Lark Rise to Candleford (2008–2011): Season 3, Episode 6 - Episode #3.6 - full transcript

There was an old beggar
who returned to Lark Rise,

the place he was raised,

every autumn.

How he lost his leg was
a story he often told.

Old Peg Leg's tales of the Crimean War
seemed as unreal as any dark fairy tale.

But this time, the old man's recollections
would cause such a controversy.

His plight became a cause that aroused conflicts
and opinions that stirred up our little community.

And revealed secrets that no-one
could have of imagined possible.

- It is all so...sudden.
- I saw the press for sale,

and it gave me the idea.

The very same day, I saw that
the book shop was up for rent,



and I thought, "I cannot turn
away from such an opportunity."

- It's wonderful. - Candleford is
crying out for a local newspaper,

and I won't need to sell a great deal.

The press will cost me next
to nothing. A retiring newsman

wanted to be sure the old
thing had another life.

The rent is affordable.

- And it means I am here.
- Yes.

- It does. - All I need now is a story
to launch The Candleford Chronicle.

"I once lost a parcel."

"Alfie grew a prize potato last year."

That's as much of a story as
you're likely to find around here.

I will wager that by the end of the week

I will have unearthed a sensation
that will have every tongue talking

from here to Sherston.



I don't know where you
get such confidence from.

But you like it, don't you?

SHE LAUGHS

Laura. Miss Lane is
wondering where you are.

Well, she knows where you are,

but she feels you are here
when you should be there.

Look at that! Give me a day
and I shall have it working.

And you, Minnie, can pull
the lever to fire her up.

I ain't never pulled a lever.

I shall bake a cake! Oh, and
Daniel, you are invited to tea.

I'll whistle you a tune as
good as any, spare a penny.

I'll tell you tales of the
war, will make your skin crack.

I don't know how he survives,

hobbling from place to
place, sleeping in ditches.

Ain't you noticed, Alfie,

how his tales change
each time he comes around?

More fantastical with
each telling of 'em.

It wouldn't surprise me
if he weren't in no war.

Twister! What a thing to say!

The man gave his leg for his country.

Give his leg? He didn't
give it. It was took!

Spare a something for Old Peg Leg.

You have four pennies in there already.

That's as much as I can make
in the fields in half a day.

Peg Leg put two of
them in there hisself.

Why did you put money
in your own cap, Peg Leg?

It gives folks the idea.

You're crying, "Spare
a penny", loud enough.

I think they gets the point.

It stirs their conscience, see.

Makes people think that if other
folks is giving to an old war horse,

well, they'd better put
their hand in their pockets.

There's craft in the begging game.

And cunning. See the day out,
that's all Old Peg Leg ever asks.

Be your own friend and
reach the day's end.

A man can call that a life.

HE LAUGHS

We are all most impressed, Daniel.

A young man setting up an exciting
enterprise on our doorstep.

You are a fine example of what
Samuel Smiles calls "self help".

I know the book. Any man
can make a success of himself

with the correct
attitude and application.

And what a shining example
you are, Mr. Parish. Shining.

Laura is a lucky girl to have
such an all-conquering man.

I have been revisiting the book.

That's a little more than heresy.
Claiming that a man's will is all.

Have you actually read the book, Thomas?

To read it would be
to condone it, ma'am.

A man does not need to peruse
a book to know its contents.

Is it about helping yourself, mum?

It is, Minnie. "The crown and
glory of life is character."

Mr Smiles, I even like his name,

claims that if we want to better
ourselves then application,

diligence and cheerful
persistence pays off.

- Persisterance. - That is all
very well, ma'am, if I may.

But what about those who
can't better themselves?

Like Old Peg Leg.

- Is he back with us?
- Who is Old Peg Leg?

A veteran, from the Crimean war.

He lost an eye and part of a
leg fighting before Sebastopol.

Now the poor old man lumbers from
town to town begging for pennies.

One leg? One of his legs is
wood and his other leg is...leg.

- Where is he now? - Oh, Daniel,
you are ever the hunter.

