Back Home (ITV Drama, Sarah Lancashire, Jessica Fox)

In ITV drama Back Home, with World War II over, Peggy Dickinson’s (Sarah Lancashire) daughter Rusty (Jessica Fox) returns home having spent most of the war years as an evacuee living in America, she soon finds that she does not really fit in anymore and that although she is 14 and in her eyes a young woman her mother is still treating her like the little girl she was before she left.

Things are further complicated when her father returns home from the war. Peggy herself has been having a nice time of it during the war, working as a driver and living in a run down manor house in Devon. Meanwhile husband, Roger (Adrian Lukis), who is a banker and conservative by nature, finds he also cannot adjust to life after the war and their marriage breaks down.

Back Home is a great feel good production that deals with an issue that hasn’t been covered in much depth, that of the problems faced by the evacuees when they returned home, in fact although we hear plenty of stories of ill treatment many evacuees were treated like family members and didn’t want to leave their new families once war was over.

Previously filmed in 1989 with Hayley Mills as Peggy.

Cast: Sarah Lancashire as Peggy Dickinson; Stephanie Cole as The Honourable Lady Beatrice ‘Beattie’ Langley; Jessica Fox as Virginia ‘Rusty’ Dickinson; Kate David as Molly; Skye King as Charlie Dickinson; Kaye Wragg as Ivy; Jack Pierce as Mitch; Martin Ball as Frank; Rosemary Leach as Mrs. Dickinson; Jenny Higham as Judith Penfold; Joan Blackham as Miss Bembridge; Adrian Lukis as Roger Dickinson; Danny Worters as Bob Stephens; Jeremy Peters as Mr. Stephens; David Kincaid as Ticket Clerk

Writers: Geoff Deane, Brian Finch, Philip Palmer / Novel: Michelle Magorian / Music: Carl Davis / Design: Donal Woods / Costume Design: Jo Rainforth / Executive Producers: Geoff Deane and Jim Reeve / Producer: Mia Jupp

UK / ITV Network – Danny Rose – Strand Productions / 1×120 minute episode / Broadcast 21 October 2001