The episode begins in Italy 1926 as the staff at Hotel Portofino prepare for the arrival of new guests. Bella Ainsworth (Natascha McElhone) gives orders while Julia (Lucy Akhurst) and Rose Drummond-Ward (Claude Scott-Mitchell) ride on the train. Once the train reaches its destination, Julia tells her daughter, Rose, to be careful not to get smuts on her dress. Lucian Ainsworth (Oliver Dench) rushes to the train station where he bumps into Constance March (Louisa Binder). He apologizes before catching up with Julia who thinks he is a servant. She asks him to make sure they don’t lose anything. Constance watches as they pass by her seconds later. Julia tells her daughter that they’re one of the oldest families in the country and she has known Cecil Ainsworth (Mark Umbers) since she was a girl. As for Mrs. Ainsworth, Julia will only say she is a different sort. Their carriage heads toward the hotel.

Meanwhile, Alice Mays-Smith (Olivia Morris) checks on Betty Scanlon (Elizabeth Carling) who is busy cooking. Betty admits this is unlike any meat she has ever prepared before since it is Italian beef. Since there isn’t much fat in it, she won’t have any dripping for her potatoes or pudding. She complains about the potatoes too. Alice asks her to do her best since her mother is adamant about making a good first impression on the new arrivals. She wants them to feel like they’re at a home away from home. Constance tries to greet a man on a horse, but he ignores her. Bella tells Billy Scanlon (Louis Healy) that they could arrive at any time. Two men outside watch as Julia and Rose arrive. The younger gentleman says they’ve received a fresh delivery of English roses. As the carriage stops, Billy begins unloading their suitcases. Bella greets them and hopes they’ll call her Bella. They’re surprised when they learn Lucian was with them all along.

Lucian never told them because the moment never seemed to arise. He doesn’t think it is a big deal. After the intro, Melissa (Imogen King) watches the racket downstairs as her aunt calls for her. Lady Latchmere (Anna Chancellor) knew they should’ve rented a villa. Although she is feeling ghastly, she decides she’ll join them for dinner anyway while claiming one has to keep their strength up. While Constance walks around town, Rose tells her mother that everything is delightful. She wonders if Mrs. Ainsworth does it all herself. Her mother admits she believes Bella likes getting her hands dirty. As she takes a look at Rose in the mirror, she says she’ll have to do before reminding her how important first impressions are. They go downstairs where Julia grabs a glass of prosecco and complains about her room being smaller than what they’re used to. Rose liked it though. As they sit down, Bella tells them they’ve been open since Easter, but it has only gotten busy in the last month.

Lady Latchmere gets upset when they try to serve her alcohol again because she doesn’t drink it and has told them several times already. The two men who were sitting outside, Count Carlo Albani (Daniele Pecci) and Robert Albani (Lorenzo Richelmy), enter and say hello. Bella tells Julia who they are as Julia says the advertisement said all the guests would be English. Bella corrects it by saying they’re English or English speaking. Count Albani is an Oxford man while Anish Sengupta (Assad Zaman) is a dear friend of Bella’s son. Once Lucian enters, Bella asks if he’d like to redeem himself to Julia and Rose by telling them all about Portofino. He grabs a drink and starts from the beginning by telling them how his mother fell in love with the place when she was on her honeymoon with his father. They moved there because Bella thought it would give them all a fresh start. Julia asks about Cecil who won’t be joining them this evening because he has been delayed.

Later that night, the hotel guests begin drinking and having dinner. Lucian asks Billy for more wine. However, Bella stops him and cuts her son off. Lucian and Anish head outside and take off their suits as they prepare to jump in the water nearby. Bella tells Alice she was a trooper tonight before they find a red stain on one of the tablecloths. Bella insists it isn’t a problem since she can fix it. Then, she says the introduction to Rose went as well as could be expected. While Bella says she is pretty, Alice doesn’t think that counts since they’re more worried about her father’s 6,000 acres of prime arable land. Alice suspects she could be ugly and her father would still want Lucian to marry her. She complains that her father wouldn’t spend a tenth of the time trying to find her a new husband.

Lucian and Anish sit outside and drink. Anish asks him to take off his top so he can see how the wounds are healing. As Anish touches one wound, we see a flashback of Lucian who was nearly killed during the war and Anish being by his side. In the present, Anish jokes it is just a scratch. Lucian admits it rarely bothers him since it has been eight years now. Anish tells Lucian that Italy suits him. Back inside, Bella finds Betty still hard at work and says she’ll have a fresh mint tea. Betty tries to get it, but Bella promises she can manage on her own before thanking her for dinner. Count Albani sends his compliments particularly for the potatoes. Bella grabs the bottle of olive oil while calling it marvelous stuff. Betty reveals she has been greasing the pans with it. While Bella makes herself a drink, Lucian asks Anish what he thinks about Rose. He says she was a peach although it was hard to tell with Lucian drooling all over her. Although Anish is sure he’ll be very happy, Lucian says nothing has been decided yet.

