Entertainment
Happy Valley creator Sally Wainwright grateful after Sarah Lancashire ‘spoke up’ to change the ending-Ruth Lawes-Entertainment – Metro
‘It was a really fabulous conversation,’ Sally said.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video
*Warning: This article contains spoilers from Happy Valley season 3 episode 6*
Happy Valley’s creator Sally Wainwright has said Sarah Lancashire is to ‘thank’ for the drama’s ending.
The final ever episode of the juggernaut series aired on Sunday, becoming the most-watched BBC show in 2023 with a record-breaking 7.5million viewers tuning in.
After tussling over the affections of Ryan Cawood (Rhys Connah), the finale saw Catherine Cawood (Lancashire) and Tommy Lee Royce (James Norton) face-off in a dramatic showdown.
Rather than killing his arch-nemesis, Tommy instead decided to set himself alight, with Catherine walking away unscathed, free to book her dream trip to the Himalayas.
However, James, 37, previously let slip that it was a different ending to the original script, which had been changed after Sarah ‘spoke up.’
Sally Wainwright said she spent an entire day discussing the ending with Sarah Lancashire (Picture: BBC Newsnight)
Sally, who also penned Gentleman Jack, appeared on Monday’s Newsnight with Victoria Derbyshire, sharing that she was grateful the Coronation Street actor voiced her concerns.
She explained: ‘Sarah is to thank for that ending, in many ways, because I wrote the first draft, and everybody seemed quite happy with it and then she made it clear that she wasn’t happy with it.
‘The Christmas before she came up to my house, and she spent all day talking about it and she gave me some really good notes.
Sally Wainwright said she had a ‘fabulous conversation with Sarah Lancashire (Picture: BBC/Lookout Point)
Sarah Lancashire plays no-nonsense copper Catherine Cawood (Picture: BBC/Lookout Point)
‘So everything got pushed a bit further in that episode and it was all thanks to Sarah.’
Sally continued that ‘nobody knows scripts better than the actors’ as they have to get into the ‘real granular detail’.
‘It was a great privilege to have the opinion of someone who knew the scripts almost better than I do because she put so much into it; so much thought into it,’ she added.
Tommy Lee Royce knew the game was up (Picture: BBC/Lookout Point)
‘It was a really fabulous conversation – she was literally here all day at my house. And we just spent all day really talking it through and it is nice that we kind of worked it through together. Her performance is just off the scales.’
McMafia actor James has also praised the much-anticipated climax, calling it his ‘perfect ending.’
He told GQ: ‘There’s been such hype. So, I’m like, “What if it falls at the last hurdle?” But the ending was perfect, in a Sally Wainwright sort of way.
‘It was fireworks, but it wasn’t fireworks. It was sitting over a kitchen table, and that is where Happy Valley really thrived.
More: Trending
‘That’s the heart of the show. Cups of tea over kitchen tables. It’s not jumping off cliffs, and guns and fireworks. It’s gentle, it’s domestic, it’s human.’
Happy Valley is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
MORE : ‘It was my perfect ending,’ says James Norton on Happy Valley finale
Entertainment – MetroRead More
