Poldark (1975): cast, story & where to watch

Released in 1975, Poldark is a drama series.

What it’s about. Poldark is a television drama based on Winston Graham's novels of the same title. It was first transmitted on BBC Two across two seasons between 1975 and 1977. The adaptation covered all seven novels (of the eventual twelve) published up to the time. In late 18th-century Cornwall, Ross Poldark loses his fiancée, well-bred beauty Elizabeth, to his cousin Francis. He ends up marrying his servant, Demelza Carne, but his passion for Elizabeth simmers on for years. Meanwhile, he strives to make his derelict copper mines a success. Life is hard, smuggling is rife, and Ross finds himself taking the side of the underclass against the ruthless behaviour of his enemies, the greedy Warleggan clan.

Who’s in it. Poldark stars Robin Ellis as Ross Poldark, Ralph Bates as George Warleggan, Kevin McNally as Drake Carne and Clive Francis as Francis Poldark, among others.

How it landed. With an audience score of 6.9/10, Poldark has drawn a solid, mixed-to-positive response.

Where to watch. In US you can stream it on YouTube TV and Spectrum On Demand and rent or buy it from Amazon Video and Google Play Movies. See the full, country-by-country breakdown on our where to watch Poldark page.

If you liked it. Fans of Poldark tend to enjoy Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Attack on Titan.