Constance March finally arrives in the middle of the night and tells Bella she is the new nanny. They discuss how she got there and she turns down a meal. Bella says they should get her to bed and acquaint themselves properly in the morning. Lucian says goodnight to Anish before saying he is going to take a turn around the garden. Cecil sits down and opens the small chest which holds their money. He puts some in his pocket and leaves the rest. Lucian visits one of the staff members who lets him in while only covering her front with a blanket. Bella reads what sounds like a love letter from a man who wishes he could be with her in Italy. She quickly puts it away when Cecil knocks on the door and steps inside. He claims the train was delayed while Genoa was Genoa. She tells Cecil that Julie was disappointed he wasn’t there to greet her and Alice’s nose is out of joint. Other than that, Bella believes everything went well.

She goes on to say Rose is beautiful although appearance is only part of it. Cecil tries to entice her, but Bella says they should get him to bed since he is drunk. Once he is gone, Bella returns to the letter hidden in her Emily Dickens book. She also has a picture of a man. She thinks about their time together before waking up due to shouting nearby. When she gets up to look, she sees Lucian coming into the hotel in the middle of the night. Then, she wakes up Anish to tell him Lady Latchmere has taken ill. Although he is a little out of practice and ill-equipped, she believes he can help. If anything were to happen to Latchmere, it would be bad for the hotel. Melissa lets them in seconds later. While Anish helps Lady Latchmere, Bella offers to take Melissa downstairs to get something a little stronger than tea. In the morning, Bella knocks on Latchmere’s door and finds that Anish is still there. He explains he told Melissa he’d make himself comfortable just in case her aunt got ill again. Since he has relieved her immediate symptoms, he doesn’t think there is a need to call a local doctor.

He recommends serving prunes for breakfast and a digestive for the ladyship after every meal. He thinks the Limoncello she served last night will do the trick although she’ll have to disguise it as Italian lemonade since she doesn’t drink alcohol. She asks about Lucian so Anish says it feels like he is finally starting to heal. While he’ll heal physically, the mental trauma may always cast its shadow. Bella says he used to be full of purpose. Anish thinks he will be again with time. Next, Betty greets Constance who admits she can barely believe she is here. Constance brings her a jar of Marmalade and a jar of property English mustard. She has a letter from her mom. Betty admits she couldn’t imagine it. When she and Fanny Gray were in the service together, she never believed she’d be standing here with her daughter nearly 30 years later.

Betty hugs her. Cecil finds Bella writing a letter. He checks the envelope and asks who Henry Bowater Esquire is. Bella explains Henry is one of her father’s accountants from his private estate and she is writing to him about their cash flow. He offers to post it when he goes into town later. Before he can leave, Bella tells him she knows what he did. He pretends he doesn’t know what she is talking about. Bella opens the small chest to remind him he took the money. Cecil promises he was going to pay it back when he can. She suspects he could pay it using his family’s trust, but she soon learns he spent all that money already. Bella complains that she can’t run the hotel on credit and needs all the ready money she can get. Cecil only says he needs that money too. After that, Bella meets with Constance to tell her Lottie will be her primary concern although she will have other duties too. She asks her to start by taking menus to the dining room. When she is asked if she can read and write, Constance says she gets by.

Bella thinks they’ll have to do better than that. As Alice walks by, Bella stops her and introduces her to Constance. She explains Alice is Lottie’s mother. They agree now would be a good time for Constance to meet Lottie. As they leave, Paola (Carolina Gonnelli) enters and gets an envelope from Bella. Paola steps outside to post the letter, but another man agrees to do it for her. Meanwhile, Bella says good morning to Julia and Rose. Julia takes the opportunity to complain about her room being cramped and hot while Rose says she slept like a baby. They learn it took them three years to convert the building from a country house into a motel along with three other years to convince Cecil to come here. Julia asks for something more spacious on the first floor and offers to talk to Cecil about it. Bella agrees to see if she can move one of the other guests to accommodate Julia. Outside, Anish watches as Lady Latchmere is served Limoncello as he recommended.

It seems to do the trick just like he said it would. Lucian approaches Rose to see if she’d like to take a trip to the beach or a boat trip with him. Rose doesn’t know how to swim so Lucian says it’ll be his pleasure to teach her. She wants to ask her mother first. Cecil tells Julia they’ll make a fine couple. She agrees and says they did at their age too. Cecil promises he wouldn’t avoid her before he learns they didn’t get off to the best start with Lucian. As they walk together, Lucian tells Rose about all the things they can do around there and the cicadas that make the awful humming noise. He offers to see if he can find one for her, but Rose says she can’t deal with bugs and rushes away from him. Cecil motions for Lucian to go after her. He asks Julia whether Rose will go along with it. Julia believes Rose will do whatever she is told. When Bella checks on Lady Latchmere, she sees Julia and Cecil closer than she’d like. Jack Turner (Adam James) and Claudine (Lily Frazer) arrive outside and make a grand entrance.

