''Hold the Dream'' is a British two-part serial made in 1986, based on the 1985 novel of the same name by Barbara Taylor Bradford. It is the second book in the Emma Harte series, following '' A Woman of Substance''. ''Hold the Dream'' continues the story of Emma Harte, played by Deborah Kerr, with

Jenny Seagrove Jennifer Ann Seagrove (born 4 July 1957) is an English actress. She trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and first came to attention playing the lead in a television dramatisation of Barbara Taylor Bradford's '' A Woman of Substance'' ...

, who played the young Emma taking over the part of Paula Fairley.

Plot

Paula Fairley, now head of the Harte chain of department stores, has taken on the burden of preserving Emma's legacy. However, she suffers dissent within her extended family, in particular from her devious cousin Jonathan Ainsley. Her marriage to Jim Fairley is unhappy, leading her into the arms of her childhood sweetheart, Shane O'Neill ( Stephen Collins), grandson of Blackie O'Neill ( Liam Neeson). Struggling to prove herself in a male dominated world, just like her grandmother before her, Paula suffers heartache and loss that mirror the life of her grandmother. Emma's request that Paula hold her dream is what drives Paula to fight and overcome personal tragedy and come out on top, so as to save the Harte name for the next generation.

Cast

as Paula Fairley * Stephen Collins as Shane O'Neill * Deborah Kerr as Emma Harte * James Brolin as Ross Nelson *

Claire Bloom Patricia Claire Bloom (born 15 February 1931) is an English actress. She is known for leading roles in plays such as ''A Streetcar Named Desire,'' ''A Doll's House'', and '' Long Day's Journey into Night'', and has starred in nearly sixty film ...

as Edwina, Lady Dunvale *

Paul Daneman Paul Frederick Daneman (29 October 1925 – 28 April 2001) was an English film, television, and theatre actor. He was successful for more than 40 years on stage, film and television. Early life Paul Daneman was born in Islington, London. He att ...

as David Amory * Fiona Fullerton as Skye Smith * Suzanna Hamilton as Emily Barkstone * Nigel Havers as Jim Fairley * John Mills as Henry Rossiter * Liam Neeson as Blackie O'Neill * Pauline Yates as Daisy Amory * Valentine Pelka as Winston Harte * Sarah-Jane Varley as Sally Harte * Paul Geoffrey as Anthony, Earl of Dunvale * Dominic Jephcott as Jonathan Ainsley *

Victoria Wicks Victoria Wicks (born Beverly Victoria Anne Wicks; 18 April 1959) is a British actress. She is known for her role as Sally Smedley in Channel 4's comedy series ''Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1990–1998), Mrs. Gideon in ''The Mighty Boosh'' (2004), ...

as Sarah Lowther * David Swift as John Cross *

Nicholas Farrell Nicholas C. Frost (born 1955), known professionally as Nicholas Farrell, is an English stage, film and television actor. Education Farrell was educated at Fryerns Grammar and Technical School in Basildon, Essex, followed by the University of ...

as Sebastian Cross * Richard Morant as Malcolm Perring *

Bruce Boa Andrew Bruce Boa (10 July 1930 – 17 April 2004) was a Canadian actor, who found success playing the token American in British films and television, usually playing military types. Boa's most recognizable film role is in ''The Empire St ...

as Dale Stevens * Denyse Alexander as Gaye Sloane * Amanda Boxer as Minerva * Kate Harper as Elaine Vickers * Christopher Muncke as Sonny Vickers * Ralph Watson as Sam Fellowes

Production

The script was written by Barbara Taylor Bradford herself after the producer had been unhappy with a number of other scripts. She had never written a script before.

Reception

The ''New York Times'', which had liked ''A Woman of Substance'', called this "dreary" and "will no doubt be useful as a future textbook case on how not to make a sequel.""Sequel to 'A Woman of Substance'" by JOHN J. O'CONNOR. ''New York Times'' 27 Oct 1986: C22.

References

External links

* {{Operation Prime Time 1980s British television miniseries Channel 4 original programming 1986 British television series debuts Films directed by Don Sharp 1986 British television series endings 1980s business films Operation Prime Time Television shows based on British novels English-language television shows Television shows set in the United Kingdom Television shows set in the United States