Poldark - Episode 8 (Finale) - Advance Preview + Dialogue Teasers

© BBC Pictures
Here we are, the end is upon us already, after this Sunday it will be a long ten months before Poldark graces our screens again. For those who are unfamiliar with the story, a brief heads up might be in order before I go any further, the season will be ending on a bit of a cliffhanger. I can see sales of the novels sky rocketing next week as viewers who have not read the source material before become desperate to find out what’s in store for the characters. But let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves, we still have the finale to get through first and it’s possibly the best episode of the season so far.

A few months have passed and the Carnmore smelting company have been outbid at every auction by the Warleggans, leaving it without any copper to process and sell. We join Ross and his remaining partners at the last sale they can afford to attend, and if they fail once more then the company will have to fold. The inevitable does indeed come to pass, with George and Cary buy up every last ton of ore on sale leaving Carnmore out in the cold.

Being the smarmy, detestable chap he is George cannot leave it at that though; his raison d'etre being that there’s no point in beating your rival if you don’t get to gloat afterwards. During their conversation it becomes obvious that much of what he told Francis last week wasn’t just a ploy to coax names out of him. He really does not comprehend why Ross feels the way he does about him; the snob in him preferring to believe that it’s his blacksmith roots which causes the disdain from his peers, rather than his greed and selfishness making him so repulsive.

Back at home, the Trenwith Poldark’s are facing a different kind of trouble altogether. Some of the servants have come down with an illness that is sweeping across the country, and it appears they will be next to be struck down with it. The putrid throat has no cure – though that buffoon of a doctor, Choake, would have you believe otherwise – and it is killing entire families, the young and old alike. Well, except of course for Aunt Agatha, who manages to escape its clutches; she has the constitution of an ox that one!

For Francis, Elizabeth and Geoffrey Charles however, things are looking rather bleak. Help is on its way though, in the form of Demelza, who rushes over to take care of them as soon as she hears the news, despite the recent hostility between them. In a cruel twist of fate, her kind deed backfires when she herself becomes infected with the disease and also passes it on to her daughter, Julia.

While a gloomy mood hangs over the Nampara household, dark storm clouds to match it roll across the Cornish sky, bringing a violent storm in its wake which spells disaster for the Queen Charlotte, the Warleggan’s new ship. She has barely left port on her maiden voyage before she is dashed upon the rocks in the worst place possible...the bay off Hendrawna Beach, Poldark land.

As we already know, Ross is no stranger when it comes to a bit of smuggling, it’s the reason he was sent off to fight in America in the first place after all. Yet in this instance the law is more or less on his side as recovering flotsam isn’t technically a crime, it belongs to whoever owns the land it washes up on. Since George is responsible for most of the mines closing in the area, it only seems fair that those affected by his avarice should seek their revenge by plundering his merchandise in return.


Episode 8 airs on Sunday 26th April at 9pm on BBC One and BBC One HD, below are a few dialogue teasers to see you through until then. If you want to have a go at guessing who said what, I will fill in any correct answers before it airs. Don’t forget to come back and vote in our poll after the episode and let us know what you thought.


“Poverty doesn’t offend me, nor does aspiration. But you are mistaken of you think greed and exploitation are the marks of a gentleman” Ross to George

“Good god boy, you don’t suggest we wait for actual evidence? Matthew is a gentleman, he’s a Warleggan”

“You make me ashamed. Your heart is so generous” ? to Demelza

“If I’m not back by nightfall, see Julia’s milk boiled and she’s put to bed?” Demelza to Jinny

“Perhaps the natives were better fed than these miners”

“They’re sick, every last jack of them. And who’s to care for them with Verity gone? She’d no business to go, her duty’s here”

“What would you have done – what did you do, for Jim Carter?”

“If it gets no copper at the next auction, well, surely that will be the death knell for Carnmore”

“I’m struggling to contain it, whole families have gone under”

“Margret was only just saying how much she’s missed you at our little gaming parties” George to ?

“There’s no change, for better or for worse. You should take some air, and sleep”

About the Author - Sandi

Sandi is part of the Senior Staff at SpoilerTV having been a contributor from back in the Lost days of DarkUFO, and who now writes previews for Banshee, The Musketeers, Poldark, and other BBC shows. She also enjoys watching and commenting on other shows such as Reign, Hannibal, Game of Thrones and Elementary.

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