My Mother and Other Strangers

This is a lovely, thoughtful story. It is about a family in Ireland during the Second World War who have to contend with an American air base being set up adjacent to their quiet little village. The mother is the main focus of the story who is married to a simple but good man but she yearns for more. An American soldier who is in charge of maintaining a good relationship with the village lights a fire within her. The other characters such as her daughter add to the tale with her wakening to love and all it entails. The son is the narrator looking back across the years and told through the eyes of a child. As can be guessed the main theme is love with all its complications. There are other colourful characters like the townsfolk who struggle to deal with the American presence. The ending suggests there is more to come as we still need answers for the husband and the pub and the mother and the American.

However, the story was leaden with its pacing and I had difficulty staying interested in the story. Maybe it is because after I got it in my head that the lead actress had too many tics with her popping eyes and mouth twisting that it became too distracting. But that is my problem, not hers.

This five part drama set during the second world war in rural Ireland follows the fortune of the Coyne family after a US air force base has been set up nearby.

Narrated by the grown up son, Francis, the focus is on Rose Coyne the displaced Englishwoman, A loyal wife, mother of three children who has left a glamorous and educated world behind to be in Ireland with her husband Michael who runs a pub. Michael might run a few scams but he is a decent man and but the dullness she feels in her life hits home when she encounters the thoughtful and educated US air base liaison officer Captain Ronald Dreyfus.

At first they have casual chit chats, the Americans are seen as being brash and their presence in the village meets with resentment from the locals and it is Captain's Dreyfus's job to smooth things over. Over time both feel passion for each other which they try to keep in check as both are married.

This is a nice twee drama, not very original and rather predictable. The final episode hints that there is more to come, I think the story should had stopped at the fifth episode.

I have watched this many times and I always walk away stunned. Hattie Morgan's performance is absolutely brilliant. I can feel her emotions overcome me as I watch the performance. For a few hours I am completely lost to today as I am transported to WWII-era Northern Ireland. I am trapped in these beautiful, loving surroundings but ache for more.

The characters and story lines couldn't be anymore absorbing than the are. This series is a treasure of both talent and emotion. I am a connoisseur of British wartime dramas and this is one of the very best I've seen. The production value is on par with Foyle's War. If you like that you will love this too.

All that needs to be said is Bravo!

... a slice of time, history and geography rolled into a brilliantly executed mini series. Yes - some will miss a solution, or a traditional ending - I don't and each of us will be asking ourselves how "we" would go on with the story.