Patricia Thompson

The plot has more holes in it than a kitchen sieve - some things were so unlikely that they were just plain silly. The lead characters, particularly Sam, just weren’t very believable for me, the twists were weak and at no point did it have me on the edge of my seat. However, there were some absolutely brilliant supporting characters - well drawn and well acted and they had all the best lines. I won’t be bothering to watch a second series of Black Doves but I would love to see the two ‘triggerwomen’ get their own series with some appearances from the Lenny Lines character.

Beautifully shot but largely slow and tedious. Weak plot and characters it was very hard to care about.

It irritated me a few times when it got a bit silly and slapstick but overall I thoroughly enjoyed it and, if you're a purist, there have been far worse sins against Austen. The 'chocolate box' treatment is delicious escapism, the costumes are wonderful and Johnny Flynn nails it as Knightly.