Well, not my usual type of topic but I was casting around this morning for high notes after Series 3 ended, & three scenes stood out right away:

(S P O I L E R S!)

[in fact, please don't read this whole thread if you haven't watched past s3. That should be clear anyway but I'm saying it explicitly. & if this isn't the right place for the thread, someone please just let me know & I'll move it.]

In no particular order, drum-roll, pleaze...


1) Karen/Yvonne scene in bar & the tag end of it as they arrive back at Larkhall. This has always felt, to me, like some of the best writing/acting since S1. It's tight, it's emotionally complicated but also very simple on some levels. And the acting's terrific.

2) The whole Denny cross-dressing thing. Yes it was played for laughs, but the acting was very good, & it remains in my mind one of the more interesting inquiries into gender I've seen on tv. Have always been surprised we didn't discuss it more at length at some point.

3) Karen & Neil ruining Fenner's wedding. This felt like a really well-earned triumph; maybe not enough to change their world but *real*--and omh, so gratifying & so terribly funny.

Well that's it, nothing profound. Curious what stuff other people like as favorite moments or scenes. :)

interesting topic :) off the top of my head, my favourite scene would be the one in S4 with Roisin and Cassie in their cells, shortly after they've arrived to Larkhall, when Roisin is agonising over things, Cassie sort of tries to make her understand that they can't turn back time and then Roisin says 'Will you get into my bed, please..'
It is a moment of so much vulnerability and so much longing and it is played brilliantly.

I love all the moments which have been mentioned so far. Some others which come to mind:

1. The whole Fenner-in-jail sequence, when his guilt starts to actually intrude on his conscious mind. It gave me a much better idea of how this scumbag continued to do what he did.

2. I loved seeing Roisin and Cassie all loving at the end of S4. I wish we had had that with Helen and Nikki, a chance to enjoy them as a couple at the end.

3. In the first ep of S6, when Frances Myers reveals she's the new wing gov and calls everyone out on their bullshit, after two seasons of no one with any power being able to see through Fenner, it was SUCH a relief!

4. Denny's deep sadness after Shaz dies, in particular how she portrays it in the sequence when Bev is pretending to be a medium. She is so desperate to be comforted and feel connected to Shaz.

1) Fenner's downfall :D Loved his wedding - especially special guests Neil and Karen.

2) Frances Myers. Like Abzug said, was great to see someone powerful come in and see right through Fenner straight away.

3) Yvonne "adopting" Denny. I just loved this story. Particularly because it flowed from the first series so well. When Yvonne arrived in series 1, she took an immediate shine to Denny and sort of took her under her wing and out of Shell's clutches. So I loved how their friendship developed into this.

Yes, this relationship was very moving to me as well. But then when Yvonne died, it made me that much sadder (which was probably the intention of the writers!) because again, poor Denny was left absolutely and utterly alone: her mother, her lover, and her adoptive mother had all died, and within just a few years.

I agree, Abzug. I felt so sorry for Denny when Yvonne died. Especially as she'd not long been transferred with the promises of, "We'll be together again soon". Poor kid.

I have loved all the scenes described here, especially the yellow graininess of the Karen Yvonne scene in the bar and the totally understated 'You're all right' remark of Yvonne to Karen, the first time ever Yvonne dropped her 'them and us' belief.

I also love the build up to the occupation scene featuring Christopher Biggins,including Karen's ever so slight hint to Yvonne to sabotage the event- also bookended with the tragedy of Ritchie.

I think this was my favorite sequence in S5. In particular, the discovery of the distillery, the performance Biggins puts on to pass the time, and then his anguish (and ours!) as each of the prisoners gives up their early releases to stay committed to the protest. Fantastic.

Which ep was the Y/K scene in, btw. S5 ep___?

Hi ekny. I've checked this out and it was episode 7. I'm glad you like the episode also, abzug. A few neatly understated themes in the episode was the way that both hostage and captors came to see each other as human beings, that Christopher Biggins' sympathies switched over to his captors rather than rescuers, the rich vein of humour in contrast to the relative darkness of the Series 3 riot and that at the moment of Karen's greatest triumph came personal tragedy (coming across Yvonne at the time Ritchie's dead body was wheeled on the trolley- terrific acting by Linda Henry and Clair King)