The Gambling Man

The Gambling Man is a British three-part television serial, or long TV movie, first broadcast in 1995, starring Robson Green, directed by Norman Stone, based on a novel by Catherine Cookson.
Outline.
Rory Connor (Robson Green) is a rent-collector on Tyneside with a passion for playing poker for high stakes, while Janie Waggett (Stephanie Putson) is the woman who loves him, standing by him through many troubles. Charlotte Kean (Sylvestra Le Touzel) is Connor's employer, and she too finds him attractive. He gets into bad company in the dark world of gambling, and is so sure that poker is his way to riches that he makes a terrible decision.
The plot may be partly autobiographical, as Catherine Cookson’s own father was a bigamist and a gambler.
Production.
Producer Ray Marshall bought the film rights to several of the period works of Catherine Cookson, beginning in 1989 with "The Fifteen Streets", which had been turned into a successful stage play. These productions, sponsored by Tyne Tees Television, were very popular and drew between ten and fourteen million viewers each.