Because that's all there was time for a very busy and much in demand Sally Wainwright to write and produce. They only finished filming at the end of October! It's a miracle we got two!

God, her new squeeze is really annoying and OTT!

I agree. She must be desperate to sleep with her. I'd put a pillow over her face to shut her whiny voice up.

She's an interesting contrast to Caroline, definitely not Caroline's usual 'sort of person'.

This is turning into a Ray Cooney farce. Her and gonorrhoea.

What an odd disjointed episode. It felt rushed like they were trying to tie up all the loose ends in one hour.

I loved every minute if this. It finished with a lot of questions and endings/beginnings. Hopefully setting up for a new series.

I don't think last or indeed tonight's quite hit the heights of previous series... But, it was still really good and better than probably 95% of any other new programmes/series we get these days. So, I enjoyed it, a lot. I really hope we do get a proper fourth series, there's still a lot of mileage in this IMO.

I was quite disappointed as so much of the humour was missing. I've noticed this with comedy series before. A couple of series with lots of humour and then angst takes hold of characters.

First rate acting from Dean and Nicola but I found the am dram a pointless farce put there only to give some backdrop to Celia acting as a medium in the ouija board scene which was over all to quickly.
I still enjoyed it immensely but it could have done with fewer plot items and concentrated on developing those left.

I take it that Caroline's walk into the new school is the curtain-raiser for Series IV?

I love a ghost story at Christmas and the way the trailers were edited I thought that LTIH had cleverly put one into the story and was really looking forward to it. Disappointed to see that it was actually separate stories that came to nothing. I guess the man in the barn will turn out to be just that if the storyline is ever revisited.

Didn't really do it for me but I would definitely watch another series.

I agree with most previous posters that these 2 eps weren't as good as the previous series however i get that the whole ghost thing was part of it being a Christmas special. I really feel that Caroline's new school, Robbie apparently leaving, Olga, Harry's accident and of course the nods to a death (Celia or Alan I assume) sets it all up nicely for a proper full 4th series where the programme can get back to what it does best! I absolutely love Caroline & Gillian's relationship. For me they make the show.

I'd never seen this before but had heard great things about it so decided to give this Christmas special a try. Maybe lots of previous knowledge was needed because I really didn't enjoy it very much. I also didn't like the inference that all state school heads and teachers are terrible and that it was beyond the pale to consider working in a state school. Even the Olga character said she had 'ended up' in one.

You really need to have watched the previous series to understand what was going on & all the back stories . Give them a try, they were brilliant !

Same for me, I'm afraid.

All very dark and gloomy. Nothing really happened, just people talking to each other in muted voices.

Yeah, perhaps you needed to watch the previous series but, would I want to sit through all that? No, I don't think so, not based on those two episodes. There was something slight depressing about the whole thing.

Exactly this.

I really feel this might turn into one series too many. I found myself losing interest halfway through. I have loved it up until now.

It doesn't help that I find Gillian increasingly irritating and self-centred. Maybe it's Nicola Walker's hesitant delivery that annoys me. I know a lot of people enjoy her acting style in this but it spoils it for me and there was far too much of her last night.

Just my opinion, so no brickbats, please.

huge error with the 'coin clippers' from 1780.... silver/gold coins were milled by then, and were not 'clipped' as earlier medieval hammered coins were.

Not really as good as the previous series and I was disappointed. A lot of the humour was missing especilly Gillian whose life always lurched from one disaster to another but always with humour. Perhaps it has run its course or perhaps it was setting itself up for a new series but according to Nicola Walker although they all wanted to make a new series Sally Wainwright was very busy and nothing was planned.

Overall it was like a wet weekend in Rhyl

Was its purpose to set the ground for a new series by providing updates in a festive context or a wrap for the series as a whole? Leaving us with Alan and Celia taking up AmDram, Caroline going stateschool with the possibility of romance, Gillian imploding on steriods (no change there), and the others coming and going (some as far as Canada) in a 'whatever' kind of way. Heaven knows what happened to Gary but who cares.

I found Alan, Harry and Celia talking of acting hilarious. I know it must have been a little self-referential, Paul Copley taking over from the more famous Derek Jacobi - and how Paul as Harry was giving his insights to the Dr Bradman role... And Celia doing her Lady Bracknell Handbag moment, and the musical King Lear....even stage fright was addressed.

I see possibilities in this am-dram plot, the school plot and of course the Caroline- Gillian talks are the core of this show. The trouble with the will----who shall die....

I would not mind finding out that there is indeed a tramp visiting that barn, sometimes...

Yes, terrible stereotyping of 'the state school', as if only a few lowest of the low people have to go there, and the staff are fat and lazy!

Other than that, and the silly supernatural stuff, I liked the gentle humour at times, and generally enjoyed the programs. I hope the new series will move on from the Gillian killing off her ex husband storyline now.

The little girl seems to be the most placid and uncomplaining child in the history of toddlers.

had to laugh at the one lesbian to another line
"...when I went into the back of you.....on the road I mean...."

Who's Spike? That's what I want to know...

A cat that Gillian ran over with "a combine in the lower field"

Really? A cat is reaching out to them from beyond the veil? Spooky!