The Last Garden in England

Stella yearns to leave Highbury and leave Bobby behind, which causes her enormous guilt. With her sister’s death, she knows that her dreams of living in London are finished. She must accept the responsibility for her nephew. The two are shopping in town when Stella comes across Mrs. Symonds in the store. Stella thanks Mrs. Symonds for allowing Bobby to sleep in Robin’s room; it has helped him overcome some of his grief. As they are talking, Bobby knocks over a display of jam—an enormous waste of sugar in a time of rationing. Mrs. Symonds calmly steps in, asks Bobby to explain himself, and checks to see if he is injured. She promises to repay the shopkeeper for the lost goods.

As Mrs. Symonds and Stella walk back to the house, Mrs. Symonds admits that she wished for a girl, but now she loves Robin with all her heart. She reassures Stella that she can be a good mother to Bobby though Stella worries that she does not love him. Changing the subject, Mrs. Symonds admonishes Stella for the tough scones served at teatime.

The letters that Beth receives from the front now come from Graeme Hastings, not Colin, and Beth eagerly writes back. However, Graeme’s letters abruptly stop, and Beth fears the worst. Nearly two weeks after the invasion of Normandy, Graeme finally responds: He is alive and uninjured, but he cannot disclose his location. In the meantime, Beth has written to Colin, informing him of her engagement to Captain Hastings. She receives a letter back from him with “only one word written there: No” (213).

Amidst an unusual heat wave and with no air conditioning, Emma makes progress in the winter garden. Sydney stops by to check in with Emma and asks her if she would also consider renovating the kitchen garden, which was not in the original contract. Emma refuses the offer, as food plants are not her specialty, and she does not plan to extend her stay. Sydney asks if Charlie might be interested, which bothers Emma. She encourages Sydney to ask him but worries that Charlie might leave the business. Meanwhile, Emma’s parents have decided to visit Highbury House in two weeks’ time.

The next day, Emma discusses Charlie’s plans. She asks if he wants to leave Turning Back Thyme. He says that he does not currently have plans to leave, but he has considered it. He is honest with her, as her best friend, and tells her that he will not be content to be just an employee in the long term.

Venetia and Matthew have taken to exchanging letters by hiding them in the hollow of an old oak tree. When Venetia goes to deliver her belated letter, however, she is intercepted by Matthew’s sister, Mrs. Melcourt, who curtly invites her to ride back to the house with her. Mrs. Melcourt makes a point of noting that Matthew will be married soon to a suitable woman of Mrs. Melcourt’s choosing. She also mentions that Matthew lives off of Mr. Melcourt’s fortune, so the woman in question must also be independently wealthy. Venetia is flustered by these revelations, but she keeps her poise until she begins to feel unwell. As she dismounts from the carriage, she faints.

The doctor informs Venetia that she is pregnant. At 35, Venetia did not consider this to be a possibility. She is mortified that the housekeeper, who brought her inside, must also know. She begs the doctor not to tell the Melcourts. He agrees but assures her that, at some point, Venetia will not be able to hide her condition.

Diana ventures out into the gardens, enjoying the hot weather. She hears voices from the children’s garden and finds Beth sketching Robin and Bobby. Robin asks to play in the winter garden, and Diana says she will get the key; he is not allowed in that garden room alone.

Diana asks Beth what she and Captain Hastings plan to do after the war. Beth does not know yet, but Graeme has said she can stay with his parents should she get pregnant—but Beth wants to stay in Highbury. Diana offers to host the couple’s wedding breakfast at Highbury House. Beth thanks her, then asks if she is sacrificing too much, agreeing to follow Captain Hastings wherever he decides. Diana hesitates, then says that Beth can—and should—advocate for what she wants.

Diana decides to revisit her long quiet music room. She tunes the harp and begins to play. She will not leave the room quiet for such a long time again.

Venetia has formed a plan: She will leave Highbury House in September, pretending to have some sort of illness and leaving Mr. Hillock to finish the planting. Meanwhile, she will go abroad for several months, where she will have the child and find it a good home before returning to England. She has also decided to quit seeing Matthew altogether.

She is called into the house by Mr. Melcourt. He wants Venetia to meet the director of the Royal Botanical Heritage Society. Mr. Schoot is impressed with Venetia’s work and invites her to contribute articles to the Society’s journal. She refuses because the Society will not admit women to its organization. He understands and smiles at her. He believes that such restrictions will soon be lifted.

