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Arnold Bennett - The Old Wives' Tale Episodes

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  1. 15. Endings

    15/15 Sophia visits her dying husband. But what will become of her - and her sister Constance?

  2. 14. Hotel Life

    14/15 Sophia persuades a very reluctant Constance to holiday with her in a hotel in Buxton.

  3. 13. The Meeting

    13/15 Constance and Sophia are re-united at last but Sophia soon feels stifled by Bursley

  4. 12. Frensham’s

    12/15 1895, Paris. Sophia is the successful proprietor of a smart hotel

  5. 11. The Proudest Mother

    11/15 1889, Bursley. Constance, now in her late 40s, lives for her 19-year-old son, Cyril.

  6. 10. The Siege

    10/15 1870, the Siege of Paris. Sophia establishes herself as a landlady

  7. 9. Justice

    9/15 Campaigning for his imprisoned cousin, Constance worries about her husband Sam’s health

  8. 8. Crisis

    8/15 In Paris, Gerald’s spent his inheritance and his marriage to Sophia is on the rocks

  9. 7. Crime

    7/15 Constance and Sam, now married, receive a cryptic Christmas card from the exiled Sophia.

  10. 6. The Elopement

    6/15 Sophia escapes to London with her lover, travelling salesman Gerald Scales.

  11. 5. The Defeat

    5/15 Mrs Baines decides to put a stop to Sophia's affair with Gerald Scales

  12. 4. The Traveller

    4/15 At New Year, salesman Gerald Scales arrives on the Baines' door step in the snow.

  13. 3. Elephant

    3/15 Everyone rushes to see a dead elephant, but Sophia stays with her invalid father

  14. 2. A Battle

    2/15 1860s: when the Baines sisters leave school Sophia has ambitions beyond the family shop

  15. 1. The Tooth

    1/15 1860s: Sisters Sophia and Constance live above a thriving drapery in the Potteries