I saw him heading for Lark Rise.

Alfie says he saw Old
Peg Leg on the lane.

I will lay out a bed
down here for the night.

Old Monday was giving out
leftover milk at the farm today.

I have a rice pudding
the size of this table.

I seem to have no appetite.

I think I'll go over
to the Wagon and Horses.

I ain't going to ask you, if
that's what you are waiting for.

Daniel Parish has moved to Candleford.

He's setting up his own newspaper.

Is that so bad?

You get to see another side
of Daniel after a while.

Perhaps moving to Candleford
tells us something about him. He..

he's is an enterprising young man.

He likes it here.

And he is serious about our Laura.

I see the Stores is still in darkness.

Miss Pearl is determinedly in
mourning. It's not so much that

she is missing her sister, though
undoubtedly she will be grieving.

It is more that she must
be seen to be bereft.

Which makes me feel for her even more.

Perhaps a distraction might
help. And I can no longer afford

to live at the Golden Lion since
I must now foot my own bills.

Perhaps Miss Pearl
would welcome a lodger?

Thomas.

Ain't you gone home?

I am going home.

Now.

I am setting off.

Hit by a canon ball, Old Peg Leg was.

And I laid there on that battlefield,

a day around the clock

with not so much as a hand on my brow.

Laid there, in the blood
and the mud and the madness.

Most kindly of you, sir.

Tell 'em what they did
with your leg, Peg Leg.

Well, after I'd waited there for a
whole lifetime, the surgeon comes.

Without more ado, he saws
off the shattered portion.

And then I lies there some
more, half alive, half cracked.

And I waits and I waits
till the nurses come.

And they dips the stump

in a bucket of boiling tar.

And didn't I holler!

Sir. Mr?

Peg Leg.

Mr Peg Leg, what was your
occupation before the war?

He was a very gifted carpenter.

Made his own leg, he did.

So you were from hereabouts?

That's why he keeps coming
back, see. With his tales.

Mr Peg Leg, did you receive
any kind of a pension

when you were invalided out of the army?

All I was give was eight
pence a week for 18 months.

- And then it stops. - But don't you
feel that is a great injustice?

The world is made of injustices, sir.

Especially to the likes of
old folks who makes no fuss

for their own needs.
However great they are.

Mr Parish, you seem mighty curious
about Peg Leg's circumstances.

It is my nature to be
curious. And my profession.

We hear your profession has brought you

to open a newspaper in Candleford.

Would you like to visit my premises?

I would very much like to
show you around, Mr Timmins.

Perhaps tomorrow?

Mr Peg Leg, what do you feel
about your current conditions?

Conditions would be pleasing,

bettered, sir if you was to spare
a few pennies for an old war horse.

Perhaps another beer?

See the day out, that's
all Old Peg Leg ever asks.

Come on, boys, all together now.

Fathom the bowl!

# Oh, fathom the bowl,

# Give me the punch
lane, oh, fathom the bowl

# Come on, ye bold heroes,
give here to my song... #

"The common life, with
its cares and duties,

"provides the true worker with
abundant scope for self-improvement.

"They who are most persistent,
and work in the truest spirit,

"will usually be the most successful."

SHE SNORES

HE MUMBLES TO HIMSELF

- We can't just leave him like this.
- Who said we would?

Alfie?

He's been coming here regular,
and he ain't never slept

in a Lark Rise ditch as
long as I've known him.

Be your own friend,

and see...see the day's end.

He ain't been eating. I can see it.

I have some oats for the morning.

He looks worse than last
time, I'm sure of it.

Course he does. He looks
worse every time he turns up.

I could take him in our cottage.

Put him up for a good while if
needs be, till he's on the mend.

He won't have it. One
night is all. We've tried.

I can't bear to see him like this.

DOOR BELL

Laura, are you going over
to Lark Rise this morning?

Do you want to walk with me?

I want to ask you to do me a favour.

I am told that Peg Leg will
move on after only one night.

- He never settles.
- You must convince him to stay.

