The team responsible for Channel 5’s hit revival of All Creatures Great and Small has unveiled their latest project, The Hardacres, a period drama adapted from C.L. Skelton’s novels. This new series is set to premiere on Monday, 7th October, at 9 pm and promises to engage viewers with a compelling rags-to-riches tale set in the late 19th century in North Yorkshire. Despite the storyline’s Yorkshire setting, filming actually took place in Dublin and Wicklow, Ireland.
The Hardacres is a six-episode series, with each instalment running for an hour. It chronicles the Hardacre family, a working-class group from 1890s Yorkshire, as they face life’s hardships, love, and the pursuit of fortune. The show follows their journey from the gritty conditions of a fish dock to the grandeur of a country estate, sparked by a tragic accident that leaves Sam and Mary Hardacre unemployed and destitute.
The series trailer teases this remarkable transformation, showcasing the Hardacres’ ascent from herring merchants struggling to make ends meet, to wealthy estate owners. Viewers witness their humble beginnings, crammed into a small home and barely able to pay rent, to eventually running their own herring shop and amassing wealth. However, their newfound prosperity thrusts them into a world of high society, where they must navigate the complexities of their unfamiliar social status.
Described by Channel 5 as “a bold, gutsy ensemble family drama full of heart,” The Hardacres examines whether wealth can truly bring happiness. It delves into the dynamics of an ordinary family thrust into extraordinary circumstances, exploring themes of resilience, ambition, and the true cost of success.
The series stars Claire Cooper, known for her role in Hollyoaks, as Mary Hardacre, alongside Liam McMahon (Hunger, The Fall, The Secret) as her husband Sam. Together, they portray a couple fighting to overcome the aftermath of a workplace accident. With the help of Mary’s mother and their three children, the Hardacres devise a business plan to lift themselves out of poverty, setting the stage for their remarkable rise to fortune.
David Stern, executive producer, said: “We’re incredibly excited to have found a cast that embodies and enhances the spirit, humour and humanity that leaps off the page in both the original novels and the brilliant scripts. Audiences will undoubtedly fall in love with our fantastic group of actors, made up of both seasoned talent and exciting new faces, as they bring this spirited and sweeping rags to riches saga to life on screen.”
Check out the new trailer for Channel 5’s The Hardacres below:
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Feature Image Credit: Channel 5
