Family drama ‘MaryLand’ on Masterpiece

Category: Television and Streaming

MaryLand is a three-part series on Masterpiece focusing on family relationships, dynamics, and secrets. Suranne Jones and Eve Best star as sisters Becca and Rosaline.

When the sisters get a phone call telling them their mother is dead, they must travel from the U.K. to the Isle of Man to identify the body. But why was their mom on the island when she was supposed to be in Wales? 

Becca leaves her husband Jim (Andrew Knott) and two daughters and meets up with her sister on the island. It’s there where the big mystery, or mysteries, around their mother begin to come into focus. They discover plenty of secrets about their mom via her friends. Pete (Hugh Quarshie) was very close to their mom and little by little the sisters get a better understanding of their mother’s life on the island.

Then another friend, Cathy (Stockard Channing) adds more background to why the woman was on the island in the first place, and why she felt she wanted to stay there.  So, the sisters wonder, did their dad know his wife was on the Isla of Man? And what other secrets were their parents keeping from them? It turns out there were quite a lot.

As Becca and Rosaline unravel the intricacies of their mother’s life, these two sisters begin to regain the closeness they lost years ago, albeit very slowly. And, secrets being kept by the sisters come out as well, bringing them even closer.

There are three episodes in this mini-series. The first is when the sisters discover their mother was leading a secret life. The second deals with the emotions of the two women as they pick apart the details of what happened on the island. And the third focuses on the family as a whole when their father and Jim and Jim and Becca’s daughters come to the island where the family must once and for all deal with everything that happened there and also confront their own personal situations. As the family heals from all the upheaval, the story takes on a more upbeat tone. Finally there are answers and new beginnings. Without giving any spoiler alerts, there are plenty of secrets that come out throughout the three episodes, and viewers will want to stick with Becca and Rosaline until the end. It’s an intriguing story.

MaryLand is an intense family drama that catches the attention of viewers from the start. It premieres on Masterpiece on PBS May 5, 2024. It runs through May 19, 2024.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 30 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association and is accredited by the MPAA.

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