It is summer and debutante Rose is to be presented at Buckingham Palace. The family are at Grantham House, their London home, preparing for the busy social programme. Never one to miss out on such a grand occasion, Martha Levinson sails in from New York with Cora's recently disgraced brother Harold in tow. Both outspoken and larger-than-life, they create quite an impression amongst certain members of London's high society. When the Crawleys are implicated in a scandal that threatens to engulf the monarchy, Robert goes to great lengths to protect the royal family, as well as his own.
The second chapter of The Forsytes, Debbie Horsfield's bold new take on The Forsyte Saga (also listed as The Forsyte Saga (2025)), ended on Sunday 18 October 2026 on Channel 5. The six-episode run started on 13 September. It confirmed that this adaptation of John Galsworthy's novels has found its own voice. Horsfield is the writer behind Poldark, and she again mixes period glamour with real emotional cruelty. This finale was the season's most pointed hour yet. If you've just finished it and are still thinking about that last stretch, this debrief is for you.
What worked: a season built around control
From the first episode, Season 2 had one clear theme: who gets to control a life, a body or a fortune. Soames, played with icy precision by Joshua Orpin, opened the season dreaming of fatherhood. That wish turned possessive once we learned that Irene (Millie Gibson) was secretly avoiding pregnancy. This was a smart change to the source material. Galsworthy's "man of property" has always treated his wife as an asset, and the show makes that hunger personal and frightening. It also gives Irene her own plans and her own secrets. Gibson, who became known worldwide as Ruby Sunday in Doctor Who, plays Irene's quiet resistance with great control. When the finale finally lets her try to escape Soames, it feels earned, not sudden.