Happy Valley

Violence, blood, lots of drama. No nudity. Well acted. Lots of tension. One story line over six episodes. Good subtitles and you will probably need them.

After watching both series (with the third on the way) of Sally Wainright's Last Tango in Halifax -- twice each -- I looked for her other work. I found Happy Valley (an off-putting though ironic name), also starring Sarah Lancashire, a top actor who plays a police sargeant in a small town (the jazzy theme song says 'the best thing about it is when I leave it') used to acting-out drunks and car theft, a very different role from her 'head of a respected private school' in 'Halifax'.As police sargeant 'Catherine' is outraged when the brutal rapist and cause of her daughter's death isn't charged with that but with a lesser charge for which he's served eight years and just been released.Catherine has brought up her daughter's eight-year old son, played by an excellent actor, Rhys Connah. All the actors are excellent.Sally Wainright's themes, both in '...Halifax' and Happy Valley, are women being raped and abused and their getting back at their abusers, and the complications revenge entails. For anyone who has been treated in this way these are satisfying stories. Halifax has a lot of small but spot-on humor, and Happy Valley doesn't. But HV winds up in a healing and satisfied way. There is a series 2 and 3.Sally Wainright is an excellent dialoguist and story plotter, both. Her incisive and empathetic understanding of the intricacies of multi-generational family life raises these two series way above the usual. Directing is seamless in both series.(The only thing distracting in Happy Valley is Catherine's sister's big, obvious wig. Why a wig? Why this one?)

The acting is superb!! Sarah Lancashire is so believable in her part as a police sergeant Catherine Cawood, she deserves every award possible as well as the show deserves the same. Sally Wainwright wrote Sarah;s role specifically for her and it was right on the mark. It is an intense drama series with harsh language and situations, but is so compelling I watched the whole series at once and will watch I'm sure several more times. The second series is just as good as the first and I am waiting for series 3, hopefully it will come out soon. I think the BBC puts out the best TV dramas.

I haven;t watched it as yet.However if as good as reviews , it should be good.

'In this trouble townTroubles are foundIn this trouble townWords do get 'round'Lyrics to 'Trouble Town'- by Jake Bugg, theme song of Happy Valley'HappyValley' is one of those towns so misnamed, that you wonder as you drive through, who in their right mind named this town. In Series one it took me until Episode 3 to really get into this series. Until then, it was one of those series with an interesting but violent story lines. But, then, the adventures and personalities of the characters hooked me. It is one of those series where you really come to care for the characters.And, now in Series two, the series has really hit it's mark.qSally Wainwright, who wrote 'The Last Tango In Halifax' wrote this series, and it has more of the tough, brutal, real scenes, we don't see in The Last Tango. The characters are very real, very complex and some are downright nasty. Sarah Lancashire plays Catherine Cawood, you will note her from 'The Last Tango In Halifax'. She is a Police Sargeant in this area, and this is her life. Her daughter hanged herself in the first series, and Catherine took in her grandson. Clare, Catherine's sister, played by Siobhan Finneran, (O'Brien from Downton Abbey), is superb in this role. She is a recovering drug and alcohol addict, working in a Mission and helping to care for the boy. The boy's psychopathic father plays a large role in this series, and a nastier piece of work you will never see. In season 2 he us finally in prison, but still up to no good. All of the police are well played and realistic. The area of Yorkshire in England is as beautiful as it is deadly.Police Sargeant Cawood has a mess of trouble coming her way. You might think after the last series, she would be due an a diet life. No break for Catherine. An older woman is found dead and mutilated, and then more women are found. A respected detective having an affair gets in over his head. Catherine's young grandson and Catherine's sister, find themselves in difficulty. Through out it all, the police department stays ahead of the game or at least on an uneven keel. Lancashire is put to the test even more, and her character is often in over her head. The acting is superb, Lancashire deserves any and all accolades coming her way, no make-up, dishes end hair, she comes across as a true professional right on the edge. Several actors from Downton Abbey are here, and they pull their weight. In six episodes this series delivers a true punch.Recommended. prisrob 03-19-16

the 5 stars is because i loved this show. i bought this as a gift for a friend and am waiting to hear if she enjoyed it as much as i did.update: friend "couldn't stop watching once i started.....it's so compelling, i couldn't do anything until i watched it to the end." "it's a good thing i saw grantchester and the minister first, otherwise, i'd have been traumatized by the character he plays in happy valley."

This is supposed to be a 2-disk series. Disc #1 was missing. Unfortunately, it was not opened until AFTER the "Return Window" had closed.

ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS PROGRAM..THIS IS A VERY THOUGHTFUL,POLICE DRAMA,DEALING WITH ADULT THEMES IN A MATURE MANNER THE VIOLENCE IS AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE STORY.AND NOT OVERDONE I LIKED EACH CHARACTER(EVEN THE BAD GUYS)AND EACH CHARACTER IS WELL PLAYED WITH SINCERITY AND TRUTH JUST ORDERED SEASON TWO

Exciting

Es una serie maravillosa, muy distinta a lo que estamos acostumbrados a ver, pero muy necesaria para ampliar nuestro criterio.

Sarah Lancaster is fantastic as the hardened female cop whose life has been shattered by the unspeakable acts of Tommy Lee Royce (James Norton) who she finds is fresh out of prison. It begins a game of obsessive stalking until the tables are turned and whose stalking who? The brutality of the crimes and the cast who are all so immensely talented, they have you needing to remind yourself its not real.It's a fantastic portrayal of life in Britain's rural suburban decay.I highly recommend this as it's really one of a kind and a tale you won't soon forget.

Highly recommended. A gripping six-part series with excellent acting by Sarah Lancashire (Last Tango in Halifax) as the lead cop and Siobhan Finneran (Miss O'Brien from Downton Abbey) as her sister. The story is complexly woven with police action and personal turmoil in equal measure. I was on the edge of my seat through the last minute. I watched with the subtitles on, as the Yorkshire accents were at times tough to decipher for my Canadian ears.

This is an excellent series. I cannot wait for series 2 although I gave watched both on television. I am rather biased as it was filmed in my home town. The acting is excellent especially from Sarah Lancashire.