‘Land Girls,’ Series Three: Closing all of the Sorrow and Good

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When first I read about this award-winning afternoon drama, I was curious. Now in its third series, Land Girls is out to prove there is more to it than pretty faces in this series of five hour-long episodes. land girls series three

Land Girls, Series Three TV Review

Working the country farmland where it’s quiet makes it easy to forget there’s a war raging. But the women of Hoxley manor don’t remain untouched. They mourn the loss of one of their own in Rose Bailey. A land girl working on the Finch farm, she was one of the victims of an isolated bombing, and none of the girls take it well. In particular it hits the young, red-headed Iris Dawson (Lou Broudbent), who knew Rose, hard.

Though she doesn’t take the loss of her privacy well, Lady Hoxley (Sophie Ward) gives permission for her home to operate as a hospital. Into this chaos walks Dr. Richard Channing (Dominic Mafham), a former beau of the proper Lady Hoxley. Coinciding with Dr. Channing’s arrival is Mr. Tucker (Paul Ritter), the brother of the disgraced Dennis Tucker. Needing work, Frank hires on at the Finch farm that is now run by the land girls and Farmer Finch (Mark Benton). Frank’s presence stirs up trouble with a neighboring farmer who accuses the now missing Dennis of attempting to kill him. More conflict arises between the two when Farmer Storey’s son takes a shine to Iris and Frank assumes the role of her protector.

TV REVIEW | Land Girls, Series Two (2011): British Characters to Love & Cheer On!

The “mother” figure of the land girls, Esther Reeves (Susan Cookson) has her hands full. Her own secrets now have revealed a different side to her “makeshift family” and her son, Martin (Mykola Allen) is growing up while his father is a POW. Meanwhile, Joyce (Becci Gemmell) faces heartache, and the impetuous Connie (Seline Hizli), in the midst of planning her wedding to the local vicar, Henry (Gwilym Lee), must confront her own past when trouble comes a-calling.

Though it may not have much “substance,” Land Girls has enough charm to keep its viewership happily under its spell. Everything is quite lovely to look at including the costumes though trivia says they are far from authentic; the sets and situations the characters are put in feel authentic to the 1940’s. All of the characters continue to be easily likable. Connie continued to be a source of humorous antics as we watch her fall more in love with “Vic.” 

Played by a new actor this go-round, I couldn’t help but miss Seline’s chemistry with the actor who portrayed Henry in the second set. She is still obviously in love with Henry (even willing to sacrifice her happiness for his safety), but she and Lee aren’t nearly as cute together. Then, keeping to the character talk, one normally strong character becomes less of an upstanding pillar of ethics because of choices she makes.

Plotting is so much stronger than viewers give it credit for. Each series has progressively grown in the best sense and it makes me sad that there isn’t a fourth set on the horizon although if nothing else ever appears on our screens, the ending is one of happiness. In the beginning, many critics consider this show a kind of cliché, sweeter WWII era piece of fluff. But even with some clichéd story-lines, Land Girls has come a long way. The themes are darker and the mysteries more catching – even tricking us into a false sense of security. If you haven’t introduced yourselves to the Land Girl’s who keep the home fires burning, check out this delightful series.

‘Land Girls,’ Series Three: Closing all of the Sorrow and Good. A review of the 2011 season three BBC show. #BBC #British #WWII Share on X

CONTENT: There are minor implications that Connie wants a sexual relationship with her fiancé though he treats her with nothing but respect claiming she is “worth the wait.” Gossip reveals she was intimate with former flames and a married woman likewise engaged in a one night stand resulting in pregnancy [she has an abortion that makes her ill]. We see one other couple in bed together, clothed. There may be a minor profanity or two. Two characters are beat up, one dies; another man dies from a gunshot wound in the back. There are a few shots of wounded men in the hospital with a variety of injuries, some act out because of wounds that have made them mentally unwell. The series is TVPG.