By the final episode, it goes all-out on the theatrics, and if it starts out as a steady and familiar period drama, it certainly doesn’t end that way. This saves it from the dreary doldrums, and, coupled with great performances, particularly from Esme Creed-Miles as Iris and Hardwicke as the shadowy Silas, it makes it well worth a flutter.

As pretty as a painted marionette, The Doll Factory ultimately lacks the qualities all good telly demands: a heart and a soul.