主播大秀

Tess is hugely bitter of those who have it easier than her, especially people like Demelza who once walked in Tess’s shoes. The resentment is so strong that the more Demelza tries to help her, the more Tess hates her.

"Not only do they film Poldark in Cornwall, but they also told me when I auditioned that this character, Tess, is from Cornwall, which is where I am from so that naturally resonated with me. Everyone in Cornwall loves Poldark, including my friends and family who were equally as excited as I was. Tess is very feisty and sees herself as a leader, so I was over the moon at the thought of stepping into her shoes. I was nervous to join the cast but as soon as I stepped on set that first day everyone made the new comers feel very welcome."

Sofia reveals that audiences can expect a lot of drama from this ‘firecracker.’

"Tess was described by Debbie (Horsfield) as fierce, spirited and uncomfortably restrained by her maid’s uniform, and that perfectly sums her up. She is very layered. Throughout the series she presents herself as numerous different characters, which makes people think she may have changed for the better and that her motives aren’t the same as what they previously were. However, Tess is a master manipulator.

Demelza thinks she can help Tess and change her troublesome ways, but in order to do so she needs Tess around her, so she employs her as a farm hand at Nampara, helping Prudie (Beatie Edney) and doing extra work for them. There is a glimmer of something in Tess that Demelza recognises, possibly from a past version of herself, and she really wants to help guide her. However, Tess is hugely bitter of those who have it easier than her, especially people like Demelza who once walked in Tess’s shoes. The resentment from Tess is so strong that the more Demelza tries to help her, the more Tess ends up hating her."

Sofia discloses that Tess sets her sights on the eldest of Demelza’s brothers, Sam Carne.

"Whilst Tess does actually fancy Sam, more importantly she thinks she can use him to her advantage. She is sure that if she plays the role of this holier-than-thou girl in need of saving he won’t be able to resist helping her, and in turn she will be able to control him. She can use Sam to get embroiled into the community a little more and she’ll be in the know with what is going on with Demelza and Ross. Tess thinks that being more involved in all of that will help her in becoming more of a leader, which is what she really wants."

Sofia explains that Tess takes on a leading role in an eventful uprising this series.

"Tess is causing unrest in the mine, purposely winding people up in order to anger them enough to speak up and demand more. She is injecting a lot of fear into the community, which results in a dramatic climax. After the closing of a mine Tess leads a huge march towards Trenwith, and the protest has an aggressive element to it because she wants there to be unrest and for the people to rise. It is quite a moment."

Sofia recalls a moment from filming that she won’t soon forget.

"Just before Christmas we were filming a big celebratory dinner at Nampara and a lot of the cast were involved. Prudie and Tess were serving everyone and at one point Tess steals a bit of cake and starts eating it. So Prudie is meant to shove her quickly out of the view of the rest of the dinner guests. Beatie literally barrelled me over in one swoop but no one knew she was going to do this, so it seemed as if she had just shoved me out of the room out of nowhere. No one could contain their laughter."

Foreword by Debbie Horsfield

"When I first picked up the novel Ross Poldark in 2012 I had no idea that seven years later I’d have adapted seven books and completed five series (43 hours!) of Winston Graham’s extraordinary Poldark saga.

In 2015, with great trepidation, we awaited the response to series one - knowing that the 1970s adaptation had been massively popular, and praying that we’d done justice to these amazing stories, characters and Cornwall. Fortunately the casting - Aidan (Turner), Eleanor (Tomlinson), Jack (Farthing), Heida (Reed), Luke (Norris), Kyle (Soller) and Ruby (Bentall) - found favour with audiences, and to our great delight we were asked for more.

Although none of us ever dared to look more than one series ahead, we found ourselves approaching the end of series four (and book seven, The Angry Tide) with something of a dilemma. Our cast was optioned for five series - so what to do with an 11-year time jump and five more books? We knew we’d never be able to wrap up five books in a single series, but no-one wanted to call time just yet, so we looked at another option.

In book eight (The Stranger From The Sea), 11 years down the line, we meet Ross abroad on a special mission for the government. How did he go from restless, sometimes reckless, and somewhat disillusioned MP, who despaired of ever really 'making a difference' in the world, to Special Agent Poldark, sent by the Crown to report from Portugal on the Peninsula War against Napoleon?

Winston Graham had left plenty of hints in book eight about events which had happened in those intervening years, but he gives little away about how Ross achieved that transformation. So for me it was the starting point, the way to navigate through series five. Winston Graham’s son Andrew endorsed my wish to continue his father’s methodology: looking at the historical context (Napoleonic Wars, Act of Union, fast-approaching Abolition of Slavery) and using real events and real people to drive the narrative.

So what would be our events and who would be our new characters? It seemed to me that one thing we had never met so far was a character to whom Ross really looked up to, even to the extent of hero-worship. So when I was researching the early 1800s I came across Colonel Edward Despard. Reading about him I was so reminded of Ross himself that I felt sure Winston Graham knew of him (though Andrew Graham thinks not).

