Originally broadcast by Channel 4 in 4 parts in 1992.

Film based on the novel by Mary Wesley.

Special features of this DVD: Mary Wesley biography ; cast filmographies ; Dolby Digital ; scene selection.

Felicity Kendal, Paul Eddington, Jennifer Ehle, Tara Fitzgerald, Rosemary Harris, Claire Bloom, Nicholas le Prevost.

Presents the lives and loves of a family of cousins from 1939 to present. Begins with a funeral, and uses the reminiscences of those gathered to fill in details in the lives of several different family members.

Episode one: As they gather for a funeral in 1984, family members reminisce about the summer of 1939. That was the last time the cousins were all together at Aunt Helena and Uncle Richard's big house above the cliffs and the last time they did their "terror runs" along the cliff wall. By the time that summer idyll ended, the war they all knew was coming had begun.

Episode two: The Erstweilers are sent to an internment camp, and Richard takes up their cause. Calypso snags her rich man, surprising no one but Oliver. At Polly's for a school holiday, Sophy gets a night out on the town with Oliver, who is still pursuing his "comfort" from Calypso. With the Erstweilers back in Cornwall, Helena discovers new dimensions to Max, while Monika takes charge on the domestic front. Polly pursues some adult education.

Episode three: Max has a triumph with his first London recital, but the event coincides with tragic news. Beguiled by Max and the thrill of wartime London, Helena buys two adjacent houses in Chelsea, much to the dismay of Richard. Finally comforted, Oliver must beat a hasty retreat. The bombing escalates and Richard catches pneumonia saving his claret. Called home to Cornwall, Helena discovers that she and Monika have made "a straight swap."

Episode four: Calypso stumbles on bad news for Polly and tries, in her own way, to be helpful. Sophy and Monika discover they both suffer from homesickness and the certainty that home is gone forever. Pollly suffers a trauma trying to pick a twin, while Calypso is out dancing every night despite her growing "bulge." Richard comes to London and stays, driving Helena med. Monika's resourcefulness goes a bit too far.

Episode five: Calypso takes Sophy in for company while she waits for the "bulge" and news of Hector. When the two women meet again in Cornwall for Max's funeral, they recall the drama of Calypso's labor. Calypso's grown son and Polly's grown children learn new things about their mothers. They all say goodbye to Max in their own way, including Oliver, who shows up after all and sees Sophy in a whole new light.

Not rated.

DVD.

Closed captioned for the hearing impaired.