, and Chris comforts her.

Zoe says she is calling the police because Sandrine lied to them. Sandrine reveals she came to find her. Zoe tells her to stay away from her family. Sandrine says she is her family, she is Zoe’s daughter… Chris insists she is insane. But Sandrine says she didn’t lie and ‘they’ lied to Zoe. Zoe, however, states that she never wants to see Sandrine again. But Sandrine begs her to believe her and not leave her again. As a distressed Zoe heads to the car, Chris says everything Sandrine claimed is a lie, and as Zoe turns around, Sandrine has vanished…

All episodes of The Au Pair are on streaming service 5, formerly known as My5.