Berkeley Square is a 1998

1998 in television

The year 1998 in television involved some significant events.Below is a list of television-related events in 1998.For the American TV schedule, see: 1998–99 United States network television schedule.-Events:-Debuts:-1950s:...

 British dramatic television series that was originally broadcast by BBC One

BBC One

BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...

. Set in 1902, it focuses on three young women who are employed as nannies

Nanny

A nanny, childminder or child care provider, is an individual who provides care for one or more children in a family as a service...

 by wealthy families living on exclusive Berkeley Square

Berkeley Square

Berkeley Square is a town square in the West End of London, England, in the City of Westminster. It was originally laid out in the mid 18th century by architect William Kent...

 in the West End of London

West End of London

The West End of London is an area of central London, containing many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings, and entertainment . Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross...

.

It was filmed on location in Chavenage House

Chavenage House

Chavenage House is an Elizabethan era manor house situated 2.414 km or 1.5 miles northwest of Tetbury, in the Cotswolds area of Gloucestershire, England.It is constructed of Cotswold stone, with a Cotswold stone tiled roof....

 in Tetbury

Tetbury

Tetbury is a town and civil parish within the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. It lies on the site of an ancient hill fort, on which an Anglo-Saxon monastery was founded, probably by Ine of Wessex, in 681. The population of the parish was 5,250 in the 2001 census.In the Middle Ages,...

, Gloucester

Gloucester

Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....

, Priddy

Priddy

Priddy is a village in Somerset, England in the Mendip Hills, close to East Harptree and north-west of Wells. It is in the local government district of Mendip....

 in Somerset

Somerset

The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...

, Stanway House

Stanway House

Stanway House is an example of a Jacobean manor house, located near Stanway, Gloucestershire. The manor was owned by Tewkesbury Abbey for 800 years then for 500 years by the Tracy family and their descendants, the Earls of Wemyss...

 in Stanway, Gloucestershire

Stanway, Gloucestershire

Stanway is a small crossroads village in the English county of Gloucestershire, about 1 mile south of Stanton: both villages are on the Cotswold Way...

, and Bristol

Bristol

Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...

.

Episodes

Episode 1: Pretty Maids All in a Row

Originally broadcast 10 May 1998

Lydia Weston, a farm girl from a large family in Devon

Devon

Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...

, is hired by Lord George and Lady Constance Lamson-Scribener after her local vicar asks for their help to find a suitable position. Lady Lamson-Scribener, an American and the Earl's second wife, is concerned about aging Nanny Collins's abilities and hires Lydia to assist her, particularly after learning that she helped her mother raise 11 children.

Hannah Randall is a young Irishwoman who comes to London from Yorkshire

Yorkshire

Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...

 with her illegitimate son, Billy, after the child's father, son of aristocrat Lord Harmsworth, dies in an accident. The locals, outraged by her loose behaviour, had forced Hannah to leave. In London, she finds lodgings in the Limehouse

Limehouse

Limehouse is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is on the northern bank of the River Thames opposite Rotherhithe and between Ratcliff to the west and Millwall to the east....

 home of Mrs. Bronowski, who offers to watch Billy while Hannah searches for employment. She meets Lydia, who advises her of an available position as a nursemaid with the family of Elspeth and Nathaniel Hutchinson. When she is hired, Mrs. Bronowski suggests Billy stay with her for sixpence per week.

Matty Wickham, head nanny in the home of Arnold and Victoria St. John, clashes with Pringle, the nursery maid, and housekeeper Mrs. McClusky and Cook.

Episode 2: Hide And Seek

Originally broadcast 17 May 1998

Hannah becomes acquainted with her young charges, Bertie and baby Charlie. Nanny Simmons clearly has no affection for the children in her care, proves hostile and constantly finds fault with the younger woman.

The Countess is pleased with Lydia and insists she and baby Ivo go to the park without Nanny Collins when she realizes the older woman has a cold. Nanny Collins isn't pleased, but Lydia wins her over with the gift of an embroidered needle case.

Matty is blamed for all the problems in the St. Johns' home. When she meets Lydia and Hannah in the park, she is surprised to learn Hannah is unhappy with her position at the Hutchinson house.

