Customer Reviews
Peerlessly awful - By: K. A. Drayson, 13 Jul 2008 
Well, this is my first ever Amazon review, inspired by the truly abysmal Penmarric series. Well, I should say by the first episode of the series as I couldn't bring myself to watch the remaining episodes.
The acting is so wooden that at times I couldn't tell if the Penmarric-obsessed mother was thrilled or devastated, & the camera work is decidedly shoddy.
I love period dramas, don't get me wrong - I own whole shelves of the things, but never, ever have I been so bored, cringed so much, or been so unutterably disgusted with the time wastage of watching this rubbish. All I can say is, try it if you must, but be prepared to put it on eBay as soon as you start to watch it.
Costume Drama + Cornish Scenery = BLISS! - By: Scots Lass, 12 Jan 2008 
From Victorian England to the start of WW2, Penmarric follows the fortunes of male line of the Castalllack family & the ownership of the magnificent Penmarric house & estate.
Mark Castalllack grows up fully aware of the ambition of his own Mother that he will be the next heir. Following a series of deaths amongst his male cousins, he duly inherits the estate whilst at University. Visiting his estates & the grave of his late Uncle, he catches sight a the beautiful young widow, Janna Roslyn. Though 10 years older that Mark he pursues her and, even after the shock of learning that this virtuous woman had a relationship with his own late Father, Mark succeeds in marrying Janna.
The age difference becomes an issue as Janna wishes to have a child per year before she is too old to do so. Daughter of a French fisherman, she struggles to fit into the world of Penmarric - & Mark's catty Mother - but has her way & becomes Mother to 7 children. Mark, however, starts an affair with a woman he knew before he married, & the tension between him & Janna comes to a head when she & her favourite son Philip spot Mark & his second family dining in the same hotel they are staying at in Brighton. The violent scene between Mark & Janna is heard by 8 year old Philip - & the rape which results in the birth of Janna's last child, a son Jan-Yves - will have a lasting effect on Philips adult life.
With stunning Cornish scenery, perfect costume detail & an involving plot which contains mining accidents, divorce, society weddings, illegitimacy, financial ruin, homosexuality & the horror of WW1, Penmarric is a must for alll fans of good costume drama. Throughout the story, the male heirs continue to vie for the inheritance of the Penmarric estate.
Sadly, the dvd box set contains the 12 episodes but no extras whatever, although subtitles are available for the programme.
Add this to you collection if you love Poldark, Onedin Line, House of Eliot - you will want to watch it again & again!
Excellent Adaptation - By: Ms. Tracy E. Roketta, 28 Mar 2007 
I've just finished watching the whole 12 hours of this marvellous adaptation. I have to say I was mortallly impressed!!! The only thing I have to say is that either the first episode or the last episode needed to be two hours to give it a fitting conclusion. In the book, Jan Yves goes off to war & there's a whole storyline involving Rebecca & Jonas that got completely missed which is a shame because it was a good storyline. But that's by the by - on the whole it was, as I stated, an excellent adaption!
Buy it! - By: Charmkat, 15 Mar 2007 I loved the novel by Susan Howatch which I read as a young girl. The subsequent adaption to television was excellent. The series followed the book very well, which does not always happen & the BBC did a very good job here. I have great pride in that my grandfather was in this BBC series playing the coachmen & driving the horses which was his special skill, it is a treasured memory to have of him. Well worth seeing, well worth buying.
