Gentleman Jack - BBC1 | What to Watch

Anne and Ann — (Image credit: BBC/Lookout Point/HBO/Matt Squir)

In Gentleman Jack, Anne Lister plans to outsmart her enemies and win the hand of fair Ann

In Gentleman Jack, Anne Lister plans to outsmart her enemies and win the hand of fair Ann

"Nature played a challenging trick on me. I refuse to be cowed by it," Anne Lister (Suranne Jones) tells her sympathetic aunt.

And she’s certainly not letting anything stand in her way this week as she continues her plans to get one over on the devious Rawsons, while things are also hotting up between her and Ann Walker (Sophie Rundle) as they conduct secret assignations and Anne suggests they might even be able to live together.

But are things moving too quickly for Ann Walker and will their blossoming romance be discovered?

"I’ve done lots of shows that are dark," Suranne Jones told TV Times. "But with Gentleman Jack, you think, ‘I want to be more like her.’ I can’t say enough about how inspiring Anne is.

"An actress on set said, ‘You should be more like Anne, it suits you.’ I’m quite a shy, private person in reality, but she can teach us all a lesson in courage and being authentic and having a voice and actually using it.

"Even if she was here in 2019, we’d still say to her, ‘You are an amazing woman.’ "

Amazing, perhaps, but in this week's episode, Anne’s wilful behaviour incenses her sister Marian, who makes plans of her own for the future.

The behaviour of troublesome tenant Sam Sowden (Anthony Flanagan), meanwhile, causes turmoil for his family, leading to a truly shocking decision.

Things are getting interesting…

TV Times rating: ****