For a while. I heard his story
last night in the Wagon and Horses.

Laura, the London newspapers
create a public clamour

by taking up a cause.

A cause? Peg Leg?

Miss Lane, let me ask you,

as a potential buyer of my newspaper,

what are your feelings about a war
hero cast into such a vagrant life?

It is a disgrace.

We ought to be ashamed of ourselves.

If we cannot provide for
those who serve our country,

then what kind of nation are we?

What Kind Of Nation Are We?

I have my headline.

We must detain him here so I
can speak with him some more,

and report on his plight.

Perhaps Peg Leg might not
wish to be made a sensation.

Daniel, these London newspapers,
do they help people like Peg Leg?

Greatly. When the public
conscience and anger are stirred,

then the people in power soon listen.

Then I shall be glad to
be part of your efforts.

What is it that you
seek to achieve, Daniel?

Justice...for an old man.

Who could object to that?

You sure you can spare this,
Emma? You have children to feed.

My little 'uns have enough
flesh on their bones.

You look like a man who needs
a meal before he perishes.

Arthur, won't you stay one more night?

I'll bank up the fire and heat up
some water, you can have a bath.

Baths, is it?

Why would a man want to take off his
clothes when he has them on so cosy?

THEY CHUCKLE

DOOR RATTLES

Peg Leg.

Mr Arthur.

I have a friend who wishes
to help you. A journalist.

He's asked me to persuade
you to remain in Lark Rise

until he can write a story about you,

so he can raise up public
opinion on your behalf.

What a splendid idea!

It ain't right you live by
the begging bowl, Arthur,

depending on folks'
kindness for scraps of food.

Peg Leg has a good life.

No, I don't want no trouble in my name.

A full belly and a road to travel,
what more can a man ask for?

Surely you are owed a bit of
peace and comfort in your old age?

Folks will want to help, to
put right such an unfairness.

Arthur, every time you leave,

I fear I will watch you walk
down that lane for the last time.

I am left feeling that
I have not done enough.

Can you not stay?

A day or two is all. Stay for
me, so I won't feel so bad.

I've made some pea soup.
You love my pea soup.

There won't be no bath, will there?

No bath. I promise.

I'm no mechanic, but I am enjoying getting
my hands dirty with a little oil and ink.

- Daniel...
- You think me impulsive to do such a thing.

A newspaper in Candleford.

Supposing people don't
buy what you have to say?

I do feel reckless,
but I'm full of faith.

It's as though it doesn't
matter if I succeed.

All that counts is the
thrill of the challenge.

That's why you are here,
is it? The challenge?

I ain't so sure that's what
brought Daniel Parish to Candleford.

Mr Timmins, in truth, I...

Gentlemen, if I may
intrude. I have a question.

Purely in the spirit of enlightening
conversation, you understand.

Mr Parish, you are little more than 20

and already a self-made entrepreneur.

And you, Robert Timmins,

you are a master of your
craft, renowned for it.

What are the qualities
that lift men like you

out of the throng of common toilers?

A little daring, perhaps?

If you love what you do,
you give yourself to it.

That's what I thought.
Courage and determination"

I will have to fill my newspaper
with local announcements,

wedding banns, christenings,
poetry competitions.

But I am determined to tell big stories,

things that matter, like Peg Leg.

I will not stop until he has a place to
live and a pension to properly feed him.

I don't doubt that will
sell several copies for you.

Peg Leg doesn't matter to you.

You met the man for one evening.

What matters to you is
the success of your paper.

Peg Leg does not need me to know him.

Nor even to even care much for him.

He needs me to have fire in
my belly for what I write.

Your kindness in taking
him in, feeding him,

has that made a real
difference to his plight?

No. No, it hasn't.

I could change his life...

if I do my job properly.

I will tell people for miles
around of this man's predicament.

I will shake them out
of their indifference.

Isn't that better than a bed for
the night and a little friendship?

It is.

And if I can help you in any way...

Can you recommend a sign-maker?

I can do better than that.

