The Long Song

Adapted from a fictional novel about the before, during and after the abolition of slavery.

This lengthy saga was very successfully realised in this BBC drama. You sensed the author had conglomerated several lives to raise situations and issues that would sustain a long novel.

This sense of expanse played well and there was fine acting throughout. This was great Sunday night viewing and with the entertainment we learnt a great deal about some difficult truths about sugar production.

At times frustrating. At times infuriating. At times scary. At all times, incredibly breathtaking. You'll never guess the ending. The story isn't so hard to conceive, but the characters, some a caricature of what they could be, at times, so deep that you are amazed at how much could come from just three episodes. I wanted so much more to know about the characters that were off-screen and perhaps that's the point. It's told first-person but other characters who were taken out of the story and had their own to tell could probably fill volumes. The ending left me wanting to know what happened next.

It's not a long investment to watch the three episodes in this series. You won't regret the time spent.

Absolutely Beautiful. I instantly was drawn into this story and these people. It is so beautiful done.

Other critics have touched on the shortcomings of this production. I have only seen the first episode but find the series to be engaging and atmospheric. I don't think July's trickster ways were uncommon for enslaved people. She becomes a lady's maid under painful circumstances. There's an act or two that are somewhat comic. Then comes the cruelty and violence that are certainly omnipresent in the lives of the enslaved. Nevertheless, the first episode ends on an intriguing note. I am here for the rest of this program, and feel viewers of Masterpiece will not be disappointed. Historically accurate? It might fall short, but so does Downton Abbey and there are no complaints. Allow yourself to enter July's world for a spell and let's find out what she does next.

Its ok. Zip fasteners on the dresses though! A 20th century invention. Always a crass mistake.