House of Eliott Season 3 (1993)

Revisited

Review

The House of Eliott is a British period drama set in the 1920s focusing on the Eliott sisters, Beatrice and Evangeline, who establish their own haute couture fashion house. The series was created by Jean Marsh and Eileen Atkins, who previously collaborated on the legendary Upstairs, Downstairs, which set the template for most period dramas that came later. House of Eliott debuted on the BBC on 31 August 1991 and had a total of 34 episodes over its three year run. Sadly, the series ended with a number of storylines unresolved as it was cancelled abruptly after some of the period costumes were destroyed in a fire.

The third season begins in January 1927 which sees the return of Bea, Evie and Madge from the United States where their trip has been highly successful and they are bursting with new ideas for the House of Eliott. Spurred by the popularity of their Sears-Roebuck designs, Evie goes into business with Larry Cotter to make ready-to-wear clothes and agrees to hire Grace Keeble, a talented young designer. who ends up being a thorn in Evie’s side. Grace has a lot of ideas and isn’t shy about presenting them which is just how Evie used to be when the sisters first began so it is odd to see the shoe is now on the other foot. Through Grace, Evie meets Miles Bannister, a talented illustrator, and offers him a job at the House of Eliott but she spurns his romantic advances as she is more interested in his friend, Daniel Page, an artist.

There is a great deal of excitement when the new collection is unveiled as the Aurora Collection but the sisters are dismayed when most of the stock is destroyed in a warehouse fire which is quite ironic when you consider the entire series came to an end as most of the costumes were destroyed in a fire. The sisters salvage what they can for the premiere and it is a critical success, however it is not long before cheaper designs appear on the high street as the Crystal Collection. The sisters are dismayed when the seamstresses behind the Crystal Collection demand to be paid for their work and the scandal hits the newspapers. After an investigation, the sisters realise that Larry Cotter and Grace Keeble have betrayed them with the help of one of their own, Betty Butcher, who was desperate for the money. Betty redeems herself by helping the sisters expose Larry and Grace, and the House of Eliott is redeemed.

On the personal front, Bea discovers she is pregnant which prompts a reconciliation with Jack but Bea is anxious about balancing her career with motherhood. Having announced her pregnancy at the end of the previous season, Tilly gives birth to a son but her happiness is shattered when the infant dies a short time later. A devastated Tilly falls into a state of depression but the tragedy makes Bea realise just how much she wants her own child. The parallel pregnancies are a nice touch and there are some lovely scenes between Bea and a grieving Tilly. When Bea goes into early labour at the salon (with some serious overacting from Stella Gonet), she is rushed to hospital where she gives birth to a daughter. A frantic Evie has to track down Jack who has gone to Glasgow on a research trip but he dashes back to London in time to learn his wife and baby are out of danger.

Thankfully, Jack and Bea’s relationship is far more stable this time around and the constant bickering has almost disappeared. Jack has a renewed purpose in life as he gains critical acclaim for a series of articles he writes on workplace safety and is asked to run in an election as a Labour candidate. Jack has been a photographer, film director, investigative journalist so lets hope is political career lasts the pace. With Bea settling into motherhood, Evie decides to marry Daniel Page but the newlyweds are faced with a problem when Daniel is offered a bursary to study art in Paris. The House of Eliott shows its latest collection to great acclaim and things are looking rosy when Miles’ parents decided to invest in the company but Evie is less than pleased when they encourage a move away from haute couture so she resigns.

The third season also focuses more on the personal lives of the seamstresses who work at the House of Eliott and it is a great shame we didn’t get this in earlier seasons as they are far more interesting than many of the society people who get most of attention. When Madge Althorpe returns from her trip to America with the Eliott sisters, she finds herself unable to settle back into married life and ends up divorcing her husband. She falls in love with Charles Quance, the workshop tailor, and they end up living together as Charles’ estranged wife refuses to divorce him. Madge’s brother, Albert, also arrives to cause havoc as a pub brawl results in Betty Butcher’s husband being convicted for manslaughter. On lighter note, Agnes Clarke attracts the attention of a promoter who launches her singing career.

