Spoiler warning!
The cow causes the big railroad accident. Yep. I actually said to the television, “The train is not going to hit the cow, is it?” Poor Bessie.
Anyway, back to the beginning. Our “Previously on Return to Cranford“, gave the quick low-down on events to date. Mainly, William and Peggy are engaged. And the railroad is going ahead with plans. And Mrs. Forester loves her cow like a daughter. (Actually, that may not have been in the “Previously” but there is a scene in Part 2 with her crying that Bessie had to be moved because of the railroad and now has to graze in “common”fields. Perhaps that’s why Bessie decided to do herself in on the track. She was really fond of that private property grass, I guess.)
Again, I’m jumping ahead to the big action scene. Before that we get Jonathan Pryce being overly disapproving of his son William and his engagement to lower class Peggy. William wants to be an engineer and not go into politics! Jesus, what a choice. Later, William and Peggy do get to have a Victorian sex scene when Peggy spills some crumbs on her dress and William, after permission of course, de-crumbs her. The camera lingers on his hand caressing a pleat. SEXY!
Other matters in Cranford include Mrs. Jamison and her sister-in-law and some etiquette and some scandal when the sister-in-law marries Captain Brown and some shunning happens and then they all forgive and make up. Mary leaves to be a writer in London. And Miss Matty misses baby Tilly and thinks everything is her fault. She uses the profits from her tea shop (See! You had to watch the first Cranford to know what tea shop I’m talking about!) to do something for the people of Cranford: she fixes up the assembly hall and hires a magician. Exactly.
Before the big magic show, a cow wanders onto a train track.
Peggy and William are wounded. Peggy’s embezzling ne’er-do-well brother that Peggy was escorting to North America to elude the constables dies. (That’s convenient!) And Harry dies. False alarm! He actually is still alive. I haven’t mentioned Harry, have I? He’s the poor kid that Philip Glenister (Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes) leaves all his money to in the first Cranford (see? Sorry you missed it, aren’t you?) Harry is the one that trips on Bessie’s tether and breaks it. Karma’s a bitch, ain’t it, Harry? One careless trip and then the train you’re on runs into the same cow!
Everyone is happy and healed and at the magic show now. Tim Curry is the magician. He is very magiciany with a heavy accent from some heavy accented country. He puts Imelda Staunton into a box and she disappears. And then reappears as Tilly, the baby Miss Matty was missing. Well, not exactly. It was just a weird, clunky way to surprise Miss Matty that Tilly and her dad were back. Then Imelda reappears and everyone applauds. And then they all dance. Just like a Victorian Footloose!
What did I learn from Return to Cranford Part 2? Cows are suicidal. The way to a man’s heart is through crumbs. And give the gift of magician.
