Episodes
| Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | True Happiness | 20100809 | By Stephen Wakelam. True Happiness. Leo Tolstoy has given up writing fiction and cut himself off from his children. Sofya wants to move the family to Moscow. In his fifties the great writer Leo Tolstoy has a spiritual crisis and converts to Christianity. He stops sleeping with his wife. They have ten children. Taking the vows of poverty and chastity literally Tolstoy wants to give everything away but Sofya has a large family to feed. This is the woman who transcribed 'War and Peace' six times and who fights off rivals on daily basis for a place at his side. For forty eight years, the Tolstoys tormented each other with love and hate. Ian McDiarmid and Haydn Gwynne star in this portrait of a tempestuous marriage. Sofya Tolstoy ... Haydn Gwynne Leo Tolstoy ... Ian McDiarmid Chertkov ... Paul Ritter Tanya Tolstoy ... Vineeta Rishi Grigory/Taneev ... Sam Dale Musician ... Michael Shelford Vanya Tolstoy ... James Warner Directed by Claire Grove. Tolstoy has given up writing and cut himself off. Sofya wants to move the family to Moscow | |
| 02 | A Simple Life | 20100818 | 20100810 (R4) | By Stephen Wakelam. A Simple Life: Sofya Tolstoy is pregnant again. Leo invites an aristocratic Christian disciple to stay. Is Sofya right not to trust him? In his fifties the great writer Leo Tolstoy has a spiritual crisis and converts to Christianity. He stops sleeping with his wife. They have ten children. Taking the vows of poverty and chastity literally Tolstoy wants to give everything away but Sofya has a large family to feed. This is the woman who transcribed 'War and Peace' six times and who fights off rivals on daily basis for a place at his side. For forty eight years, the Tolstoys tormented each other with love and hate. Ian McDiarmid and Haydn Gwynne star in this portrait of a tempestuous marriage. Sofya Tolstoy ... Haydn Gwynne Leo Tolstoy ... Ian McDiarmid Chertkov ... Paul Ritter Tanya Tolstoy ... Vineeta Rishi Directed by Claire Grove. |
| 03 | The Kreutzer Sonata | 20100811 | By Stephen Wakelam. The Kreutzer Sonata: Sofya copies a new manuscript. A disturbing tale about a man who murders his wife. Is it directed against her? In his fifties the great writer Leo Tolstoy has a spiritual crisis and converts to Christianity. He stops sleeping with his wife. They have ten children. Taking the vows of poverty and chastity literally Tolstoy wants to give everything away but Sofya has a large family to feed. This is the woman who transcribed 'War and Peace' six times and who fights off rivals on daily basis for a place at his side. For forty eight years, the Tolstoys tormented each other with love and hate. Ian McDiarmid and Haydn Gwynne star in this portrait of a tempestuous marriage. Sofya Tolstoy - Haydn Gwynne Leo Tolstoy - Ian McDiarmid Chertkov - Paul Ritter Tanya Tolstoy - Vineeta Rishi Directed by Claire Grove. Is Leo's disturbing new tale about a man who murders his wife directed against Sofya? | |
| 04 | Vanichka | 20100812 | By Stephen Wakelam. Vanichka: Leo Tolstoy is cold and formal with his wife, Sofya. She is increasingly attracted to a portly pianist who has come to the country for the summer. In his fifties the great writer Leo Tolstoy has a spiritual crisis and converts to Christianity. He stops sleeping with his wife. They have ten children. Taking the vows of poverty and chastity literally Tolstoy wants to give everything away but Sofya has a large family to feed. This is the woman who transcribed 'War and Peace' six times and who fights off rivals on daily basis for a place at his side. For forty eight years, the Tolstoys tormented each other with love and hate. Ian McDiarmid and Haydn Gwynne star in this portrait of a tempestuous marriage. Sofya Tolstoy ... Haydn Gwynne Leo Tolstoy ... Ian McDiarmid Chertkov ... Paul Ritter Taneev ... Sam Dale Vanya Tolstoy ... James Warner Directed by Claire Grove. With Leo cold and formal to her, Sofya is attracted to a portly pianist on a summer visit. | |
| 05 | The Legacy | 20100813 | By Stephen Wakelam. The Legacy. Leo Tolstoy is old and ill. Sofya fights for control diary and papers. Will the marriage survive? In his fifties the great writer Leo Tolstoy has a spiritual crisis and converts to Christianity. He stops sleeping with his wife. They have ten children. Taking the vows of poverty and chastity literally Tolstoy wants to give everything away but Sofya has a large family to feed. This is the woman who transcribed 'War and Peace' six times and who fights off rivals on daily basis for a place at his side. For forty eight years, the Tolstoys tormented each other with love and hate. Ian McDiarmid and Haydn Gwynne star in this portrait of a tempestuous marriage. Sofya Tolstoy ... Haydn Gwynne Leo Tolstoy ... Ian McDiarmid Chertkov ... Paul Ritter Tanya Tolstoy ... Vineeta Rishi Directed by Claire Grove. Leo is old and ill. Sofya fights for control of his papers. Will their marriage survive? |