Episode 3: Ladybird, Ladybird

Originally broadcast 24 May 1998

Hannah narrowly stops her son's grandmother from kidnapping him. She offered Hannah £500 to allow her to adopt him but Hannah refused, remembering what William had told her about his childhood. Lady Harmonsworth blames Hannah for her son's death.

Lydia saves the day when she helps prepare a meal for people celebrating the coronation of King Edward VII

Edward VII of the United Kingdom

Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...

, and Nanny Collins is upset by the accolades Lydia receives.

Matty finds herself strongly attracted to newly-hired footman, Ned Jones, unaware he is Mrs. McClusky's son and is wanted by the police for killing a man in a fight. Elspeth and Nathaniel Hutchinson depart London so he can assume an overseas post.

Episode 4: All on a Summer's Day

Originally broadcast 31 May 1998

Isabel Hutchinson and her Great-Aunt Effie arrive at the Hutchinson home to oversee
their children's care during Elspeth and Nathaniel's absence.

The nannies, accompanied by Ned and Matty's brother Jack, take the children on a picnic in the country. Victoria St. John prepares to entertain her lover, Captain Mason, while the house is empty, but her sister's unexpected arrival disrupts her plans.

Episode 5: A Pocket Full of Posies

Originally broadcast 7 June 1998

Hannah worries about her baby's safety when a typhoid fever

Typhoid fever

Typhoid fever, also known as Typhoid, is a common worldwide bacterial disease, transmitted by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected person, which contain the bacterium Salmonella enterica, serovar Typhi...

 epidemic breaks out in the East End of London

East End of London

The East End of London, also known simply as the East End, is the area of London, England, United Kingdom, east of the medieval walled City of London and north of the River Thames. Although not defined by universally accepted formal boundaries, the River Lea can be considered another boundary...

. Lydia's crush on the Earl's son, Hugh, creates more friction between her and Nanny Collins. Hugh drunkenly attempts to take advantage of Lydia and threatens her when she resists his advances.

Matty and Ned are slowly getting to know one another and finally take a walk in the park together.

Episode 6: When the Bough Breaks

Originally broadcast 14 June 1998

Hannah finds baby Charlie dead in his crib. After Nanny Simmons attacks Bertie, Hannah sends her down to tell the family that the baby has died but she disappears. Bertie, not wanting Hannah to leave, suggests swapping Charlie for Billy. Hannah, stunned at first, agrees and leaves Bertie with Matty while she goes to collect Billy. Mrs. Bronowski assures her she will properly dispose of the infant's body and buries him in the small yard behind her house.

Hugh is attacked by Matty's brother in revenge for his behaviour to Lydia. Matty discovers Ned is wanted for murder and that "baby Charlie" is actually Hannah's illegitimate son.

Episode 7: Gone a'Hunting

Originally broadcast 20 June 1998

While Matty and Lydia accompany their employers to a weekend shoot at the Earl's Devon estate, Hannah accompanies Isabel to a luncheon, where Isabel shamelessly flirts with Captain Mason. Young Tom St. John is troubled by being forced to take part in the shoot, and the stress leads him to accidentally shoot his father.

Ned meets a woman in a pub and takes her home, but doesn't go to bed with her when his feelings for Matty surface.

Episode 8: Who Killed Cock Robin?

Originally broadcast 28 June 1998

After Hannah explains the circumstances of Billy's birth and why she brought him into the Hutchinson home following Charlie's death, Matty apologises for judging her and promises to stand by her. Hugh threatens Lydia's family with eviction from their land, and she asks Nanny Collins for help.

Charlie's body is found by workers laying new pipes in the neighbourhood, and Mrs. Bronowski is arrested for his murder.

Matty continues to fight her growing feelings for Ned but eventually admits to them.

Episode 9: Wednesday's Child

Originally broadcast 5 July 1998

Ned joins the army to escape being arrested by the police, and Matty enlists her brother's help to clear Ned's name.
Captain Mason proposes marriage to Isabel, much to her delight and the distress of Victoria St. John when she hears the news.

Mrs Bronowski is charged with murder despite Hannah's efforts to clear her name.

