FLORA Thompson’s trilogy lends itself to the lavish dramas the BBC has been able to produce in recent years, but has proved difficult to reproduce in just a couple of hours on the stage.

The play was around long before the TV adaptation, but this version, originally performed at the National Theatre in the late 1970s, did not quite live up to expectations.

Much of the audience had no doubt been lured by the phenomenal success of the period drama on screen, but some left at the interval after only muted applause greeted the end of the first act.

The second act saw marked improvement, but the production was slow paced and lacked any real storyline until the final scene in which we saw the awful consequences of the First Wold War on the population of a rural village.

Lark Rise to Candleford is the tale of a day in the life of ordinary folk in the Oxfordshire village of Lark Rise, encompassing everything from harvest to politics and an unplanned pregnancy to workforce struggles.

An illustrious cast, including Sara Crowe of Four Weddings and a Funeral fame, Eric Richards from The Bill and G4’s Jonathan Ansell gave lacklustre performances.

The cast cannot be blamed for the stilted direction, but their accents left a lot to be desired, veering from West Country to American at times.

Stand out performances came from Becci Gemmell in a narration role as Laura and Elizabeth Marsh as the bitchy village gossip Mrs Andrews.

It’s a shame we weren’t treated to more music as what we were given was enjoyable and well arranged by folk legend Ashley Hutchings, founder of Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span.

The TV series Lark Rise to Candleford followed Laura’s journey between the two villages. As we never actually reached Candleford, the title of this play was somewhat misleading.

Larkrise to Candleford runs until Saturday. Box office 023 8071 1811