A wealthy woman in Victorian London forms a dangerous obsession with a spiritualist inmate at Millbank Prison.
Following a personal tragedy, the genteel but troubled Margaret Prior (Zoe Tapper) seeks a new purpose by becoming a ‘lady visitor’ at a grim women’s prison. There she meets Selina Dawes (Anna Madeley), a young inmate who claims to be a powerful spiritualist medium. Margaret, initially sceptical, is seduced by Selina’s apparent supernatural abilities and enigmatic personality. As their connection deepens into a powerful infatuation, Margaret becomes entangled in Selina’s shadowy world, risking her reputation, her sanity, and her freedom in a desperate plan to secure the young woman’s release.
Adapted by Andrew Davies from the novel by Sarah Waters, this single drama is a work of intense psychological confinement. The production rejects the comforts of conventional period romance for a clammy, claustrophobic atmosphere that reflects Margaret’s own emotional imprisonment. The narrative is a masterclass in ambiguity, leaving the audience to question whether Selina’s gifts are genuine or part of an elaborate and cruel manipulation. Director Tim Fywell uses the oppressive gothic architecture of Millbank Prison to great effect, creating a story where the machinery of a mystery serves as a vehicle for a piercing study of obsession and repressed desire.
Broadcast: ITV – Box Television, 1 Episode, 28 December 2008
Adapted by: Andrew Davies (from the novel by Sarah Waters)
Director: Tim Fywell
Producers: Adrian Bate, Greg Dummett
Music: Frédéric Weber
Main Cast: Zoe Tapper (Margaret Prior), Anna Madeley (Selina Dawes), Domini Blythe (Mother), Anne Reid (Mrs Brink), Anna Massey (Miss Haxby), Amanda Plummer (Miss Ridley), Mary Jo Randle (Mrs Jelf)
