I know I’m a day late with this review, but I definitely think that it’s still worth a word or two. Who’d have thunk; on a weekend which contained an hour-long documentary about the Mighty Boosh, it was the last installment of Lark Rise To Candleford which was my unchallenged highlight. It started off so gently, and in such an unassuming way, that I’ve no doubt that it lost viewers after the first episode – but those who stuck with it were richly rewarded.

There were several storylines which have grown in importance and effectiveness over the series, and as such we were genuinely interested in how they would be wrapped up. It turned out that they were all wrapped up neatly, but creatively, and more often than not in a way that brought a tear to my eye. The fact is, that after that quiet start, those of us who have continued to watch can’t help but have become rather attached to the characters which inhabit that little hamlet and the nearby village.

Our narrator, Laura, started off as little more than new eyes to explore Candleford with, but she has become so much than that over the course of the 10 episodes. Laura has become strong, independent, generous and open-minded, guided always by her mentor, the post-mistress Dorcas Lane. Zillah announced in this episode that, watching Laura deal with her problems, it was just like watching Dorcas as a young woman. But, as Dorcas herself concedes, Laura is even more level-headed than she is, or ever has been.

I mentioned in my review of the first episode what a wonderful actress Olivia Hallinan is, and if anything she has only grown in stature as the series has progressed. Her open, expressive eyes are a gift for any director, no doubt. By the same token, Julia Sawalha as Dorcas has been an absolute revelation and, just as with Cranford, it was a joy to have such a strong female cast, aided by the Pratt sisters, among many others.

Another storyline bubbling away was the burgeoning relationship between Tom and Miss Ellison – delicate and restrained, comic and touching, it was a constant delight. Tom’s character was probably the one which underwent the most dramatic change over the course of the series, as we saw his grow from pious fool, to a kind-hearted pillar of the community. Mark Heap rarely put a foot wrong.

And so we came to the final scene – Zillah’s “surprise” birthday party which was anything but. Queenie had been predicting a death for days, and with Twister’s health failing, it seemed that he would be the one to go. But instead it was Zillah – happy, and just a little tipsy, she slipped away as the party carried on all around her. It was time for me to reach for the tissues again. From insignifcant beginnings, this programme has gone from strength to strength, and this emotional episode was a fitting finale, which moved from comedy to tragedy with ease.