IAN HYLAND

on last night’s telly

For many viewers, the final of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! was probably the only show in town at 9pm last night.

However, I trust a fair few million jungle fans will still catch up with this gut-wrenching one-off Jimmy McGovern drama starring Alison Steadman, Sheridan Smith and Sinead Keenan. And they will no doubt spot the cruel irony of the scene in a hospital discharge meeting where stroke victim Mary (Steadman) screams at her two daughters Jenny (Smith) and Claire (Keenan), “You claim to be my daughters, so get me out of here!”

That’s not actually what we hear coming out of Mary’s mouth. It’s only thanks to subtitles that we are able to understand her.

That added an edge to one of the most powerful scenes in a 90-minute drama that was full of such scenes. No wonder Sheridan, when she first read the script, cried all the way through it. Oddly though, it didn’t leave me as downhearted as some of McGovern’s previous work. The message I took was that life can be cruel –

Mary’s stroke hit on a beautiful sunny day as she fetched fish and chips with her granddaughters – but life goes on.

That’s not to say McGovern didn’t deal some harsh truths about how Britain cares for its elderly.

There were plenty of scenes to fill you with rage and despair – the bit about ordinary families not being told what benefits they may be entitled to was particularly well done.

Essentially, though, it was a thought provoking family drama featuring three of our finest actresses at the very top of their game.

There were plenty of scenes to fill you with rage and despair