TV review: The Mill

It's hard to feel sorry for yourself for having to face your air-conditioned office the next morning when you've just seen a nine-year-old boy have his hand amputated as a result of an accident involving fast-moving machinery.

And an excellent cast, combined with detailed sets and costumes, added to the realism of last night's Channel 4 drama, The Mill, the first episode in a four-part series.

Set in the 19th century, the programme was based on the history of the Quarry Bank Mill in Cheshire.

The nine-year-old boy, Tommy, was one of a troupe of women and children who grew up knowing nothing other than the sweaty confines of that dark and miserable factory, where their job was to turn into a reality the boss' vision of a world in which the rich all owned wardrobes full of clothes.

Rumours soon spread among the workers that Tommy had died from his injuries.

His overseer had been 'in the privy with his hand up…' – well, let's just say he was otherwise occupied.

When the patriarchal mill owner, Samuel Greg, arrived one day to meet his workers and check on the running of his business, the women and children were faced with a dilemma: Should they keep quiet about the accident that they believed was fatal, or stand together and speak out?

It was one of many engrossing scenes in last night's episode. It pulled me right up to the edge of my seat.

I found myself returning to that position often as I watched interactions between the slimy and ruthless overseer, Charlie Crout, and the young apprentice girl he had dragged into that 'privy' against her will, later feeding his superiors the excuse that 'they sometimes steal bobbin thread by hiding it up their skirts'.

Then there was the noble group of working-class campaigners, chanting outside the boss' office about their children's right to be children. It was altogether inspiring.

Normally it takes a drama closer to home to get under my skin. I am not ashamed to admit that I have shed tears over some depicting the plight of women factory workers in the 1960s, for example.

But when shows are set as far back as the 1800s, that is usually a step too far removed from my own life to draw me in.

So my hat goes off to the producers and directors of this new series for making it both relatable and historically interesting all at the same time.

One of the decisions that contributed to that was to have the characters speak in modern-day English (is there anything that has us reaching for our remote controls faster than hearing every other word end in 'est'?)

On top of that, the acting was top notch. I could not find a single member of the cast to fault, despite the fact that, to the best of my knowledge, none are household names.

I will certainly be tuning in for next week's instalment and I look forward to seeing how the characters and their storylines develop.

And in the meantime, I will have to remind myself not to complain when I find myself working the odd extra hour here or there.

The next episode will be shown on Channel 4 at 8pm on Sunday.

Will Ackerman