Happy Valley [BBC 1] [** Spoilers **]

Lisha

Bloody great telly!

Ruu

Game is up for Fran.

Lisha

Just when you think there is nothing worse to come......

LennieB

Outstanding series - Sarah Lancashire superb, BAFTA for sure.

The Black Oil

2.06

Quality finale. Firstly, Catherine going to the principal. She was up close at the start with her body language. Then, we had the discovery at the business end of a crime scene. And the waiting. The waiting.

Pacing didn't feel rushed despite the walls closing in. John...I let an 'oh Jesus' when he went over the edge. Felt like they were almost about to go for an action style conclusion, but they pulled back once he dinged his car. Negotiation skills course? Well, Catherine has the qualities John outlined, in spades.

Some great moments of levity - princess Shaf, Clare answering the phone in her wellies (the visuals of that amused me) and I bet all police officers wish they could shout out 'what a sh!t week!' in the middle of the street. :pac:

I never felt sorry for Frances, but was glad to see her world come crashing down. When Catherine went to her as grandmother it was not unlike the earlier episode where she argued with her admin colleague. Just two grown women. No raised voices, well OK, the odd swear word.

Tommy getting the note was of course a cruel little twist...I had forgotten about it. Jump forward to Catherine whose world is written all over her face, again.

Line of the episode? Easily "I gave birth to her."

Harry Palmr

I'm glad there was no attempt to turn the realisation of who and what Frances was into a race against time melodrama - it was straightforward police work and she got collared.

My nomination for star actor is not Sarah Lancashire but Kevin Doyle as John. Superb shading as he goes through the full gamut of emotions - sly, furtive, threatened, trapped, relieved, cocky, fearful, enraged, desperate and finally sad, resigned.

I hope they resist the temptation to make a third series.

alan1963

If Daryl ended up like his dad/grandad could Ryan end up like Tommy?
Is that what Catherine was thinking on the hills?

Basq

alan1963 wrote: »

Is that what Catherine was thinking on the hills?

I don't think there's any doubt that's what she was thinking..

Incredible series!

Patty O Furniture

Canadel wrote: »

Holy jesus she's 50 years old. :eek: Wow.

:eek: She looks 30ish!

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

I'm not sure what's going on with Claire's boyfriend. I was wondering if he was the murderer but I think maybe it might just be that he knew Vicky and when they confirm that she's not connected to the other killings he may come under suspicion for her murder.

I thought that too, as i thought there was a final twist to the end of the show, as he's perfectly placed in the family for anything to happen...

The kid playing Ryan is excellent. He was quite good last series but he's really good in this one. His face at the end of the scene where Catherine was taking his toy away was heartbreaking. They do seem to have told him what his dad has done, or most of it, but I wonder how much he really understands it? They seem to talk around it rather than discuss it properly with him.

By the sound of it in this ep, they haven't told him everything

The anniversary of Becky's death is 6 weeks away, I'm wondering will the series end around then? Emotions would be heightened anyway... could be a very dramatic/traumatic ending.

When is the anniversary? although if it did come on the anniversary, it would be apt to get some closure, but that may never happen?
Considering the second last scene was Tommy getting the son's card, cheered him up!


Oh, and what a great choice to have the officers who dealt with the rape at the start be women. I was full sure it would be two men, my own prejudices on show there It goes back to what I was saying about how good Sally Wainwright is, she can write really complicated and brilliant female characters without having to throw the men under the bus to do it.[/QUOTE]
She certainly is & to convince Sarah as she didn't want to do a second series, as she thought they wrapped it up & thought it didn't merit a second season!

Aimeee wrote: »

Ok that's excellent synopsis TickleMeElmo. Thanks again. Was there any significance of the police officer who got hit by car? Also was DowntonAbbey guy & family in last series at all? Sorry I'm so bad at recalling names, most annoying!
I'll keep my eyes peeled for a repeat showing on all the channels as usually they eventually come round again. I would love to see it. James Norton is pretty good actor, great strong features too. Saw him in War&Peace.
Sarah Lancashire is a superb actress imo.
Nothing happy happens in Happy Valley it seems!

It was a while since i saw it repeated on RTE, (as did other shows eg: Doctor Foster)
But would that synopsis help with additional info you've missed, even if you watch the show, as it's so compelling & wondering what else can happen?

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

LennieB wrote: »

Outstanding series - Sarah Lancashire superb, BAFTA for sure.

Well, that's what we all thought after the first series and she didn't win it. I don't think.

Harry Palmr wrote: »

I'm glad there was no attempt to turn the realisation of who and what Frances was into a race against time melodrama - it was straightforward police work and she got collared.

I hope they resist the temptation to make a third series.

I agree, I had a horrible feeling that Frances was going to hold them all hostage or Catherine wasn't going to make it out alive but no, they went for realism rather than drama, and what do you know, it was still hella dramatic!