HE PLAYS THE PENNY WHISTLE

I've put some thyme in the bread
for us to have with the pea soup.

Ma? Why are you fond of Old
Peg Leg like your own pa?

Well, when I was a girl, Peg
Leg would come up the lane,

and the other children
would shout after him,

"Dot and carry one," because
of the sound he made walking.

I couldn't bear the cruelty of it.

So, when I was old
enough, had my own home,

I took him in.

"Dot and carry one"?

There's something suspicious
about a man who won't stay still.

It's like he don't
want no-one to know him.

Twister, you do have
a sour mind sometimes.

Has anyone ever seen under that patch?

He might have more eyes than I do.

Twister Turrell,

I do believe that you are no more
than jealous of an old war hero.

All these years you've known
me, and you can say such a thing?

Believe such a thing?

Well...

Perhaps I'll show you.

Show you all.

Oh, Minnie, I can't find my
book anywhere. Have you moved it?

No, mum, I ain't seen no book
nowhere, so I ain't moved it.

- And anyway, what book was it?
- Self-Help, Samuel Smiles.

Oh, I seen that one. It
was lying right there.

Thomas, have you moved my book?

Oh, is that the bell.
Did I hear the bell?

A man must be conscientious, ma'am.

Spare a coin for Old Peg Leg.

Will whistle you a tune
good as any, spare a penny.

Spare a few coins for an old
man ruined with rheumatism.

HE PICKS OUT A TUNE: "Camptown Races"

PEG LEG PLAYS A DIFFERENT TUNE

A man don't need a comely tune when
he has the sympathy of being legless.

HE CONTINUES TO STRUM

Now I remember.

They didn't call you Peg
Leg back then, did they?

- Are you sure you can afford this, Daniel?
- It's an occasion.

A double occasion.

I have always felt it important
to mark significant moments.

I am the proprietor of my own newspaper.

If I cannot celebrate, then
what kind of a man am I?

You're right. It's such
a lovely thing to do.

You said it was a double occasion?

Yes.

Us.

What are you doing?

To mark the occasion of me
coming to live in Candleford.

A brooch.

- It's beautiful.
- It was my grandmother's.

- Daniel, I can't accept it.
- Why?

I'm sorry, Daniel. Perhaps I should go.

Why would you say such a thing?

I am only hurting you, sitting
here, refusing your gift. I'm sorry.

- Thomas, has Miss Lane been chiding you?
- She has not, Minnie.

I give Miss Lane no cause to chide.

But you are here again in the evening

and you are working like the
most working man there ever was.

Minnie, would you say
that I was diligent?

Yes.

Industrious? Attentive?

- Yes.
- Persistent? Do I work in a true spirit?

Yes.

DOOR OPENS

Thomas, what is "persisterance"?

And "indus..."

"Attentive"?

CHILDREN: Dot and carry
one! Dot and carry one!

You think I can't catch you?

Well... Oh...

I'll get you...

He'll grab you when you least
expect it. Old Peg Leg never forgets.

How's a man like you come to have
such a fine bottle of brandy, Arthur?

Found it on the lane.

I'll have a word with those children.

We was all children.

Once.

In another life.

KNOCK ON DOOR

It's no use burying your
head in the pillow, Laura.

I can tell when you come home distressed
from the way you close the back door.

Ma'am, please... I don't want to talk.

Then something really is the matter.

You always share your burdens, Laura.

Ma'am...

I was so thrilled that
Daniel had come to Candleford.

So proud of what he is doing.

I was so looking forward to...

Daniel was so kind to me.

He gave me the most lovely gift,

a beautiful brooch in a beautiful box.

I refused it.

Why would you do such a thing?

I don't know why.

Perhaps tomorrow you could accept it?

It is never too late
to put things right.

No, ma'am. I don't want his gift.

Laura... Please.

Ma'am, I cannot talk about this
any more. I've such a headache.

Margaret, I lack...

Lack?

I lack success.

I lack thrust!

Miss Lane has the post
office, and the Forge.