Episode 10: I, Said the Sparrow

Originally broadcast 19 July 1998

Great-Aunt Effie's efforts to keep Captain Mason away from Isabel are thwarted when he threatens to sue for breach of promise if she refuses to allow them to wed. Mrs. Bronowski is convicted of murder and sentenced to death, a fate she resignedly accepts. Jack clears Ned's name, but his regiment is departing for Somaliland

Somaliland

Somaliland is an unrecognised self-declared sovereign state that is internationally recognised as an autonomous region of Somalia. The government of Somaliland regards itself as the successor state to the British Somaliland protectorate, which was independent for a few days in 1960 as the State of...

 and he must bid a tearful Matty goodbye.

Cast

The Lamson-Scribener household

• Tabitha Wady
  Tabitha Wady
  Tabitha Wady is a British actress, best known for playing Receptionist Katrina Bullen in the BBC television soap opera Doctors and for her role as Gemma in "Kevin & Perry Go Large"....
  
   ..... Lydia Weston
• Rosemary Leach
  Rosemary Leach
  Rosemary Leach is a British stage, television and film actress.She was born at Much Wenlock, Shropshire. Her parents were teachers related to Edmund Leach. She attended grammar school and RADA...
  
   ..... Nanny Collins
• Rupert Frazer ..... Lord George Lamson-Scribener
• Briony Glassco ..... Lady Constance Lamson-Scribener
• Nicholas Irons ..... Lord Hugh Lamson-Scribener
• Peter Forbes
  Peter Forbes
  Peter Forbes is a Scottish actor.In the theatre he has appeared in the musical Mamma Mia! at the Prince Edward Theatre in London, Twelfth Night, Richard III and A Midsummer Night's Dream...
  
   ..... Fowler

The Hutchinson household

• Victoria Smurfit
  Victoria Smurfit
  -Early life:She is part of the Smurfit family, one of the richest in Ireland. The family, headed by Victoria's uncle Michael Smurfit, sponsor a number of sporting events including the Smurfit European Open and the Champion Hurdle. The family is also associated with Smurfit Business School in U.C.D....
  
   ..... Hannah Randall
• Sophie Walker ..... Isabel Hutchinson
• Rosalind Knight
  Rosalind Knight
  Rosalind Knight is an English actress. She was the daughter of actor Esmond Knight and his first wife, Frances Clare and the stepdaughter of actress Nora Swinburne....
  
   ..... Great-Aunt Effie
• Ruth Sheen
  Ruth Sheen
  Ruth Sheen is an English actress.Born in London, Sheen began her career by training at the East 15 Acting School, and has appeared regularly on British television and in British films since 1988. On television, she had recurring roles as Nanny Simmons in Berkeley Square , and as Nurse Ethel Carr...
  
   ..... Nanny Simmons
• Adam Hayes ..... Bertie Hutchinson

The St. John household

• Clare Wilkie
  Clare Wilkie
  Clare Wilkie is a British actress, best known for playing Sandra di Marco in the television soap opera EastEnders.Prior to her appearance in EastEnders, she had played a leading role in the period drama series Berkeley Square and also appeared in the ill-fated soap Eldorado.She then starred in...
  
   ..... Matty Wickham
• Jason O'Mara
  Jason O'Mara
  Jason O'Mara is an Irish actor who starred in the American television network dramas In Justice and Life on Mars. He now appears in the Fox series Terra Nova.- Career :He performed with The Royal Shakespeare Company...
  
   ..... Ned Jones
• Hermione Norris
  Hermione Norris
  Hermione Norris is an English actress.Norris attended the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in the 1980s before taking small roles in theatre and on television. In 1996, she was cast in her breakout role of Karen Marsden in the comedy drama television series Cold Feet...
  
   ..... Victoria St. John
• Sean Murray ..... Arnold St. John
• Kate Williams ..... Mrs. McClusky
• Maggie McCarthy ..... Cook
• Amy Hodge ..... Pringle

And

• Etela Pardo ..... Mrs. Bronowski
• William Scott-Masson ..... Captain Mason
• Stuart Laing
  Stuart Laing
  Stuart Laing is an English actor. He is probably best known for his role of Rob Minter in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders.Laing trained at Drama Centre, London, Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, London....
  
  ..... Jack Wickham

External links

• Images from the series