Last Tango In Halifax - Series 1

This is a warm-hearted story of an elderly couple reunited after 60 years apart.

This was the feel good story of Alan and Celia who, after knowing each other when they were teenagers, are reunited through Facebook and start the long awaited relationship that they should have had 60 years earlier. The show works well to keep these two characters as the central point, while bringing in the complicated lives of their family, including Alan's daughter Gillian's affair with Paul and relationship with her son, Raff, and Celia's daughter Caroline's failed marriage to John and her relationship with co-worker Kate.

All the characters are well developed, with Alan and Celia's growing honesty with each other feeling quite natural and really good. Moreover, I think through the lively and strong characterisation, it really helped to shine a more positive light on old age and shows that the elderly shouldn't be taken for granted or portrayed as weak as they often are. As a side note, it also allowed for a good light to shine on social media as it showed how Facebook can be used in a positive way to reunite long lost friends.

I liked how the relationship was tested in the last episode, with Alan being disappointed by Celia's harsh reaction to her finding out about Caroline's relationship with Kate. This set up a very emotional and powerful episode and I thought that Celia's change of mind was down in a very smart way. Furthermore, when Celia reconciles with Alan after his has a heart attack, it was very powerful and allowed for a very happy way to end the series.

Anne Reid and Derek Jacobi gave wonderful performances as Celia and Alan, with Sarah Lancashire and Nicola Walker supporting them with strong portrayals of Caroline and Gillian. There were also good performances from Dean Andrews, Tony Gardner, Josh Bolt, Nina Sosanya, Louis Greatorex and Edward Ashley.