South Riding

Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression in 1930s Yorkshire, 'South Riding' follows Sarah Burton, a fiercely independent, modern-thinking woman who returns from South Africa to take up the position of headmistress at Maythorpe Secondary School. Full of progressive ideas, she clashes immediately with the entrenched conservatism of the local district council and its influential, conservative leader, Robert Carne. As Sarah strives to drag the school and its impoverished students into the modern era, she becomes entangled in the complex lives of the local community. These include Robert Carne, a proud landowner struggling under crushing debts and caring for a mentally fragile wife, and Lydia Holly, a brilliant student whose ambitions are threatened by rural poverty. The series explores themes of social reform, forbidden passion, and the harsh realities of rural life during a time of massive economic upheaval.