I have mixed feelings about a 3rd series. I didn't really want a 2nd series either but then it was pretty bloody great too. I suppose there's scope there for another one but if they decide not to I'd be happy enough with the 2 brilliant series we got. You'd hate to get a 3rd one and have it be crap and take the gloss off the first 2. Plus, there's only so much $hit one person can take before it moves from gritty real life drama to melodramatic soap.

alan1963 wrote: »

If Daryl ended up like his dad/grandad could Ryan end up like Tommy?
Is that what Catherine was thinking on the hills?

That whole conversation Catherine had with Claire at Becky's grave was about that very thing. Alison had given birth to a child that came from rape and abuse because what else could she do and she had raised him and loved him but hated him at the same time and she could never talk to him about it because how on earth do you talk to someone about that? Ryan wasn't the product of incest but he was the product of rape and Catherine raised him after Becky died because what else could she do? And they talk to Ryan a little about why he can't see his dad but they can't possibly tell him the real circumstances of his birth, and then there's nature versus nurture. What if there's things in him from his dad that just can't be overcome by nurture? Frances tried to defend Tommy earlier saying he was a product of his childhood and maybe that didn't help but maybe there was just some evil in him and what if it's in Ryan too?

I actually liked how they ended it, with that uncertainty, I mean it's not something they can really wrap up like the other side plots. It's something Catherine will probably worry about as long as Ryan is there. Quite sad really.

Aimeee

Brilliant tv I thought. Right upto the very last scene with that unexpected info about Alison and her son.
Just wondering was Tommys Mom murdered by that boy also? Hers was the body found in first epidode. I thought all the other girls were prostitutes. Was she a prostitute too? Did i miss something there?
Would the prison officers inform the police about the letter from son if he's not allowed to have contact etc?
I feel upto speed now on all the details thanks to ticklemeelmo.
Brilliant series. Brilliant ending.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Aimeee wrote: »

Just wondering was Tommys Mom murdered by that boy also? Hers was the body found in first epidode. I thought all the other girls were prostitutes. Was she a prostitute too? Did i miss something there?
Would the prison officers inform the police about the letter from son if he's not allowed to have contact etc?

I think his mum was a druggie who did whatever it took to score so it's possible she was a prostitute too. I know she featured briefly last series and was a useless lump.

I wondered about the letter from Ryan. It had obviously been opened too by the prison before they gave it to him. Given the reasons they stopped his visits you would think it would have been flagged up to them. Obviously not.

I also wondered how Frances managed to get a job in the school using her sisters identity. Would the police background check not have shown she was dead? Or do they literally just search their data base for mentions of the name?

Patty O Furniture

Aimeee wrote: »

Brilliant tv I thought. Right upto the very last scene with that unexpected info about Alison and her son.
Just wondering was Tommys Mom murdered by that boy also? Hers was the body found in first epidode. I thought all the other girls were prostitutes. Was she a prostitute too? Did i miss something there?
Would the prison officers inform the police about the letter from son if he's not allowed to have contact etc?
I feel upto speed now on all the details thanks to ticklemeelmo.
Brilliant series. Brilliant ending.

I missed that part as someone came into the room but certainly merits a re watch.

Wasn't too sure myself, but according to the Guardian:

But no: the killer turns out to be the owner of the stolen livestock.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Well, that's what we all thought after the first series and she didn't win it. I don't think.


That's what i thought, i heard there were awards won, but i assumed she'd won one? until i checked IMDB

The funny part i found was John ran away so far from the police station & it turns out when on the bridge with Catherine being given Suicide Intervention Training by John, that the Police station is across the road

Harry Palmr

Thinking about the final scene - something that the police would have done was send someone across to stop traffic going under the bridge. That way John would not have escaped justice as he'd probably have survived the fall.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Harry Palmr wrote: »

Thinking about the final scene - something that the police would have done was send someone across to stop traffic going under the bridge. That way John would not have escaped justice as he'd probably have survived the fall.

Maybe under "normal" circumstances but they've all just found out that one of their own is probably a murderer and now he's standing on a bridge about to jump. Unfortunate but understandable that they were a bit off the ball.

alan1963

Harry Palmr wrote: »

John would not have escaped justice as he'd probably have survived the fall.

I would have thought he would have had more chance of surviving, landing on the vehicle than the road as there would be some cushoning effect as his weight dinted the bonnet and broke the windshield (im not gonna try it though).

Basq

alan1963 wrote: »

I would have thought he would have had more chance of surviving, landing on the vehicle than the road as there would be some cushoning effect as his weight dinted the bonnet and broke the windshield (im not gonna try it though).

I thought "broken back" and not much else to be honest...

