London TV Award nomination Great Expectations: '.. performances are spectacular all round, Gillian Anderson captures the brittle fragility of Miss Havisham and Harry Lloyd charms as an absurdly nice Herbert Pocket. Cleverly, the star of the show is an unknown, Douglas Booth, so that we can more easily believe in his rise from nobody to somebody over the course of the narrative.'

The Guardian: “I see some people have been moaning that Gillian Anderson isn't old enough to be Miss Havisham, that she's a cougar rather than a crone, too ravishing for Havisham. She's not that ravishing, though. They've done a pretty good job of ageing and witchifying her. And, more importantly, she feels like Miss Havisham – not overdone like a pantomime witch but quietly sad, bitter and vengeful, cruelly manipulative, and more than a little potty.”

There are many things to applaud concerning the BBC's latest adaptation of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations, directed by Brian Kirk. The key factor is the atmosphere, which is unexpected and deliciously grim and stylish. The Scene where Magwitch wades through the cold, desaturated marshes is chilling, and Ray Winstone is- initially at least- genuinely terrifying in the role. Indeed, the performances are spectacular all round, Gillian Anderson captures the brittle fragility of Miss Havisham and Harry Lloyd charms as an absurdly nice Herbert Pocket. Cleverly, the star of the show is an unknown, Douglas Booth, so that we can more easily believe in his rise from nobody to somebody over the course of the narrative. A clever, moody, beautifully shot adaptation that tells a simple, classic story with enough edge and darkness to keep things fresh.

Photo Nicola Dove/BBC