Lark Rise To Candleford

When Alf secures a “man’s wage” from the farmer, enabling him and his siblings to move back into the family cottage, he couldn’t be prouder, and throws a party to celebrate. Laura intercepts a letter addressed to Alf from prison – fearing it may contain bad news from his ma, she decides to delay its delivery so his special day isn’t spoiled. As the beer and the merriment flow, Alf sings a song he learnt from a traveller. Its haunting words have a profound affect on his guests.

For Edmund, the song means freedom. He tells his parents he wants to leave school and work on the land. Emma is devastated – she always wanted more for Edmund, and when she discovers he has passed his school exams with top marks, it only fuels her determination to change his mind. But when she confronts Edmund in the Wagon and Horses, her argument against a career which she thinks is beneath him only makes him dig his heels in further, offending Alf and his fellow drinkers in the process. Edmund storms off to lodge with Queenie, where he feels he will be treated as a grown up.

Over in Candleford, the words from Alf’s song have got Dorcas thinking about love and family. She decides that Minnie is destined to one day be a wife and mother, and sets about giving her the necessary skills, sending her to Emma to learn baking and to the Pratts for sewing lessons. One day, a special delivery arrives from Caroline in prison – the “little something” she had promised Alf in her letter turns out to be his baby sister, Patience. When Minnie takes delivery of the baby, she sees it as the perfect opportunity to hone her maternal skills (and relieve Alf of an extra burden) and recruits Sydney to help her look after the infant in secret. The song has also cast its spell elsewhere in Candleford – Pearl and Ruby are at war over how to economise; while Thomas and Margaret have their first marital tiff.

Emma, meanwhile, is at loggerheads with Robert over her handling of the Edmund situation; Edmund is refusing to back down; and Alf is still smarting over Emma’s insult. Twister’s misguided efforts to bring harmony back to the hamlet only make matters worse, so it falls to Alf to set things right. He writes a new final verse to the song, and peace is finally restored. But what will Alf’s reaction be when he discovers he has yet another mouth to feed?

John Dagleish plays Alf, Olivia Hallinan plays Laura, Thomas Rhys Jones plays Edmund, Claudie Blakley plays Emma, Linda Bassett plays Queenie, Julia Sawalha plays Dorcas, Ruby Bentall plays Minnie, Matilda Ziegler plays Pearl, Victoria Hamilton plays Ruby, Mark Heap plays Thomas, Sandy McDade plays Margaret, Brendan Coyle plays Robert and Karl Johnson plays Twister.

Lark Rise To Candleford is simulcast on the BBC HD channel – the BBC’s High Definition channel, available through Freesat, Sky and Virgin Media.