Judith Lloyd

I have loved all the Poldark series, and the development of plots and characters has been excellent. But the current series (summer 2019) has turned out to be a huge disappointment. There is no subtle shading, characters are either dramatically wicked or unbelievably virtuous, and the acting has become strangely wooden. As for the plot - too much political correctness by far, too much London and nowhere near enough Cornwall. And some curious anomalies - for instance, would simple country folk know the French Revolution song Ça Ira and be able to render it in perfect French? And why is little John Conan being raised alone, what happened to his two young half-sisters whom Morwenna cared for after her marriage to the ghastly Mr Wentworth?

Beautiful locations and a pervasive period atmosphere, together with strong and convincing acting, helped to drive the story along and persuaded me to forgive the historical inaccuracies. Mary’s feminine frailties were nicely contrasted with Elizabeth’s sexual self denial, though I did think the scene of their contrived meeting was the weakest scene.

Wonderfully entertaining escapism, unexpectedly humorous, splendid acting from all our favourite characters - just a lovely two hours of enjoyment. In fact I could have stayed and watched the entire film through again.