Both of which she inherited.

Daniel Parish is little more than
a boy, he has his own business.

It can not yet be called a success.

Misses Pratt have the Stores.

Even Robert Timmins

is his own master and an artist.

Has a reputation and widespread respect.

What do I have?

Postal bag, female employer
and a rod upon my back.

Hardly a rod, Thomas.

It's a metaphorical rod, Margaret.

Thomas, what has brought
such thoughts upon you?

I look at my "achievements",

and what is the sum of
a lifetime's efforts?

This!

But Thomas,

we have us.

Don't we?

Ohh.

Oh...

Mum, why did Daniel give Laura
something that was his grandma's?

Because, I suppose, it was a sign
to her of how much she means to him.

Mum, if people help themselves,
like the book says we have to,

do all our dreams come true?

Something like that, yes,
according to Mr Smiles.

Mum, do you suppose Laura will
take the brooch from Daniel?

- Perhaps, yes, when she is ready.
- Because she loves him?

- Because she loves him.
- Mum, if someone wants something,

then it is up to you to
have persisterance, isn't it?

Yes, persistence.

- Do you have your eyes on the
post office, Minnie? - Oh no, mum.

I am too young. Yet. Perhaps later.

Mum, love is beautiful, isn't it?

I think it is meant to be, yes.

We are introducing a
new offer today, ladies.

Buy ten penny stamps for nine pence.
Do tell your friends and neighbours.

..And when you returned to England
and were released from the hospital,

no possibility of work?

Well, they did say I might
learn blacksmith work,

since that's mostly arm labour.

That is, if I could stand at all.

THEY LAUGH

'The British Government
has behaved disgracefully

'when it comes to the care
of our brave war veterans.

'Men like Mr Arthur Myhill, who
lost a leg fighting in Sebastopol,

'who had his eye blown out

'in the service of this
great country of ours.

'Why does this lion-hearted man
trudge the lanes of Oxfordshire

'begging for his next meal, never
knowing where he may lay his head?

'Because he is not entitled to a
pension for his services to us all.

'His courage has been spurned,
ignored, mocked by indifference.

'Who is responsible for this scandal?

'You are.

'We all are.'

"If we do not care
enough to raise our voices

"in anger and rejection
of this terrible injustice,

"if we do not demand rightful
provision for men like Arthur Myhill,

"then we can all hang
our heads in shame."

"The Candleford Chronicle
shall start the call.

"Let every fair-hearted man
in this fair-hearted country

"demand justice for Old Peg Leg.

"Write to the Chancellor of the
Exchequer, care of the Chronicle.

"Write today.

"Demand hope for Old Peg Leg!"

That's fine writing, well enough.

But I never asked to be in no papers.

Arthur, if this can bring
in a few shillings regular,

a place for you to live.

That has to be proper
for a man who has giv...

I never asked for no place to live.

Look at how many people are responding.

So many decent people can see what the
moral obligation of our Government is.

And this is just the start of it. They
threw away your life like an old rag.

And how many more like
you didn't make it home?

What is this war for? For you?

For my children?

For any man in here? Do we
share their grand designs?

Will Sebastopol feed
my family? Your family?

Your life, Arthur, before
you left. A carpenter,

making homes for folks to live in.

And what a fine hand you had.
Known for the twinkle in your eyes.

There wasn't a girl
around here who was safe.

Eileen Middleton. You
would have married her.

Brought your own
children into this world.

Same as we have, all of us.

What took that away from you?
Some cannonball did this to you?

No.

Men in suits did this to you.

Men who sit in panelled
rooms and decide our lives.

Rich men, and sons of rich men.

Powerful men. Ask them,
do their sons go to war?

Your name, Arthur, your plight,
could point a finger at these men.

Now, isn't that a cause worth
putting your shoulder behind?

Isn't that what you want, Arthur?

Finally, you're asking me what I want.

Well, I'll tell you.

A few pennies so's I can be on my way.

A beer, and another beer
to make the evening shine.

Be your own friend and
reach the day's end.

