My Mother and Other Strangers

Network: PBS.
Episodes: Five (hour).
Seasons: One.

TV show dates (US): June 18, 2017 — July 16, 2017.
Series status: Cancelled.

Performers include: Ciarán Hinds, Michael Nevin, Hattie Morahan, Owen McDonnell, Mia Carlin, Isaac Heslip, Fiona O’Shaughnessy, Eileen O’Higgins, Des McAleer, Gavin Drea, Ryan McParland, Aaron Staton, Frankie McCafferty, and Kerr Logan.

TV show description:
A World War II period drama, My Mother and Other Strangers centers on the Coyne family and their neighbors. In 1943, the addition of a United States Army Air Force (USAAF) airfield and its 4,000 personnel has a huge impact on Moybeg, a nearby rural Northern Ireland parish.

The story unfolds from the point of view of ten-year-old Francis Coyne (Nevin; with adult voice-overs by Hinds). Among the many strangers in his life are the amiable, affectionate Americans. And, as an innocent child, he fails to realize how little he truly knows about his own parents and their marriage.

Francis’ English mother, Rose (Morahan), is a school teacher, who also runs the grocery shop next to her husband Michael’s (McDonnell) pub. In addition to Francis, Michael and Rose have two other children, 16-year-old Emma (O’Higgins) and little Kate (Carlin), who is just seven years of age.

Despite the fact that her husband’s family has lived there for generations, Rose has never really felt like she belongs in Moybeg. From her proper manner of speech, to her love of literature, and broader interests, she feels unconnected and like an outsider among the villagers.

The Coynes have long been a prominent local family and despite his workload on their farm, and running the local pub, Michael is frequently preoccupied with maintaining his standing. He often fails to pay Rose the sort of attention she deserves.

Handsome Captain Ronald Dreyfuss (Staton) serves as the USAAF’s liaison officer to the community. It’s a necessary position since the U.S. bomber base has not only taken over much of their lands but has also introduced a huge number of young, more progressive military men and women, who create some friction in this Ulster farming community.

When Captain Dreyfuss approaches the Coyne family for assistance in reaching out to the locals, he and Rose feel a deep, immediate connection, despite their mutual reserve. Since his responsibilities keep him in her orbit, they soon learn they share many interests in common. Although they struggle against their feelings, their emotional attachment becomes obvious to those around them.

As a morally upstanding woman, Rose does not want to betray Michael but is overwhelmed by her feelings for Ronald. Since she identifies with Catherine Earnshaw, in Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, the question remains: will their end be as tragic as Catherine and Heathcliff’s?

Series Finale:
Episode #5
See if Tillie can stop the captain and Rose from making a terrible mistake.
First aired: July 16, 2017.

What do you think? Do you like the My Mother and Other Strangers TV show? Should it have been cancelled or renewed for a second season?