Charlie MacFell despised the rough cinder path outside his bleak farmhouse home. It was there that his brutal father handed out vicious beatings and crushed his confidence with taunts that he was a born loser. The path would always symbolize defeat and despair. As a man, Charlie struggles to leave behind his personal humiliations and shake off the legacy of a cruel father. Despite a desperately unhappy marriage to the beautiful Victoria Chapman, Charlie eventually finds true love with her sister Nellie. But in between, he is thrust into the horrors of the First World War where at least he finds a chance to display th einner strength and character that his father claimed he lacked.
One of England’s most widely read authors, Dame Catherine Cookson penned more than ninety historical novels during her celebrated career. Set in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many of her masterpieces have been brought to life in mini-series productions boasting lavish costumes and stunning on-location photography of Northeast England. The Cinder Path was filmed on location in Northumberland, County Durham and North Yorkshire, England.
Starring Lloyd Owen, Catherine Zeta Jones, Tom Bell, Maria Miles, Rosalind Ayers.
Shown on PBS Masterpiece Theatre.
Set in 1913 in the [Edwardian era](http://www.willowandthatch.com/period-films-to-watch/best-period-dramas-edwardian-era/) through the First World War.
Not rated.