In 1830’s Northumberland 16 year old Cissie Brodie is forced to bring up her five younger siblings alone following the death of their parents.

When Cissie Brodie loses both of her parents to cholera she is left with nine younger siblings to look after and no income. She is aware that the workhouse is usually the inevitable outcome for people in such dire circumstances - an outcome she is determined to avoid, knowing it will break up her family. In desperation she accommodates them in a cave on the fells – the ‘dwelling place’ – and with the help of Matthew, a wheelwright, she succeeds in building a makeshift home in this rough environment. She resolutely defies all the dogmatic influencers who insist the workhouse is her only option. Writer: Gordon Hann / Novel: Catherine Cookson / Producer: Ray Marshall / Director: Gavin Miller / Design: Ash Wilkinson / Music: Colin Towns / Costume: Shuna Harwood / Camera: John Hooper

This book has an absolutely terrible, super damaging philosophy of love and sex, and I threw it in the garbage. It might be the only book I've ever thrown in the garbage, and I have no regrets. The ending (and the relationships between Cissie and everyone else, but especially the conclusion) is brutal. 10/10 do not recommend. Kids growing up/acting up? - Yes Kids: - struggling to earn a living to survive Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Clive’s return home adds more complications. He is the child’s father, but Lord Fischel and his vicious daughter lay claim to the little boy. More intrigue and violent confrontations follow, and as in any great novel, there are plenty of unexpected twists to the rest of the story, including romantic ones.

He runs after her on the moor and asks her if she loves Matthew the carpenter. She’s like, “Nah, he’s never around when I need him.” Her ninety-six siblings are like, “Wait, what?” In the midst of trying to put an end to the girlfight, Clive falls over on top of Cissie, and apparently his pants fell down in the fracas, because as Isabella screams encouragement like it’s the last hundred yards of the Boston Marathon, Clive rapes Cissie. This story revolves around Cissy Brodie, a 15 year old girl who is left to care for her numerous siblings when her parents die. If that wasn't enough, they are evicted from their home. Cissy is determined to keep the family together and so, sets out to create a "dwelling place" from a cave on the fells. Ray took the role of Graham Braithwaite in At Home with the Braithwaites, the hugely successful drama series about a lottery winner starring Amanda Redman. Episodes 56 mins ago Ireland’s Most Evil Killers: Charlotte And Linda Mulhall (Sky Crime Thursday 2 November 2023)The struggles of Cissie and her family are in stark contrast to the lifestyle of the local gentry. Separated from his wife, Lord Fischer lives in his stately home in comfort and opulence with a son and a daughter – neither of whom he gets on with. His daughter Isabelle hates the isolated existence in the country, while Clive lives only for painting. Catherine Cookson skillfully weaves their fortunes with those of the impoverished Brodies. So, The Dwelling Place is about the fiercely beautiful and clever Cissie Brodie, who marries her rapist. What I enjoyed was that this was a sort of dystopian survival novel . . . except it takes place early in the 19th century. Cissie, 15, is the eldest of eleven children (there were 14, but three died previously) when her own parents and an infant die of fever. This is in the County of Durham in Northeast England, and there are few options for the absolutely destitute. But Cissie will hear nothing of her siblings going "into the Poor Law" -- obviously horrific. So with the help of a kind young wheelwright, Cissie manages to set up house in a cave on the fells ["a hill or stretch of high moorland, esp. in Northern England"]. It's fascinating because it goes into great detail about their belongings, their meager meals, how they make do, a sort of Boxcar Children for adults. Ok, it seems there are many contradictions regarding the plot of this story and personally, I feel, this is as a result of many who had watched the mini-series believing the novel is accurate to the tv/movie adaptation, which it is not. They have friends, but charity cannot always spare them the harsh reality of their struggle and the bitterness of those who wish them harm. But can love, when it arrives, teach Cissie not to fear the world beyond the dwelling place?

One of Ray's first roles was in the Catherine Cookson drama The Dwelling Place. He also appeared in a later Catherine Cookson adaptation, The Tide of Life, which starred Gillian Kearney. A great story that really reads as a non-fiction novel. During that time in history this really does portray how very difficult and downtrodden the underclass was and how children were used in dangerous work. A masterful read. Catherine Cookson has recently become one of my favorite authors. Cookson creates powerfully touching novels of love and overcoming the odds, two things that I greatly enjoy reading about. The Dwelling place is such a novel. It tells the story of a courageous young girl who takes on the challenge of raising her many brothers and sisters. It's touching and very interesting plot wise. I recommend it to those who LOVE historical fiction and perhaps those who like not having the difficulty of something like Jane Austen. What I'm getting at is that it's pretty straightforward. Cissie’s only real ally is Matthew, the carpenter from the village, who’s sweet on Cissie even though he’s married to Rose the miller’s daughter. He’s played by Ray Stevenson, whom the Catherine Cookson miniseries have trained me never to trust, since he plays a jerk in two of them.This can be because you're in a country where BritBox is not available, or because you're using a VPN. Episodes 56 mins ago Bangers & Cash: Restoring Classics: Episode 4 (Yesterday Thursday 2 November 2023) Cissie Brodie grew up on a tenant farm in 1840s England. When cholera took her parents, the fifteen-year-old girl was left caring for nine younger siblings. To keep them out of the workhouse, Cissie moves them to a cave in the fells. She makes the heartbreaking decision to send the older boys out to work in the mines. Some of her sisters worked in the homes of the wealthy. When the life of the offspring of a rich landowner intersects with Cissie's, her world undergoes another great change. Cissie is resilient and overcomes great hardships.