The Hardacres

In a small Victorian fishing village on the coast of Yorkshire, we meet the working-class Hardacre family: easy-going Sam and eldest son Joe are dockers, while his fiery wife Mary, rebellious daughter Liza and formidable mother-in-law Ma are fish gutties. Their youngest son, Harry is the brightest of the bunch. He has cerebral palsy and still attends school. Despite the relentless graft of dock work, made only harder by their odious boss Mr Shaw, the Hardacres are the heart of a loyal and decent community, surrounded by friends with indomitable spirits.

But after an unfortunate accident befalls Sam, the family lose their jobs at the docks and must race to find work elsewhere– or else end up on the street. Mary, Ma and Liza venture to the gilded halls of country estate Thornton Hall in search for work but are met with judgement and doors slammed in their faces. Ma leads Liza down a risky path, much to her mother's chagrin, but Liza soon finds that the smuggling life isn't as romantic as it sounded. Meanwhile Joe is wracked with guilt for a decision made on the docks.

Faced with destitution, resourceful Mary comes up with a novel business idea and the family manage to turn their fortunes around. The Hardacres' new business prospers and thanks to the financial advice of the charming Mr Saunders, they make what turns out to be a very lucky investment. The family find themselves rich beyond their wildest dreams with the chance to move into one of the finest houses in the county. But are they ready to leave the docks and their community behind?

The Hardacres soon realise that living on a grand country estate will be quite an adjustment. And with the portrait of the previous owners looming over them, they have no idea where to start. They certainly won't find an ally in the snooty housekeeper, Mrs Dryden, who finds the Hardacres' presence in the house a personal affront.

Mary has no idea about running a big house, Sam can't imagine what a life of leisure looks like, and the life of a lady certainly doesn't seem like a natural fit for Liza. Ma and Joe take to their new life much more easily, though Joe isn't impressed by the rules of a gentleman. For Harry, this world looks much brighter, with his dreams of a proper education now within reach.

When the family meet their aristocratic neighbour, Lord George Fitzherbert – thanks to the antics of Ma's dog, Tinny – Mary is excited to make new friends, and she invites the Fitzherberts to a dinner party at the new ‘Hardacre Hall'.

The Hardacres get kitted up in clothes more befitting of their new station, and soon they at least look the part. But Sam struggles to say goodbye to the world of the docks, and though he reluctantly hands over the reins of the herring business to Saunders, he leaps at the opportunity to best Shaw.

The evening of the dinner party finally arrives, and George's icy wife, Lady Emma Fitzherbert, and minxy daughter Lady Adella are full of questions. Their suspicions of their new neighbour's pedigree make Mary feel insecure. Sam does his best to smooth things over but Liza and Ma don't see any point in pretending to be anything they're not. After a series of unwitting faux pas, an unexpected announcement lands and sets the cat amongst the pigeons.

Sam is hopeful that his latest venture on the docks will not only help his old friends but also give Joe some much-needed purpose. Saunders laments Sam's impulsive purchase, especially upon discovering the poor state of the business and that it is encumbered by a controlling Board. Nevertheless Sam steams ahead, and makes Joe a manager, along with old pal Fred. Joe struggles to get to grips with his new responsibilities, and is jealous of Fred, feeling very much in his shadow. Joe's temper eventually gets the better of him, leading to a poor decision that will plague his conscience.

Mary and Sam mask their nerves as Harry sets off to a prestigious boarding school, but Mary quickly finds distraction in a surprising proposition from Lady Emma and Adella. Mary is swept up into a whirl of preparations for her first real society party, with Liza reluctantly roped into providing the musical entertainment, alongside Adella. It's hard to say who is more unimpressed out of the two of them, but an unlikely friendship begins to form, in spite of their poor first impressions of each other. Ma, meanwhile, has a party of her own to host, and sparks begin to fly between her and the handsome groundskeeper, Victor.

In spite of Mary's careful preparations under Emma's watchful eye, and the moral support of old friends Lena and Betsy from the docks, the tea party doesn't go to plan. Liza resents being paraded in front of the society ladies. Tensions below stairs lead to a disaster in the kitchen, forcing Mary to think quickly and save the day with a uniquely Hardacre plan…

Now Mary has been accepted into the charitable ladies' circle, she's excited to join them on an outing to one of their philanthropical endeavours – which Ma decides to gate-crash! However Mary and Ma are dismayed to come face to face with a place that holds painful memories from their past. Old wounds are reopened and although Ma tries to gloss over it, Mary thinks it's time for Ma to acknowledge the truth.

Meanwhile, Sam is set on the backfoot after the conservative Mr Hugill from the board comes to visit.

Liza seeks to make amends with Adella after getting her into trouble at the tea party, and asks for Adella's help in becoming a proper lady. Adella happily accepts the challenge, as she's keen for a distraction from her bore of a suitor, Lord Hugo Bathurst. Adella is also having fun toying with a lovestruck Joe Hardacre.

Emma is horrified with Adella's new found interest in the Hardacres and is determined to secure the match with Lord Hugo as soon as possible. She plans to host a sophisticated soirée so they can invite Lord Hugo and keep the Hardacres as far away from the evening as possible. But Adella spots an opportunity for some devilment and invites them anyway.

The Hardacres head to the soirée. Despite opting for a night at the pub with Victor, Ma also finds it difficult to hide from her past mistakes. Meanwhile, back at Hardacre Hall, Dryden recruits Maggie to hide away the Hall's treasured possessions for safekeeping.

At the soirée Liza tries out her new lady skills and Emma desperately tries to push Adella towards Hugo and away from Joe, but to no avail. Disaster strikes when Lord Hugo insults Liza and Joe springs to her defence and challenges him to a fight…

The board threatens Sam with an ultimatum, while Mary continues to receive the cold shoulder from the society ladies after the disastrous soiree. Joe's conscience is put to the test, and he is forced to make some difficult decisions. Meanwhile, Ma suspects something is wrong with Liza.