Superb performances from all actors, but the shining light here is Sarah Lancashire, this lady is so supremely talented I find it hard to believe she doesn't have that accent and she isn't really a police officer.The writing is first class, the story is thoroughly gripping from start to finish, my only regret is that I've finished all the episodes on Netflix. Hope for a new season is high, could be 2019, but whenever it is, it's not soon enough.

I loved how this series combined edge of the seat drama with a bit of Yorkshire down to earth charm. Sarah Lancashire plays the lead brilliantly well. There are several linked subplots and I was quite sad to see it all end.A few reviews on here touch on how the male characters were all portrayed badly. Well I'm as anti-feminist as anyone but I genuinely didn't feel that. There are numerous flawed female characters as well as males, and I don't feel writers should ever feel obliged to gender balance the nastiness!

OK. Seen some rather manchild like angry reactions to the feminism in the writing of Happy Valley. There is very much a 'man bad, woman good' and soap-opera aspect to the writing and plot and yes, sometimes that does grate on the nerves when watching. However, much of the acting does make up for the shortcomings in some of the character and plot development. Lancaster is great. Her character 'Catherine' both appalled and at other times warms the heart. Basically, Catherine is complex just like real people often can be. Siobhan Finneran as Catherine's sister 'Clare' and James Norton as the unhinged sociopath 'Tommy Lee' also put in very decent performances in the supporting cast.So yes, the series has more than a bit of a feminist slant but so what?! There have been plenty of male-dominated drama down the years and there will continue to be so. Writers with feminist views will write characters that reflect those views, and again I say so what?!You might not enjoy the underline fem-politics of what you are watching but I think the performances more than make up for that.

Happy Valley is a big Hit in Australia, we don't like crap American TV. Sassy Sarah deserves an acting award for her gritty, strong, emotional and admiral copper. Wonderful, gripping, edge of the seat story line, this lady should be in "Line of Duty", best copper series by far, cheers.