Well, come on, boys. Come on!

HE PLAYS A TUNE ON HIS
WHISTLE, SOME SING RELUCTANTLY

Sing, boys, come on!

THEY SING

Daniel, Peg Leg might rail against
the offer of a settled life,

but there was no joy in that music.

The man is tormented.

He needs hope, that is all.

True hope. Daniel, there
is a bigger cause here.

More than homes for men like Arthur.

If you were to name the reason
why this kind of thing happens.

And hear me out.

Imagine the stir that that would cause

if you were able to do that
in The London Illustrated News.

They print pictures.

Photographs.

Imagine it. Peg Leg he is
the nugget that shows it all.

It is the sight of him that
makes visible the injustice of it.

I could send them a telegram.

Who would have thought Old Peg
Leg would become a political cause?

You'll be needing to dust down
your expanding plank, our Robert.

It matters, Em.

That man, his story,
could make a difference.

I know it matters.

And it cheers my heart
to see you so fired up.

OLD PEG GIVES OUT A RASPING COUGH

HE COUGHS AND MUMBLES

You have found my book
for me, Thomas. Thank you.

It was about, so I decided to glance
through a few pages of it, ma'am.

And what did you make of it?

There is only one book a
man can live by, Miss Lane.

Though this does have
some merits, in places.

It is well meant, I suppose.

People suppose the
book is about success.

But my favourite chapter
is the one on character.

"That which dignifies a country

"is not an aristocracy of blood,
it is an aristocracy of character."

But there is an impressive
list of illustrious commoners,

raised themselves from
humble to elevated position

by the power of
application and industry.

A lowly postman might be
encouraged by such a thought.

Thomas, I had a rather strange encounter

in the post office this morning.

Several of our customers
were asking for discounts.

Ah.

They said that you had informed
them that such a thing was possible.

I was merely showing
initiative, Miss Lane.

- An ambitious man must live on his
toes. - Initiative with my income, Thomas.

Ah... Ah. Well, perhaps
I overstepped myself.

You did indeed.

I trust it will not happen again.

Mmm!

There's porridge.

There's flavoursome porridge

and then there's Emma Timmins' porridge.

Are you sure you can spare
it, Emma? I'd hate to think

that I was taking out of the
mouths of the little 'uns.

You eat up, Arthur. We
have battles to fight.

I'll go on down the lane,

see if there's a few extra
pennies to get me on my way.

Perhaps, before I go, I might come back,

have a bowl of your pea soup?

We will always share whatever
we have with those who need it.

- Thomas?
- Margaret.

James Dowland built Villas.

Daniel Parish opened a newspaper.

I am sitting here contemplating
what Thomas Brown might do.

Thomas...

I am an empty vessel, Margaret.

Inspiration was there none.

It seems that I am doomed to
be no more than a common toiler.

The Illustrated London News
have picked up on my story.

They are sending a
photographer from Oxford

to take a picture of Peg
for tomorrow's edition.

- I am to have him ready
by midday. - Well...

You come to our little
spot in the wilderness

and before you know it, you
are conquering the world.

- Money?
- Notes.

- Lots of them.
- How?

He is Poor Old Peg Leg.

How did he lay his hands on so much?

Every family in the hamlet
would work to the bone

for half that amount.

But why does he live as he does if...?

He isn't the man we thought.

He comes to our home, eats our porridge,

plays the pauper.

- What will you do, Ma?
- It is enough to break me.

Are we such fools to let
him take our kindness?

Not fools.

Then why does it make me
feel so? Why does it hurt so?

He has betrayed you time and time again.

I don't know what I will do.

Peg Leg. How are you today?

Thomas?

Thomas?

A photograph fella, coming all the way

from one of them London newspapers,
taking a picture of Peg Leg.

- For the paper. A picture.
- Is that so?

A picture of a poor man.

A beggar and a war hero.

Is that so?

They didn't call him Peg
Leg when he was a boy.

I used to put my hat on the
ground outside the ale house,

sing a few songs, have a few drinks

and there'd be coins gone from my hat.

