History Series / TheThiefHisWifeAndTheCanoe

* NeverMyFault: One of John's most prevalent personality traits, alongside his [[ItsAllAboutMe self-centredness]], [[DidntThinkThisThrough recklessness]], [[DissonantSerenity apathy]], [[ManipulativeBastard deceitfulness]], [[WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong overconfidence]], and penchant for making[[InsaneTrollLogic facile/delusional rationalisations]]. It is played off for very dark humour at the beginning, but gradually lapses into drama as the consequences of his fraud begin to tailspin beyond control while he displays almost complete indifference and a lack of accountability for the amount of damage and the resulting sense of betrayal it brings to his family.

* NeverMyFault: One of John's most prevalent personality traits, alongside his [[ItsAllAboutMe self-centredness]], recklessness, amorality, [[WhatCouldGoWrong hyperconfidence]], and penchant for [[InsaneTrollLogic facile/delusional rationalisations]]. It is played off for very dark humour at the beginning, but gradually lapses into drama as the consequences of his fraud begin to tailspin beyond control while he displays almost complete indifference and a lack of accountability for the amount of damage and the resulting sense of betrayal it brings to his family.

''The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe'' is a four part BlackComedy based on RealLife fugitive John Darwin (Creator/EddieMarsan) who faked his own death to cash in on his life insurance with the help of his wife Anne (Creator/MonicaDolan).

* ManipulativeBastard: How John and Anne's marriage is framed throughout the series. John isn't above browbeating and emotionally blackmailing his wife in an effort to persuade her to play along to his schemes. Anne herself isn't innocent of this, as her part in the fraud involves treating John's disappearance as a death to their sons over the course of at least seven years. The difference between the two examples is that Anne's manipulation of the situation is passive, done with great reluctance, and takes an [[GuiltRiddenAccomplice enormous emotional toll]] on her, compared with John's [[LackOfEmpathy blithe attitude]] both in the creation and execution of their scheme as well as in his treatment of Anne.

* NeverMyFault: John's most prevalent personality trait, alongside his [[ItsAllAboutMe self-centredness]], apathetic recklessness, and overconfidence. It is played off for very dark humour at the beginning, but gradually lapses into drama as the consequences of his fraud begin to tailspin beyond control while he displays almost complete indifference and a lack of accountability for the amount of damage and the resulting sense of betrayal it brings to his family.

* ManipulativeBastard: How John and Anne's marriage is framed throughout the series. John isn't above browbeating and emotionally blackmailing his wife in an effort to persuade her to play along to his schemes.

* [[LivingEmotionalCrutch Co-dependency]]: After their fraud is unravelled and they return back from Panama to face the music, John and Anne's relationship begins to take a more central focus as either character is forced to clarify their motives in the face of the moral and legal ramifications of what they had done. Whatever the viewer may decide about either person, what becomes very clear is that John and Anne's relationship was neither as healthy nor happy as it had appeared.

* MorallyBankruptBanker: ...At least, according to John. While it frames them as an antagonistic reference in the story, the lenders are legally entitled to make claims on money that the couple owes them and aren't actually wrong in their pursuit for reimbursement, which in this context makes it a subverted trope.

* NeverMyFault: John's most prevalent personality trait, along with his tendency for audacity and impulsiveness. It is played off for very dark humour at the beginning, but gradually lapses into drama as the consequences of his fraud begin to tailspin beyond control while he displays almost complete indifference and a lack of accountability for the amount of damage and the resulting sense of betrayal it brings to his family.

* YourCheatingHeart: John has a brief escapade with a woman he strikes a rapport with whilst in hiding (even emigrating to the US to live with her), and while he lies to Anne that it was a business trip for surveying a potential investment, she sees through his subterfuge. This never lasts however, as it turns out that the woman was only interested in blackmailing John for a slice of the insurance payout he receives, meaning that he had been reckless enough to reveal his scheme to a third party.

* NeverMyFault: John's most prevalent personality trait, along with his tendency for audacity and impulsiveness. It is played off for very dark humour at the beginning, but gradually lapses into drama as the consequences of his fraud begin to tailspin beyond control while he displays almost complete indifference for the amount of damage and the resulting sense of betrayal it brings to his family.

* MorallyBankruptBanker: The banks send bailiffs to terrorise John and Anne.

* ComedicSociopathy: When the police tell John that his story is different to Anne's, DeadpanSnarker John replies that they shouldn't listen to her because he hasn't done so for over 30 years.

* UnreliableNarator: According to John's testimony under police custody after returning from Panama, the banks, insurance company and mortgage lenders wouldn't give John and Anne a realistic option to pay off their debts, which had left him with no option but to swindle his money back. This heavily conflicts with Anne's account of John's cavalier attitude in drawing out loans to cover his overspending on assets and personal effects at a rate in which he had no feasible means of repaying.

* GreyAndGreyMorality: The banks, insurance company and mortgage lenders wouldn't give John and Anne a realistic option to pay off their debts, so HeroicComedicSociopath John had no option but to swindle his money back.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: John poses for a photo with Anne and the Panamanian man who sold them a plot of land.

* TheWoobie: Anne is miserable all the time trying to conceal the deception.

* LoveableRogue: Despite his crazy schemes and inability to hold onto his money for long, AntiHero John is an amusing and likeable character.

''The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe'' is a four part BlackComedy based on RealLife fugitive John Darwin (Creator/EddieMarsan) who faked his own death to cash in on his life insurance with the help of his wife Anne (Monica Dolan).

''The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe'' is a four part BlackComedy based on RealLife fugitive John Darwin (Creator/EddieMarsan) who faked his own death to cash in on his life insurance.

* Adorkable: Anne wears big glasses and is self-conscious about her teeth.

* ShoutOut: The title is a reference to the cannibal exploitation film Film/TheCookTheThiefHisWifeAndHerLover.

''The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe'' is a four part BlackComedy based on RealLife fugitive John Darwin who faked his own death to cash in on his life insurance.

The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe is a four part BlackComedy based on RealLife fugitive John Darwin who faked his own death to cash in on his life insurance.

* TheWoobie: Anne is miserable all the time trying to conceal the deception.

* ShoutOut: The title is a reference to the cannibal exploitation film TheCookTheThiefHisWifeAndHerLover.

* AssumedWin: CloudCuckooLander John spends all his money on real estate in Paraguay, only to be informed that his visa was rejected.

* FailedASpotCheck: John thinks he's made it in Paraguay, but doesn't realise that he needs a residency visa.

* MacGuffin: The photo of John and Anne in Paraguay is eventually discovered by the police and used as evidence.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: John poses for a photo with Anne and the Paraguayan man who sold them a plot of land.

* GreyAndGreyMorality: The banks, insurance company and mortgage lenders wouldn't give John and Anne a realistic option to pay off their debts, so John had no option but to swindle his money back.

* ThatManIsDead: After John is declared dead he goes by the alias of Jones.