Intentionally grim drama serial regarding the return from the Second World War of the children of two northern families. The Haywards are staunch labour supporters, the Warringtons owners of a soon to be nationalised coal mine. A riveting story exploring the differing effects of the Labour election victory on working class and upper class life, as well as the disruptive effect of war on the love lives of the younger members of the families.
Post-War England in the 1950s. Recovery from the war is a long time coming, and austerity is still keenly felt. The cracks are beginning to show in everything that held the country together, and in family lives on both sides of the class divide. The wealthy Warringtons are split down the middle as Beth becomes a Labour MP which, for her husband John, marks the end of their road together. And lurking always close to hand is Richard Warrington, hungry for everything John has ever owned - from his factory to his house and even his daughter. The Haywards having lost a Grandfather and a mother, find themselves struggling to make sense of the new world order alone. Keir finds his passion in writing, and in the arms of the woman he once loved. Blake must ride a rough sea of thwarted desire and frustration until he too finds his port in the storm. The German emigres Emil, Herta and Paula, the flotsam and jetsam of war, find themselves thrown upon English shores. How they choose to survive will affect all those who know them. In a nation searching the ruins for the fortunes of the battle they have won, this is 'The Spoils of War'.
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