Penny Pincher, that's
what they used to call him.

If you don't talk to him,
tell him what you know,

he'll go off down the
lane, he'll be back again.

What then, Emma?

Look at him there. The Wood Leg Hero.

See their eyes, Alfie.

See how they admire him.

He ain't no pauper.

He has more money than you
or I could ever hope for.

Twister, how can you say such a thing?

Ask Emma Timmins.

She knows.

Knows what?

This will undermine everything. The
Chronicle will be ruined by this.

Can't you stop them?

He owes me nothing.

I gave to him freely. It's none
of my business if he has money.

Oh... I have to talk to Daniel.

Wh... What's to be done?
I must do something.

Daniel, I am sorry. It was
me pushed you into this.

- What are we to do, Pa?
- We have no choice.

No-one wants to do it, but we
must expose the lie of the man.

Perhaps, but...

surely what truly matters
here is the greater cause.

That is still worthwhile.

War veterans without
a home or a pension.

If the story in the London papers
can still achieve some good,

it seems to me that the only thing to do

is to do nothing.

You're right.

But to keep such a secret...

I don't like how it makes me feel.

Daniel Parish, disturbed
by a moral quandary?

You sound to me like a man of character.

- I can't believe it.
- It's true. Look at him there.

It ain't right.

Alfie, I have a gift for you.

Go on, open it. Open it now.

Minnie, I am grateful but I
need you to wait just one moment.

Folks should know what he's made of.

It's a hairpin. Do you like it?

Someone should tell them!

Twister, listen to me... It was my
grandma's. It's all I have of hers.

Minnie, I'm grateful, but...

Twister, hold hard!

The man ain't nothing but a chiseller.

Twister, let him have
his money and his secrets.

Would you swap places with him?
Would you want to carry his burden?

Look at him.

He's tormented.

He ain't getting away with nothing.

I never thought I'd see the day

when they was taking
pictures of Old Peg Leg.

Arthur, I came downstairs in
the night to fix your blankets.

I saw the money.

Your money.

It's not for me to know how you
came upon that kind of money.

Peg Leg ain't no thief.

- Is that what you think of me?
- You beg.

It pains you to travel a few yards.

You beg, and yet...

I don't stand here to be
judged by no man and no woman.

I am my own judge.

I paid, do you hear?

I have paid with the blood
and the mud and the madness.

I always knew the day would
come when you would turn me away.

I ain't turning you
away. I'm asking you.

A bowl of soup and a bed for the night

don't give you no rights over me.

I've learned one thing in
this world, and it's this.

Be your own friend and
reach the day's end.

Arthur, come back.

Arthur...

He won't come back here now.

He will never come back.

It was still the right thing to do.

You had more courage than I did.

I saw him out the back there.

He had brandy. Fine brandy.

Hiding it.

I knew something wasn't
right, but I pushed it aside.

I've been asking myself why I did
that. I could have challenged him.

But he wasn't Peg Leg to me any more.

It wasn't a thought in my
head, it was deeper than that.

I couldn't bear the idea that Peg
Leg wasn't what he appeared to be

because I would have lost
my precious just cause.

Thomas, you will be late for work.

Thomas, you DO have diligence.

You show it in your efforts
to master the cornet.

Your application to
your duties is sterling.

What rewards does that bring?

You are a success, Thomas.

- If you have a failing, it is
that you do not see it. - Hm!

"Mind without heart,
cleverness without goodness.

"We may be amused by them,
but they are not substance."

Those words...are from that book.

I confess it.

I happened to come upon it
in the sorting office and...

peeked beneath its covers.

Please, Thomas, tell me what
is at the bottom of this?

Is it not self-evident?

A rector's daughter
might hope to find a man

who is a shining example
of position and attainment.

She might be daily disappointed

to find herself saddled
with a common toiler.

Oh, Thomas.

My Thomas.

You have "thrust" in abundance,
if only you could see it.

"Men of character are the
conscience of society."

