The Hardacres

1890's Yorkshire, The Hardacres family work endlessly to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table. After a bad accident, Sam loses his job, but wife Mary has a plan, a plan that makes them rich beyond their wildest dreams.

It's a rags to riches story, almost Disney style, it's so outrageous and over the top, but it genuinely works, we see two worlds collide, two worlds that don't often mix apart from in an Upstairs, Downstairs fashion.

Watching The Hardacres trying to adapt to their new found wealth is a joy, seeing the family, Mary and Ma in particular, trying to interact with their new and wealthy circle.

There are some wonderful characters, I adore Mrs Dryden, the spiteful housekeeper, you could easily place her in Downton Abbey, she's great. The whole family are entertaining, it's just a shame that Harry is packed off so early, he was great.

So they may look a little modern, and some of the dialogue (especially Ma's) wouldn't have been heard for decades, but it just works, the sets look wonderful.

Entertaining, funny and sometimes moving, it's an uplifting tale of rags to riches, one of Channel Five's better dramas, hopefully a second series will follow.

Super entertaining.

8/10.

The Hardacres isn't going to win any awards but it isn't half bad as an easy Autumn watch with its lovely Yorkshire backdrops. With an obviously limited budget the period setting is pretty much defined by a country house and the clothes of the time, which is a shame.

Overall its much closer to those old Catherine Cookson TV movies than higher budget efforts like Poldark. Production wise I felt it was a bit far-fetched story wise with lots of predictable pay-offs and the pilot episode was definitely too rushed. The soundtrack was very busy, honestly less is more.

Made by the same outfit as 'All Creatures Great & Small' I wanted something a bit more sophisticated, but hopefully it will find an audience and find its feet properly in series two.

Worth a look if you're a fan of period drama/family sagas.

Wonderful period piece with layered characters and an interesting storyline. It has a Catherine Cookson flavour about the story, focusing on all stratas of the social ladder. Showcases hardship as well as good fortune but ultimately, the triumph of family values and strong friendships.

For those who need a character to admire and one to dislike,The Hardacres doesn't disappoint. The challenge will be to deliver a second series that engages viewers and develops characters in a realistic manner.

Well worth watching, especially for those who love a good period piece that is uplifting in its core messages.

Its a rags to riches Downton Abbey.

The new money story was indeed a widespread process resulting from the industrial revolution, the birth of capitalism and fast stock market winners.

Although lower working class elevations to such dizzying heights was rare indeed because they lacked initial capital to seed such fortune.

Nevertheless good acting, good comedic moments and plenty of upstairs downstairs skulduggery to satisfy anyone who likes English period drama.

There's a lot of silliness and behaviour that would never occur and sometimes the father's refusal to move up from his humble background starts to grate a bit as do the daughters persistent petulance with everything.

Then there's the housekeeper who seems to believe she's invincible.

The varied accents are inconsistent for such a tight nit family but lead to some great quotes such as

Her Ladyship: "What accent is that, I can't quite place it?" The mother-in-law "Its Yorkshire ma'am, it's where you're bloody living"

So many attempts at humorous disparaging comments, make you wonder why they bother watching then reviewing.

The thing is, its entertainment. Not a documentary not a bio. It may be clichéd and clearly not reality but it's also engaging and entertaining.

The overall package keeps you watching as the characters develop nicely and you can see the problems and diversions for the main characters slowly but surely developing.

Ma makes me laugh. Keeping all feet firmly on the ground whilst others are desperate to elevate their social standing, to start with at least.

View with an open mind and you'll enjoy the humour as well as the emotional ups and downs.