As the series was not renewed for a fourth season due to the loss of most of the costumes in a fire and rising production costs, many storylines were left unresolved as the writers did not expect the cancellation. A book, The House of Eliott: A House at War  by Elizabeth O’Leary, was released in 1995 and was supposed to wrap up the loose storylines but the plot of the book completely ignores the third season and left fans even more confused.

Further Reading

Explore the characters and books that inspired the series

  • Beatrice Eliott (Stella Gonet)
  • Evangeline Eliott (Louise Lombard)
  • Jack Maddox (Aden Gillett)
  • Tilly Watkins Foss (Cathy Murphy)
  • Madge Howell Althorpe (Judy Flynn)
  • Joseph Wint (Stephen Churchett)
  • Charles Quance (Bill Thomas)
  • Agnes Clarke (Victoria Alcock)
  • Betty Butcher (Diana Rayworth)
  • Miles Bannister (Robert Hands)
  • Daniel Page (Richard Lintern)
  • Grace Keeble (Melanie Ramsay)
  • Larry Cotter (Ian Redford)
  • Norman Foss (Toby Whithouse)
  • BEATRICE ‘BEA’ ELIOTT: Bea is the eldest of the Elliot sisters and is almost twelve years older than her sister, Evie, to whom she became a surrogate mother when their mother died. Bea likes to design more practical clothes but she also has a firm head for business even though she has no more formal education. Bea’s marriage to Jack is on the rocks but they soon reconcile and she gives birth to their daughter.
  • EVANGELINE ‘EVIE’ ELIOTT: Evie is the youngest of the Eliott sisters and is almost twelve years younger than Bea who took care of her after their mother died giving birth to Evie. Evie is a skilled designer and is more daring than her sister, however her love life has been a disaster. Evie eventually marries Daniel, an artist, but soon after Daniel is offered a bursary to study art in Paris.
  • JACK MADDOX: Jack becomes interested in investigative journalism and he writes a series of articles on safety in the work-place. When his articles gain interest, Jack is invited to run as an MP for the Labour Party. He reconciles with Bea when she discovers she is pregnant
  • MILES BANNISTER: Miles is a talented illustrator who is hired by Evie but she does not reciprocate his romantic feelings. Miles is from a wealthy family and his parents decide to invest in the House of Eliott in exchange for Miles becoming a full partner and for a move away from haute couture.
  • DANIEL PAGE: Daniel is a talented artist who falls in love with Evie and they eventually marry. The newlyweds face a crisis when Daniel is offered a bursary to study art in Paris but he declines the offer to stay with Evie.
  • GRACE KEEBLE: Grace is a talented designer who is hired as an apprentice with the House of Eliott but she betrays their trust when she works with Larry Cotter to produce the knock-off Crystal Collection.
  • TILLY WATKINS FOSS: Tilly was initially chosen to go to America with the sisters but couldn’t go due to being pregnant. Tilly eventually gives birth to a son who tragically dies and she falls into a deep depression.
  • MADGE HOWELL ALTHORPE: Madge gets a new taste for independence after her time in America and her marriage crumbles as a result. She embarks on an affair with Charles Quance and they eventually commit to spending their lives together despite the fact Charles’s wife refuses to divorce him.
  • BETTY BUTCHER: Betty works as a seamstress with the House of Eliott and has been with them since the early days. When her husband is jailed for manslaughter, she struggles financially and agrees to provide details on the Aurora Collection so it can be copied by Grace Keeble and Larry Cotter.
  • AGNES CLARKE: Agnes works as a seamstress with the House of Eliott and has been with them since the early days. A talented singer, Agnes attracts the attention of a promoter who helps her launch a music career.
  • CHARLES QUANCE: Charles was hired as a tailor with the House of Eliott towards the end of the previous season. He falls in love with Madge who believes his wife is deceased but she turns up when they announce their engagement. Charles and Madge decide to live together when his wife refuses to divorce him.

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