Harry Palmr

Depends how he lands I suppose - head first - dead, legs first - okay apart from broken legs. The impact of a car is hard to quantify.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Apparently Sally Wainwright was on breakfast TV this morning and said there would probably be a 3rd series but she's so busy at the moment that it probably won't happen for a while, says she would hate to do a 3rd one and have it not be as good as the others because she didn't give it enough time.

ixoy

Excellent season and I was wrong when I said back in 2014:

wrong ixoy wrote:

I'm also though on the "no season two" side. Obviously there's a lot of story scope for a second season but not with the same emotional bond.

The season had all of that and it still managed, without being contrived, to have so much centre around Ryan.
So many people lost in some way. John was a pathetic mess at the end but the unfolding of that desperation was very well handled - a great study in how to be tense without needing to be overly dramatic.

Drummond - felt sorry for her when Catherine was trying to talk sense into her in the house. She seemed utterly misguided and "some people are just weird" really applied. So much more interesting as well for Catherine to have an actual conversation with her rather than ranting and shouting.

This time I'm happy for a third season if Wainwright gets the time she needs. 2-3 years yes, grand. Do it right.

One thing though: This show is not aptly named!

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

As much as I love James Norton I reckon he should be left out of the 3rd series. I don't think he needs to be physically there to have his presence felt hanging over Ryan and the rest of the family. Can't really see a way to include him anyway other than a rehash of this series, someone visiting him and then travelling back up to Yorkshire.

FloatingVoter

ixoy wrote: »

One thing though: This show is not aptly named!

Of course it is...for those of us who think and laugh in shades of black. Anyone who ever slept through work training courses then watched Sarah Lancashire getting the "how to talk down a jumper" lecture from a suicide case was in stitches. His final backflip was the punchline.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

FloatingVoter wrote: »

Of course it is...for those of us who think and laugh in shades of black. Anyone who ever slept through work training courses then watched Sarah Lancashire getting the "how to talk down a jumper" lecture from a suicide case was in stitches. His final backflip was the punchline.

The guy driving her forgetting to put the handbrake on and then going face first onto the platform a few minutes later was pretty funny.

alan1963

One thing though: This show is not aptly named!.

The reason it is called Happy valley is that Calderdale, and Hebden bridge in particular have a serious drugs problem and apparently happy valley is what the local police called the area.

Patty O Furniture

ixoy wrote: »

.

This time I'm happy for a third season if Wainwright gets the time she needs. 2-3 years yes, grand. Do it right.

One thing though: This show is not aptly named!

Definitely give it time for a good script, as like another BBC show has taken a year off, but instead citing there's a lot of sport on this year, they didn't want to spoil it, you can guess WHO the show is :rolleyes:

Siobhan Finneran/Clare only signed upto Downtown for 3 seasons, as that's all she wanted to do, before it goes stale

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

As much as I love James Norton I reckon he should be left out of the 3rd series. I don't think he needs to be physically there to have his presence felt hanging over Ryan and the rest of the family. Can't really see a way to include him anyway other than a rehash of this series, someone visiting him and then travelling back up to Yorkshire.

I read in an interview that filming finished in Dec, it left the whole of 2016 free for him, as he was heading for LA for pilot season to try his luck.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Patty O Furniture wrote: »

I read in an interview that filming finished in Dec, it left the whole of 2016 free for him, as he was heading for LA for pilot season to try his luck.

Don't think pilot season went too well for him then because I saw something earlier about a new play he's doing.
Between War and Peace, Happy Valley and Grantchester he's been on TV non stop since early January so he's doing alright.

Patty O Furniture

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

Don't think pilot season went too well for him then because I saw something earlier about a new play he's doing.
Between War and Peace, Happy Valley and Grantchester he's been on TV non stop since early January so he's doing alright.

He sounds busy there, i've only seen Happy Valley, he'd said he wanted to see if some doors would open up for him there, but didn't want to locate permanently to LA, he'd go there for work, but not rush into any 7-year deal.

Btw: Pleasantville is another name i was thinking of for Happy Valley:p

The Black Oil

Mixed feelings on a third series. Part of me would like to see them drop the Royce storyline, but they can't because they've invested so much in it, particularly now as well with the note.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

The Black Oil wrote: »

Mixed feelings on a third series. Part of me would like to see them drop the Royce storyline, but they can't because they've invested so much in it, particularly now as well with the note.

They could dial it down a little. Take Claire and her substance abuse problems, it's an integral part of her character and her relationship with Catherine therefore it's an important part of Catherine's character and life but it exists within the story without being the primary focus. I do think it would be best to drop Tommy from the series though, as I said before, there's not a lot of ways to keep him on screen other than having someone visit him in jail and then the only way to tie that into what's happening up North is to have the person visiting him travelling between the two and then you're just rehashing this series.

The Black Oil

If they left it a year or two, the young lad who plays Ryan might not change much in his appearance. They've done a time jump already and imo, pulled enough on the Royce thread. There's sufficient potential in the show for other mental stuff to come out of Halifax. :pac: Anne Gallagher could move to being an officer with full powers, for example.