Jack signs in before they look around. Billy is responsible for carrying their luggage to the top floor for them. The servant who was supposed to deliver Bella’s letter gives it to another man and gets paid for doing so. Lucian joins his mother on the balcony and admits he is trying to stay out of his father’s way. Bella tells him she is worried about him because he has been flittering his time away in the most unproductive fashion. She doesn’t care what he does, but she can’t bear to see him not using most of his talents. Lucian reminds her Cecil says painting is a waste of time although she refutes that. As for Bella, she is fulfilled by motherhood, the hotel, and lastly her marriage to Cecil. She believes someone can really find their purpose in loving someone if they really love that person. Lucian asks what happens if you don’t before Cecil interrupts. Cecil steps back inside where he finds Jack admiring Lucian’s paintings. He tells Jack about them.

Jack is told not to say anything about Lucian being talented because Cecil doesn’t want his son believing he can make a living as a painter. Jack asks if they’re for sale since he knows a few collectors. Jack’s female friend surprises them with her outfit. He decides to go into town while she is going to lounge outside. She stuns Melissa and Lady Latchmere when she strolls by too. Lucian finds Constance looking at the Iliad and tells her she might want to start with something less ambitious than Homer. She claims she couldn’t read the menu because it was written funny, but Bella wants Lucian to help with her letters anyway. Since neither of them wants to be there, Lucian says they should just make the best of it. The man who paid for the letter, Vincenzo Danioni, introduces himself to Roberto and asks him if he is a member of the fascist party. Roberto says no although he has thought about joining. Roberto is told to watch his back at the English hotel because they’re treacherous bastards.

Constance finishes before telling Lucian she has to go. She wants to talk to Mrs. Mays-Smith before agreeing to meet at the same time tomorrow. Lucian flips the paper over and finds a message saying, “I may not know Eggs Benedict but I Know my ABCs”. Later, Bella turns on the music as Anish hears it outside. Lucian looks at pictures from his military days. Melissa helps Lady Latchmere get dressed while Lottie combs her daughter’s hair. Cecil joins Jack outside and offers him an imported cigar since there are some things you don’t rely on the Italians for. Cecil wants to know about his experience with art. Jack explains he buys and sells a little bit and primarily works with private clients. His interest in Lucian’s work was entirely personal because there isn’t much money to be made from anything painted this century. He tells Cecil that works from the Old Masters are selling like hotcakes back in the States. The real money is made from authenticating the pieces and Jack has the best guy in the business.

Betty tells Constance she cried when reading the letter. She couldn’t imagine why Constance’s mother wanted her to find a place for her there. Since Constance had a terrible time of it, there is no wonder she wanted to come here. Betty says they’ll give her a new beginning and a chance to put all those troubles behind her. In the morning, Bella watches as Cecil leaves and heads toward town. Before long, he shows up at the telegram office to send a telegram about a proposition that could make both of them rich. Bella reads to Lottie until she gets a visit from Danioni (Pasquale Esposito) who says he is from the Communal Council. When he asks if there is a place they can speak in private, Bella says her husband isn’t here. However, Danioni wants to speak to her. He wants to talk to her and not Cecil. Constance sits with Lottie while Bella takes him to her office. He shows her the letter he bought and admits nothing happens here without him knowing about it.

He says it would be a disaster if it fell into the wrong hands and they can only hope her other letters reached their destination. When she asks what he really wants, Danioni says he wants what they always want money.

 

Hotel Portofino Review

Hotel Portofino is a new British period drama starring Natascha McElhone and Mark Umbers. The series follows Bella Ainsworth as she runs a hotel in Portofino, Italy. After the first episode, it is clear the show is going to have a lot of things going on simultaneously. It seems Bella and Cecil are walking a thin financial line. When Cecil isn’t stealing money from the hotel, he is busy concocting shady plans to get rich quickly.

Cecil is also trying to push his son, Lucian, to marry Rose Drummond-Ward so he can gain leverage over 6,000 acres of land. Lucian is still trying to overcome the physical and mental trauma he experienced during the war. On top of that, you have Constance, Lady Latchmere, Jack Turner, and Anish. With so much going on, I am a bit worried the storylines could become overwhelming at some point. It wasn’t an issue during the first episode, but it could be.

The scenery is gorgeous and the scenes aren’t overly dark like so many other recent shows. While I wasn’t blown away by the first episode, I truly believe Hotel Portofino could transform into an emotionally deep, worthwhile period drama. It will likely take another episode or two to really develop a rapport with the characters and find out where things are headed. I look forward to following this journey. The opening episode scores a 7 out of 10. Recaps of Hotel Portofino will be available on Reel Mockery here. Learn how to support the Reel Mockery project by following this link.