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ITV1’s two-part adaptation of Philippa Gregory’s novel The Little House proved to be another gripping Monday night thriller for the channel, which continues its run of high quality dramas, and it also continues to put BBC1 to shame.
While The Little House could be dismissed as just another evil in-laws drama, it managed to elevate itself above the norm, and what resulted was a very powerful and gripping drama. The two episodes revolved around Ruth (Lucy Griffiths) and her husband Patrick (Rupert Evans) moving into a house just a stroll’s walk away from Patrick’s parents (Francesca Annis and Tim Piggot-Smith). Naturally, Annis was the mother-in-law from hell, controlling and manipulating, and her mission was to get Ruth out of the way so that she could control her son and newly born grandson by whatever means necessary.
While the opening episode set the scene well, it was the concluding episode that really set the spine tingling. It is at this point that I feel I must mention Francesca Annis’ superb performance. She was so toe-curlingly evil that I was shouting at the screen, willing her to be discovered. (She also confirmed to me that you should never eat chocolate mousse if you haven’t made it yourself and yes, I watched Rosemary’s Baby over Halloween.)
I was initially dubious about this drama due to the casting of Lucy Griffiths in the lead role but, thankfully, she was far better than here she ever was as Maid Marian in BBC1’s recent version of Robin Hood. She portrayed the different emotions that her character experienced excellently, and the audience could sympathise with her throughout. Her scenes with Annis in the second episode were particularly good, with an extraordinarily tense, sizzling atmosphere. This was brilliantly complimented by the haunting music that had an unhinged quality like the lead characters.
Due to Annis and Griffiths having such on-screen authority, it meant that Evans and Piggot-Smith were sidelined and, as a result, forgettable, but there was a nice air of paranoia around, keeping viewers guessing as to whether they were involved in Annis’ plan.
The conclusion to the story also impressed, with a couple of rather disturbing twists in the tale that ensured a stronger impact than if the easy route of Annis being discovered by her family had been taken. In fact, throughout both episodes and, again, particularly the second, there was that air of uncertainty about whether Annis would succeed or fail in her quest, and this meant that any thoughts of changing channel were quickly dismissed.
Congratulations are therefore in order to the ITV drama department for producing a drama that evoked anger, tension, and disbelief; a perfect combination for bitter autumn nights. Thanks are also in order, as the plot was spread across just 2 episodes rather than a full series. I don’t think I, or any other viewers, could have coped with such intensity for too many weeks. Having said that, it’s being replaced by I’m a C(list)elebrity... Get Me Out of Here and, frankly, I would rather eat chocolate mousse made by Hannibal Lecter.
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