I find your conscience most
attractive, Thomas Brown.

"Though he possesses
little of the world's goods,

"he might look down without
the slightest of envy

"upon the man of money bags and acres."

"Some men leave no memorial

"but a world made
better by their lives."

Minnie.

You are a fine girl with a heart
worth any that I have ever known.

Minnie, it is such a
treasure from your family.

You must keep it.

Truly. It is yours to hold
dear for the rest of your days.

- You and me, we're friends, aren't we?
- Yes, Alfie.

Only friends.

Yes.

I wouldn't want you to get hurt
because I care for you, as a friend.

You understand that?

Yes.

That's good.

Alfie.

I am decided to be persisterance.

Persisterance?

It means trying and waiting
and never giving up, I think.

How are things with you today, Minnie?

Industrialous.

Candleford Chronicle...
Candleford Chronicle.

Candleford Chronicle.

There are so many of them.

Mr Parish seems to have stirred
half the county into action.

Not a sound, boy, or I'll
tear your tongue right out.

Food. Poor Old Peg Leg
needs food, understand?

Eh, are you afraid of me, boy?

You ought to be. Look
at me... Look at me.

Now,

food, you bring food
and you tell no-one

or I'll haunt you in your
sleep, in the darkness at night.

I will be there to haunt
your every thought. Now go!

I realise this must feel like
a double-edged triumph, Daniel.

I haven't slept.

Surely, Miss Lane, if we
are to lay this to rest,

we must know where Peg
Leg acquired so much money.

Emma said he is on his way.

Sydney?

Sydney, what are you doing?

Laura, I have been trying
my best not to intrude.

But I feel it is time I spoke out.

The brooch.

I think you do know why you refused it,

and I think you have to admit that,

at least to yourself.

It was his grandmother's brooch.

It means something.

I was not expecting any of this.

Laura...

You thought it was a ring, didn't you?

And it scared the living
daylights out of you.

Oh.

But it wasn't a ring, Laura.

There is time.

There is no need for you
to feel such pressure.

You are young.

Be young. Tell Daniel it
is young love you want.

I don't think you even need to tell him.

I suspect he wants the same thing.

Arthur... Oh, Arthur.
Why did you hide away?

I need that money, see.

I need it in case things
should ever go bad.

Let's get you up.

I kept it in case the day should
ever come when I might need it.

But you need it now.

You needed it ten years ago.

You could give yourself
some peace and rest.

Oh!

Why won't you consider settling?

I laid there on that field...

..listening to men die.

Listening to their cries

in the mud and the
blood and the madness.

I couldn't move.

I couldn't escape.

I cried out to a God I don't believe in

till I had no voice left.

No answer came.

Just the screams of the dying men

and all I wanted...

was to be gone...away.

Anywhere but here.

If I stop still, I'll die.

And I lived, see.

I was carried from that field and
I come back to some sort of life.

I still feel it.

Move, or die.

Be gone.

But there has been such an outcry.

I know that if we press the authorities,

we could establish a
rest-home for veterans.

Perhaps for some of the other men.

Not for Arthur.

He's just not the settling kind.

'Time, like an ever-rolling stream,

'bears all its sons away.'

'Poor Old Peg Leg never returned.

'Though he never escaped our memories.

'But his life was changed by
his last visit to Lark Rise.

'It may have been the
smallest of things.

'But my mother always said

'it was the closest Peg
Leg ever came to settling.

'There are those who
must go on wandering,

'and those who find
their place in the world.

'Miss Lane used to say

'that the crown and
glory of life is character

'and that cheerful
persistence pays off.'

Timothy loved his patch. Then
why did he have to leave us?

Timothy married and his
wife preferred London.

Well, he married the
wrong wife, didn't he?

- Letter? - Isn't that the
reason you're here? The play?

There is no doctor
and there is no dragon.

I do wonder how we can put on
something pleasing for our squire.

MINNIE: Mr Timmins...

- Do you miss Sir Timothy?
- I do.

Did he ask you? Did Timothy
want you to marry him?