Plot Synopsis

Based on the series of novels by Winston Graham, POLDARK is a drama series that follows Ross Poldark, a redcoat who returns to Cornwall after the American Revolutionary War to discover that his father is dead, his lands are ruined, and his true love is about to marry his first cousin. The series opens with a prologue in Virginia in 1781, when Captain Poldark's regiment is ambushed by the local militia fighting for independence. After the war and with a scar across his face as a souvenir, he goes home to Cornwall, where his real struggle begins. For one thing, everyone assumes Poldark has been killed in action. On seeing him, they react as if meeting a ghost. And he might as well be dead, since his inheritance from his father is almost worthless; his fiance, Elizabeth Chenoweth, has forsaken him; and all the local gentry urge him to leave the region to make his fortune elsewhere. Poldark immediately goes to work paying off his father's debts, repairing his property, and reopening his abandoned copper mine, which either holds his salvation or his ruin. And he finds someone just as impulsive as he is to share the twists and turns of this eventful new life. In a special appearance, Robin Ellis, who starred as Ross Poldark in the original POLDARK, plays Reverend Halse, the village's sin-obsessed parson. PBS aired the U.S. premiere of POLDARK on Sunday, June 21, 2015 at 9pm (check local listings) as part of its MASTERPIECE collection.

PBS aired the U.S. premiere of the second season of POLDARK on Sunday, September 25, 2016 from 8-10pm (check local listings). At the start of Season 2, Ross stands accused of murder and "wrecking" -- luring a cargo ship to the rocks for plunder. It's a capital offense, the judge is unsympathetic, hostile witnesses have been bribed and Ross appears headed for the gallows. It's just the first in a string of suspenseful episodes every bit as precipitous as the steep cliffs of Cornwall. New this season -- or thrust into prominence from last -- are Gabriella Wilde as Caroline Penvenen, a flirtatious young heiress under the watchful eye of her rich uncle, Ray, played by John Nettles; Luke Norris as earnest young doctor Dwight Enys, who only has time for his patients -- and for Caroline; and Henry Garrett as Captain McNeil, Ross' old comrade from the war, now hunting smugglers and an opportunity to woo a certain married lady.

Season 4 of POLDARK had its U.S. premiere on Sunday, September 30, 2018 at 9pm on PBS (check local listings). In the season opener, te Prime Minister calls an election and uncertainty grips the country. Ross watches Cornwall suffer under the power of Truro's MP, George Warleggan, while Demelza remains caught between Ross and a lovesick Hugh. The Enyses contemplate having a child and Elizabeth seeks the same to secure her marriage. Morwenna uses Osborne's affair with her sister Rowella to keep the reverend's advances at bay. Sam and Drake are blamed for a murder, and Ross finds himself powerless to save his brothers-in-law.
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The fifth season of POLDARK had its U.S. premiere on Sunday, September 29, 2019 at 9pm on PBS (check local listings). In the season opener, the Poldarks look forward to life together in peace, but a plea from Ned Depard compels Ross to return to the capital. Back in Cornwall, Demelza encounters a new opponent. George struggles to engage with the world after Elizabeth's death.