Roger Hamley Anthony Howell Roger Hamley, the warm-hearted, studious younger son of Squire and Mrs. Hamley, surprises everyone when he, not Osborne, distinguishes himself at university. While on an extended visit to Hamley Hall, Molly first encounters Roger in the garden where she laments the news that her father will remarry. In time, Roger comes to think of Molly as a sister, while his romantic thoughts turn to her new stepsister, Cynthia. Anthony Howell enjoyed playing Roger because he was "an unheroic hero.... He is a very good man; he has a lot of integrity. He's honest and he's down to earth, but he's never ambitious. Within the family, all the praise is heaped on Osborne, the older son, so Roger is something of an underdog." Roger Hamley is Howell's first major television role. "I'd just got back from touring the world for 12 months in Robert Le Page's Geometry of Miracles when I went for the audition. I thought 'I'll never get a great part in a classic BBC drama.' I was simply bowled over when I heard I'd got the part."