Ned Despard was a war hero who, like Ross believed in justice, compassion, equality and liberty for all. His wife Catherine was a former slave from Jamaica. And her rise to be his equal, her determination in the face of prejudice and scorn was uncannily reminiscent of Demelza’s own journey. As was the love and devotion both couples felt for each other. I wanted Ned to be part of Ross’ journey towards greater maturity, to be the salutary lesson, his 'there but for the grace of God'.

Tracing Despard and Catherine’s real life story, intertwining it with Ross and Demelza’s and seeing them deal with the consequences of that entanglement, forms the spine of series five and introduces on the way other real-life characters such as James Hadfield (would-be assassin of George III), William Wickham (founder of the British foreign secret service) and Joseph Merceron (the 'Godfather' of East London). Inextricably involved with Ross and Demelza’s journey are Ross’s nemesis George Warleggan, as well as friends and allies Dwight and Caroline Enys, Sam, Drake and Morwenna Carne.

It feels strange, and a little sad, to be approaching the transmission of series five knowing that we won’t be returning to Cornwall, but it’s been an extraordinary journey for all of us and we feel truly fortunate to have lived with these characters and stories for so long. What’s next for me? A contemporary series. Watch this space. Not a tricorn in sight. I’m excited for the next project - but I’ll miss that Cornish surf!"

Character Descriptions

Ross
Ross hoped to put London behind him to focus on peaceful, family life, but a plea from his old Army Colonel, Ned Despard, compels him to the capital to help. As Ross’ world becomes entangled with the Despards', new alliances and old enemies threaten his loved ones and the nation itself, testing our hero’s resolve like never before.

Demelza
As she grows into her role of Cornwall’s beloved defender, Demelza is still looking out for the less fortunate of her world. But when the Despards enter her life, Demelza finds there are repercussions to getting involved: Cornwall needs her own help now more than ever, and new forces threaten all she holds dear.

Drake
Although he has finally married and settled down with Morwenna, Drake yearns to mend the wounds of her past. As the journey to wedded bliss proves uncertain, Drake’s love is tested. How far is he truly willing to go?

Sam
Sam is rising in the community and is admired as a leader. When Tess Tregidden makes it her mission to cause trouble, Sam makes it his to convert her wayward soul. As he helps Demelza in the community, an unexpected romance blossoms for him too.

Morwenna
Though reconciled with Drake in marriage, Morwenna struggles with intimacy, in the wake of her life with her brutish former husband. With the loss of John Conan still haunting her, Morwenna finds her old life overlapping with her new, but as the community come to rely on her she grows into a new role with a hope she had not foreseen.

Geoffrey Charles
Following his mother’s death, Geoffrey takes his future into his own hands and follows in Ross’ footsteps by joining the military. His path takes him to the capital, where an unlikely attraction finds him in the dangerous waters of forbidden love... 

George
Haunted by the loss of Elizabeth, George looks for his missing spark as he forges onward. His journey sees him entering into an alliance with merchant Ralph Hanson, whose business in the mahogany trade and influence in London promises to expand the Warleggan empire around the world.

Dwight
The future holds great promise for Dwight, who has finally gained recognition in his field. However, the arrival of the Despards comes to drive an ever-growing wedge between him and Ross, testing Dwight’s loyalty to his closest friend and the strength of his bond with Caroline.

Caroline
Caroline finds a new distraction in championing the Despards, but old insecurities arise as she joins her friends against their common enemy and finds she must battle with her demons once again.

Prudie
Having settled into her role in the Poldark family, Prudie is trusted to run the home and family in their stead. With new enemies emerging, Prudie‘s role as Nampara’s guardian becomes more important than ever and she must employ all her cunning to help save their world from being upturned.

Ned
An ex-army colonel and Ross and Dwight’s’ ranking officer in American Revolutionary War, Ned was made the governor of British Honduras, where he took a former slave as his wife and tried to implement policies ahead of his time. But when he locked horns with corrupt forces in his posting, Ned was recalled to London and locked away in Coldbath Fields prison, without a fair hearing, leaving him hungry for liberty, vindication and revenge.

Kitty
A former slave, Kitty fell in love with her master, Edward 'Ned' Despard, whom she married. In her fight to exonerate her husband, Kitty finds allies in our heroes and her resilience gains their admiration, as she carves a determined path through the moral corruption that surrounds them.

Tess
A former employee of Trenwith, when Tess suddenly finds herself without the means for an honest life, she harbours revenge against the upper classes. Bitter in her quest for a better life, Tess becomes a persistent thorn in our heroes’ sides, and her machinations threaten the stability of their homes.

Cecily
The daughter of Ralph Hanson, Cecily is a staunch supporter of the abolitionist movement, putting her at odds with her family and peers. Educated and independent, Cecily is ahead of her time. In pursuit of her own brand of happiness Cecily falls in love with a man in league with her father’s rivals, testing family loyalties as she tries to make her future her own.

Ralph Hanson
Father of Cecily and a wealthy mahogany merchant, Ralph Hanson seeks a new backer to fund his enterprise abroad. To this end he enters an alliance with the Warleggans, and crosses swords with our heroes when his dealings come to impact upon their lives.

Joseph Merceron
Joseph is a powerful and enterprising magistrate with connections and influence throughout the social and political tiers of London.

Related Programme Information

• Episode one
• Episode two