Naomi Ward In ‘A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder’ Explained

The new BBC 3 show, now streaming on Netflix, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, is a whodunnit drama where a young girl in her teens decides to open and investigate a case that was apparently solved and closed five years ago. In this whodunnit drama, set in a small town in England, many people knew the victims and they needed to be questioned again just like the last time. Naomi Ward was one of them, as she was the best friend to Sal Singh, the young boy who confessed to having killed Andie and before he took his own life. His confession was on his phone, and the police used it as strong evidence to close the case even though Andie’s body was never found.

Pippa was now in her final year of high school, and she took it upon himself to find answers for the twin deaths that rocked her town, and changed it forever more. There was some awkwardness and resistance she faced because the wounds of the deaths of the young kids were raw. Pippa, however, went ahead with her plan because she felt the last message left by Sal didn’t fit in with his usual texting lingo. Naomi Ward was her first point of contact, as she was closest to Sal. She was the older sister of Pippa’s best friend Cara, whose father was a school English teacher, Elliot Ward. Naomi, Max, and Jake were Sal’s best friends, and Pippa figured they would know more about Sal. Naomi had been upset for the longest time, as per Cara, ever since they had lost their mother. Along with that, she had been in a weird state of mind since Sal’s passing as well. These two deaths deeply affected her, and Pippa tip-toed around her and did not ask triggering questions about the incident that happened five years ago. The way Naomi spoke to Pippa made her conclude that the girl might be in a depressive state as well, but her mental health condition was not discussed in detail.

Naomi’s account of the night Andie had died did not corroborate the details shared by Max, which made Pippa wonder that she was not sure who to believe at this point. She knew Naomi because of her proximity to Cara. Naomi had to step in and help Pippa further with the details of the case, as the latter felt she and Ravi had reached a dead end regarding the investigation. Ravi was Sal’s younger brother, and he had joined Pippa hoping to finally have some closure. Naomi noticed Pippa was dejected, and she made sure to drop hints to help her find out more details about the night Andie had disappeared. Naomi quickly figured Pippa was indeed a smart woman who could pick up on the clues she left to search on her laptop. Pippa, for some disconcerting reasons, confronted Naomi.

Naomi was at breaking point, because she and her group were at a school reunion and all of them were still talking about Andie and Sal’s deaths. Pippa knew Naomi, Jake, and Max had lied about Sal’s alibi, and could have been covering up the reason behind Sal’s death. Max had specifically ordered Naomi not to speak about the incident. Since she had been in a lot of pain after Pippa brought up the subject, she wanted to relieve herself by confessing to a crime they had committed. 

Naomi, along with Jake and Max, were involved in a hit and run, and five years ago Max had used all his influence to save all three of them from jail time. However, someone had come to know of the crime and had blackmailed the trio into giving a statement against Sal that made him a prime suspect in Andie Bell’s disappearance. Naomi at that point had not anticipated Sal would take a drastic step, which distressed her further as she had lost two people she loved back-to-back. Naomi was a sensitive yet strong woman who eventually stood up to Max, who was showcasing bullying tendencies as he got aggressive upon learning Pippa was informed about their crime. 

Naomi was the strongest of the lot, who dared to come out and help Pippa find answers, as she felt Sal deserved a better goodbye. She also learned that Sal may have been killed by the same person who blackmailed them to speak up against them. Naomi had hit rock bottom when she learned of her father’s dark side, when he himself had spiraled after their mother’s death. Naomi and Cara had to be each other’s support, and they could never be angry at Pippa for exposing their father the way she did. Naomi may have gotten closure in regard to Sal’s death, but it came at a cost. Elliot was arrested for his role in killing Sal, as he claimed someone had to be collateral damage as he wanted to protect his family. 

Elliot was aware Naomi was distressed after Andie’s death, and as a father, he wanted to take a step so that she never confessed to the crime she was responsible for a few months back. Naomi would have to move on despite coming across harsh truths.