The BEST episodes written by David Nicholls
#2 - At Last
Patrick Melrose - Season 1 - Episode 5
As friends, relatives and foes trickle in to pay their final respects to his mother Eleanor, Patrick Melrose finds himself questioning whether a life without parents will be the liberation he has so long imagined. Yet as the memorial service ends and the family gathers one last time, amidst the social niceties and the social horrors, the calms and the rapids, Patrick begins to sense a new current: the chance of some form of safety – at last.
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#3 - Episode 13
One Day (2024) - Season 1 - Episode 13
2000. 2001. 2002. Em and Dex's bond grows tighter as the years pass. Her writing's going well, and he starts his own business.
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#4 - Some Hope
Patrick Melrose - Season 1 - Episode 3
Centered on a dinner party, attended by the illustrious and profane elite of British society. Patrick, who is now thirty and trying to recover from his addictions, considers becoming a lawyer, having spent most of his inheritance and in need of a job. Some Hope sees Patrick interacting with the contemptible but always fascinating British aristocracy again, and discovering that there might indeed be some hope for him after all.
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#5 - Part Three
Tess of the D'Urbervilles (2008) - Season 1 - Episode 3
Third in the four-part drama series based on the novel by Thomas Hardy. Tess agrees to marry Angel, to his great joy. When he confesses to a dishonourable event in his past, Tess feels that she can at last tell him about her relationship with Alec D'Urberville and its consequences.
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#6 - Part One
Tess of the D'Urbervilles (2008) - Season 1 - Episode 1
On a fine May afternoon, the beautiful and innocent Tess Durbeyfield spies a handsome young stranger at a village dance, but he ignores her. Forced by family hardship to seek support from her 'relatives' the D'Urbervilles, apparently an ancient lineage, she falls under the spell of her manipulative 'cousin' Alec - with shocking and lasting consequences.
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#8 - Much Ado About Nothing
ShakespeaRe-Told - Season 1 - Episode 1
When the bickering between broadcasters Beatrice and Benedick gets too much to take, their colleagues at South West TV come up with a cunning plan to shut the pair up. Meanwhile, lovely weathergirl Hero and dashing reporter Claude are a match made in heaven - but does everyone want to see them so happy?
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#10 - Never Mind
Patrick Melrose - Season 1 - Episode 2
At the Melrose family's glorious house in the South of France, young Patrick has the run of the magical grounds. His father David rules with cruelty and his mother Eleanor has retreated into self medication and booze. Bravely imaginative and self-sufficient out of necessity, 9-year-old Patrick encounters the volatile lives of adults with fear. They are expecting guests for the weekend, but this afternoon is profoundly unlike other summer days, and the shocking events that precede the guests' arrival tear Patrick's world in two.
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#11 - Mother's Milk
Patrick Melrose - Season 1 - Episode 4
The once illustrious, once wealthy Melroses are in peril. Caught up in the wreckage of broken promises, child-rearing, adultery and assisted suicide, Patrick finds his wife Mary consumed by motherhood, his mother in thrall to a New Age foundation, and his young son Robert understanding far more than he should. But even as the family struggles against the pull of its ever-present past, a new generation brings a new tenderness, and the possibility of change.
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#14 - Part Four
Tess of the D'Urbervilles (2008) - Season 1 - Episode 4
After her father takes ill and dies, Tess finds herself penniless having breached her worked contract. Alec D'Uberville hasn't stopped pursuing her and offers to take care of her mother, brothers and sisters but she rejects him. Homeless, they set up camp at D'Urberville manor and Alec tells her she has no choice but to succumb to his wishes. Meanwhile, Angel Clare returns from Brazil having contracted yellow fever and in poor health. He sets about looking for Tess but by the time he finds her, she is well established as D'Uberville's mistress. Still in love with Angel, she takes a drastic step before running away with him. They then have only a few days together before it all comes to its inevitable end.
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#15 - Part Two
Tess of the D'Urbervilles (2008) - Season 1 - Episode 2
Tragedy strikes for Tess (Gemma Arterton) in episode two, after which she leaves home to work in a dairy, where she's so taken by parson's son and wistful harpist Angel Clare that she's soon taking surreptitious peeks at his bare backside. It's not long before they're strolling in the bluebells as Angel falls headfirst for Tess's charms. But will his dad approve of Angel's devotion when a more suitable match awaits him? As her life starts to unravel, Tess shows signs of having some gumption, but she's still, to modern eyes, an infuriating drip. Even so, it all looks delightful, a bit like a promotional video for the verdant joys of Thomas Hardy Country.
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#16 - Bad News
Patrick Melrose - Season 1 - Episode 1
In the grip of his addictions, Patrick Melrose must fly to New York to collect his father's ashes. Over the course of a lost Manhattan weekend, Patrick's remorseless search for satisfaction, haunted by old acquaintances and insistent inner voices, sends him into a nightmarish spiral, including a disastrous date with the girl of his dreams. Alone in his hotel room later that night, he pushes body and mind to the very edge – desperate to stay one step ahead of his rapidly encroaching past.
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#20 - Episode 1
The 7.39 - Season 1 - Episode 1
Carl Matthews is 45 and his life has become very routine. Every day he travels on the 7.39 train where he sees the same unhappy faces doing the same daily commute into Waterloo. Happily married to Maggie, Carl has become predictable. Sally Thorn has recently moved out of London but still travels in daily as she still works as the manager of a health club. A fight over a seat sees Sally and Carl begin talking and suddenly their daily train journeys become much more interesting.
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