Spoilers ahead!
Just in case you were in any doubt about Sarah Lancashire’s national treasure status
The country came to a halt last night for roughly 70 minutes as millions of us sat down for the finale of Happy Valley.
After three series spread over eight years, the nation said a fond farewell to Sarah Lancashire’s Catherine Cawood, James Norton’s fantastically vile Tommy Lee Royce and, of course, our Ryan.
This series saw everything come to a head for Catherine, as she discovered that her grandson Ryan had been visiting his biological father Tommy in prison. He’d been behind bars for countless evil acts, but the plot point running through all three of the series has been that he raped Ryan’s mother, who then killed herself just weeks after Ryan’s birth.
When Tommy managed to escape from prison two episodes ago, everything was set up for a final showdown between him and Catherine, and that’s exactly what fans got.
It was a quite simply jaw-dropping episode that has gone straight into the list of all-time great season finales.
The kitchen scene between Lancashire and Norton’s characters, which culminated in a grisly end for the monstrous Tommy, is probably already one of the greatest TV moments we will get in 2023.
https://twitter.com/QueenLancashire/status/1622359738854916097
https://twitter.com/QueenLancashire/status/1622464694517653505
A stand-off worth waiting for – no guns, no knives, no punches, but a battle of words which Catherine badly needed to say. Superb stuff by Sally Wainwright, a tour de force turn by Sarah Lancashire, & a whirlwind of emotion from James Norton. What a finale. #HappyValley pic.twitter.com/A4jz40tldi
— Cara O'Doherty (@CaraODoherty8) February 5, 2023
this scene just sums up why it’s the best show on tv, sarah lancashire and james norton’s acting is amazing, the interactions between catherine and tommy are amazing, the script is amazing, and it still manages to be funny? 10/10 #HappyValleyFinale #happyvalley pic.twitter.com/gEs8BawidG
— mjc (@MC_squared_) February 5, 2023
Whilst Norton will rightly get endless plaudits for his portrayal of one of the most evil characters we’ve seen on TV in the last decade, Lancashire was a tour de force throughout.
When the credits rolled on Sunday, viewers were left in awe of her performance, and fans were quick to voice their admiration for Lancashire.
“I won, obviously.” – Catherine fucking Cawood 👏🏼#HappyValley pic.twitter.com/hF7fHwLlUa
— Lillie-Mae (@Lilliemaenot) February 5, 2023
She deserves all the BAFTAs, Golden Globes and Oscars and it still won’t be enough . #HappyValley pic.twitter.com/71gcqwumfX
— MK200034 (@MN456782) February 5, 2023
There was huge praise for the series creator, director and writer Sally Wainwright, and Siobhan Finneran, who has starred as Catherine’s sister since the show’s beginning.
Several suggested that the show may have proven TV execs wrong across the land by being a proudly female-led, northern-based series that was still one of the grittiest and darkest shows around.
working in film and TV I have heard producers say repeatedly no one wants women 40+ in lead, no one wants to fund regional female voices, no one wants to hear women be vulgar and swear. #HappyValley has proven every fucking one wrong. Viva La Sally Wainwright and Sarah Lancashire
— Rebecca (@rebeccawwrites) February 5, 2023
https://twitter.com/MCaselyHayford/status/1622384996324446209
Lancashire already has a number of awards to her name for her performance in Happy Valley, having picked up the BAFTA for Best Actress in 2017. It seems a pretty safe bet that we’ll be seeing her make a few more acceptance speeches this year.
Happy Valley has secured its status as one of the best ever British television series, Lancashire has firmly cemented her place at the national treasure table.
British TV at its absolute greatest.
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