Birkin become accepted into the Nonconformist family of Mr Ellerbeck the station master ( Jim Carter ) , with whom he dine on Sundays ; the hospitality of the chapel congregation is contrasted against the established church , who have consigned the penniless Birkin to sleep in the church belfry . Ellerbeck 's children eventually persuade Birkin to preach a sermon at a nearby Methodist chapel . Birkin also form an emotional , albeit unspoken , attachment to Alice Keach ( Natasha Richardson ) , the young wife of the vicar . The vicar himself ( Patrick Malahide ) is portrayed unsympathetically as an obstruction to the work in the church , viewing the medieval painting as symptomatic of the superstition prevalent in the community .