Cranford: The Collection [3 Discs] [DVD]
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Originally broadcast on Britain's BBC in late 2007, the miniseries Cranford was adapted from three popular 19th Century novels by Mary Gaskell: Cranford, My Lady Ludlow and Mr. Harrison's Confessions. The saga takes place in Cranford, Northwetern England, circa 1842.The said community is a small market town where etiquette rules the populace. At the center of Cranford's social network, a tightly-knit group of ladies hold the reins of the community, including spinster Deborah Jenkyns and her sister Matty. Change is afoot, however: handsome physician Frank Harrison arrives from London, a retired Captain and his daughters take up residence in the village, and socialite Lady Ludlow begins to prepare for her garden party - with unexpected consequences when an ex-paramour turns up. Meanwhile, startling news arrives: a railway line will soon be installed that runs between Manchester and Cranford, and promises to permanently transform the fabric of the community. The follow-up miniseries, Return to Cranford, aired in December 2009; it revisits the community and finds that significant transformations have occurred: Matty welcomes into her home Tilly, the daughter of the local maid and carpenter; Matty's friend Mr. Buxton returns to town with his son and niece in tow; and Matty reaches out to Peggy Bell, a troubled young woman who lives with her dysfunctional family in a distant cottage. Trouble erupts, however, that threatens to turn the entire community inside out. This box set features both Cranford and Return to Cranford in their entirety, with a cast that includes Judi Dench and Imelda Staunton.