Outlander fans are desperate for the STARZ drama to return now it has been announced they will have to wait even longer for Jamie (played by Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) to be back on their screens in 2020.
With time to spare, viewers are dissecting all the show’s various plot points in the hope they can unlock new content from their favourite show while Droughtlander ploughs on.
And the latest theory suggests the entire reason why Claire and Jamie we’re separated even longer after Frank Randall (Tobias Menzies) learned Jamie was actually alive and had survived the Battle of Culloden, was all because he didn’t trust his wife.
One eagle-eyed fan is convinced the historian didn’t believe Claire had actually travelled back through time, so when Frank spotted Jamie’s name in his papers, he pushed it out of his mind and ignored the implications of his wife’s zany story.
A confused fan called onlyonecandikuka begun the conversation by sharing their frustration over the distance Jamie and Claire were forced to suffer – a devastating 20 years.
“It has been really bothering me the relationship that Frank and Claire created in season three,” they said.
“I get that Frank thought that divorcing Claire would take Bree away from him, but it was stupid for them to stay married. Especially when they were having an open marriage anyway.
“But then when we find out Frank knew that Claire would end up going back to Jamie, and he didn’t even tell her that Jamie was alive?! He could have told her, and he could have moved on with his life as much as she moved on with hers.
“I hate that Jamie and Claire were denied 20 years together, and I can’t stop obsessing over what could have been!
Little Nest of Vipers then noted the reason for Frank’s devastating betrayal may have had a very simple reason – that he didn’t actually believe Claire’s story, as they replied: “Meh…Claire would have been absolutely miserable knowing Jamie was alive, but she wasn’t going to leave her child during that time and no way was she taking her through the stones. I can see both sides, really. Frank low key thinks she’s nuts, but leaves some clues just in case she wasn’t. I never got the impression that he was 100% sold on the time travel even though she was able to provide some proof.
READ MORE: Outlander season 5: Dougal MacKenzie hiding big secret in return plot?
“I was a little salty about the 20 year gap too, but after reading some of the later books that include children that require care…well, I ended up appreciating the skip in childcare/pining for Jamie,” they added.
Another user called derawin07 backed up the theory, saying: “Frank definitely does not believe in time travel 100 per cent. He says he still can’t really believe Claire’s story in his letter to Bree, but that he has prepared her in case she needs to travel herself for her own protection.
“Frank could never truly believe Claire’s story, he says this in his letters to Bree and the Rev.,” the fan continued. “He never had the benefit of seeing someone disappear at a stone circle, like Jamie did with Claire. And he is a historian, grounded in fact.
“Here are the excerpts from his letter to Bree that shows this: ‘…I won’t go into all that was said between us; it was a long time ago and doesn’t matter – save for the fact that IF your mother was telling the truth, and did indeed travel back in time, then you may have the ability to do it, too.
“I hope you don’t. But if you should – Lord I can’t believe I’m writing this in all seriousness. One of the things being the possibility that your mother’s story is true – I still have difficulty believing it …'”
Fans will have to wait and see what drama will be facing the characters next.
Outlander season 5 returns to STARZ and Amazon Prime Video in 2020.