While they are talking, Matthew comes into the drawing room. He stumbles when he sees Venetia, and she longs to hold him. She hurries back out to the garden as soon as the conversation with Mr. Schoot is over, but Matthew follows her. She confesses that she is pregnant, and he immediately asks her to marry him. She refuses the scandal that will follow, so Matthew suggests that they follow her plan—but together. Finally, she acquiesces; she is still in love with him. However, she cannot help but feel uneasy about the risks.

Beth is still unsettled, not knowing where she and Graeme will end up after the war. She is relieved that he is now serving behind a desk rather than at the front, but she fears for their future. She very much wishes to stay in Highbury. Her roommate, Ruth, senses Beth’s agitation and invites her for an outing to Lemington Spa for some shopping and fun. While there, a train from London arrives, and Beth spies Graeme disembarking. She runs into his embrace, and they kiss. Then, she sees Colin also getting off of the train. He confronts Captain Hastings, and they steel for a fight. Beth interrupts them, saying that her decisions are her own. Ruth leads Colin away.

This gives Beth the courage to tell Graeme exactly what she wants: to marry in Highbury and stay in Highbury. Graeme acknowledges her determination and acquiesces; they will figure out a way to find a home here. He wants her to be happy.

Emma’s parents have come to Highbury House. Emma’s mom peppers her hosts, Sydney and Andrew, with backhanded compliments, while her dad tries to soothe things over. Sydney talks about her plans to open the restored gardens to the public, which would be welcome publicity for Emma’s business. Sydney, Andrew, and Henry take Emma’s dad to the tea garden, while Emma and her mom walk the other way. Emma’s mom begins questioning her business acumen, and Emma finally snaps. She tells her mom to quit interfering and to quit criticizing; Emma must make her own decisions. Mom is taken aback, but she agrees to try. During their argument, Emma admits to herself how much she appreciates Highbury.

After her parents leave, Emma is exhausted by work and setbacks. She opens the mail to find a letter from Professor Waylan, whom she had asked to do some research into Venetia’s past. Emma is still curious about who Celeste might be. Professor Waylan has discovered that “Celeste” was a pet name that Venetia’s father would often call her mother. While inconclusive, it seems reasonable that Venetia named the winter garden for her mother. The professor also notes that Venetia’s husband, Spencer Smith, uses the word “celestial” to describe their relationship. Emma opens another letter to find that the conservancy job at the Royal Botanical Heritage Society has been funded: The job is hers, if she wants it.

Stella tries to hurry Bobby as they get ready to attend Beth’s wedding. Stella has made the couple a wedding cake, with real eggs and fresh butter, as her gift to them. As Stella watches the two get married, she wonders if she will ever want to get married—she is not sure. As Beth and Graeme walk back down the aisle, ceremony complete, Bobby makes a scene, climbing onto the backs of the pews and then throwing a tantrum in the aisle. Stella is embarrassed, frozen in place; she does not know what to do. Mrs. Symonds intervenes, demanding that Bobby stop. He listens to her, and she, in turn, listens to him: He is hot and uncomfortable and hungry. She acknowledges his discomfort and asks him to be patient a while longer. Stella realizes that Mrs. Symonds has an instinctual sense of how to parent that she herself lacks.

At the reception, Diana reflects on her relationship with her sister-in-law, Cynthia. Initially, Diana had admired her: Cynthia was an accomplished young lady, with a good education and impeccable manners, as suitable to the upper classes. However, when it became clear that Diana would inherit Highbury House, Cynthia became her enemy, furious that her childhood home would not be passed to her.

Now, Cynthia has enjoyed several glasses of champagne, and she begins to speak openly about her brother to Diana. She suggests that Murray was selfish, and that Diana was immature when they married. At the same time, Diana acquiesced to all of Murray’s wishes without ever expressing her own needs. Though Diana is annoyed, she cannot deny that Cynthia taps into the truth: Diana quit playing her beloved harp at Murray’s nudging; she quit attending parties and concerts. Cynthia states that her brother bullied Diana into molding her life according to his wishes. Diana slowly becomes furious, thinking that she was the one who built Highbury House, who made it a home, and who cared for the gardens. Still, she tells Cynthia that she made sacrifices because she loved Murray; Cynthia softens, happy to know that this was the case. Highbury House, though, is still a point of contention. Cynthia is angry that Diana inherited it; Diana is angry that Cynthia has taken over it, installing and managing the convalescent hospital.

Their argument is interrupted as a soldier shouts for Mrs. Symonds to come out to the gardens, quickly. Something has happened to Robin. A nurse accompanies her outside. Robin’s body is limp, and there is foam gathering around his lips. The nurse points to a plant nearby; it is monkshood, a fatally poisonous plant. Bobby is crying, too, saying that Robin claimed the plant had magical powers. While Diana clings to Robin’s body, Bobby clings to her.