Reviews on all things Austen
Posted in Adaptations, Pride and Prejudice on Jul 26th, 2012
I’ve been watching the 1980 version of Pride and Prejudice. The screen play was written by Fay Weldon and it stars Elizabeth Garvie as Elizabeth and David Rintoul as Mr Darcy. I thought it would be a bit dated like this version of Emma… however, it’s fine. The costumes and setting aren’t as beautiful as modern [...]
Posted in Continuations, Pride and Prejudice, Re-Interpretation on Jul 22nd, 2012
I found this novel at the airport – heading home from a girls weekend away – and had to buy it despite my plan of only buying digital books from now on. Here is the blurb … ’No two views of a ball will be exactly alike. So many separate little worlds make up the [...]
Posted in Continuations, Pride and Prejudice on Feb 13th, 2012
I like Jane Austen and I like P D James, so, obviously, I had to read this. Here is the blurb … The year is 1803, and Darcy and Elizabeth have been married for six years. There are now two handsome and healthy sons in the nursery, Elizabeth’s beloved sister Jane and her husband Bingley [...]
Posted in Pride and Prejudice, Re-Interpretation on Nov 2nd, 2011
Years ago I read a novel by Fenton called Lions and Liquorice and loved it. So I snapped this one up when I saw it in the Borders closing down sale. Be warned: it’s the same novel renamed for the US market. Not to worry, I didn’t own a copy and I enjoyed reading this again. Here’s the [...]
Posted in Miscellaneous, Pride and Prejudice on Oct 13th, 2011
Look P D James is writing a mystery set at Pemberley – more information here. You can pre-order it from Amazon.co.uk.
Posted in Adaptations, Pride and Prejudice on May 11th, 2010
Episode 4 – the final episode. In this episode Mr Darcy announces his engagement to Caroline Bingley (because she is ‘a maid’), Mrs Bennet receives a letter from Lydia informing her that she has gone off with Mr Bingley. Mrs Bennet believes they are to be married (Amanda and Jane let her think this until [...]
Posted in Adaptations, Pride and Prejudice, Recommended on May 10th, 2010
In Episode 3 Amanda is forced to leave Longbourn and she turns to Mr Wickham for help; he prepares her for society (essentially teaching her how to bluff her way) and tells her to visit Jane Collins. At Rosings she is reunited with Mr Darcy and they argue about Bingley’s and Jane’s unhappiness. Meanwhile Mrs [...]
Posted in Adaptations, Pride and Prejudice, Re-Interpretation on Apr 28th, 2010
In the second episode Amanda tells Mr Bingley she is a lesbian (to avoid his advances). She entertains Mr Darcy, Mr Bingley and Miss Bingley with a rendition of Downtown – unfortunately this is edited from the DVD – you can find it at Youtube. Returning to Netherfield they encounter Wickham when their carriage breaks down [...]
Posted in Adaptations, Pride and Prejudice on Apr 22nd, 2010
I think this (very loose) adaptation of Pride and Prejudice is fabulous; witty, clever, lovely to look at and well cast. In Episode 1 Amanda Price (Jemima Rooper), a keen Janeite, finds Elizabeth Bennet in her bathroom (in Hammersmith). She passes through the secret door in the bathroom and finds herself trapped in Longbourn. She then [...]
Posted in Pride and Prejudice on Apr 21st, 2010
I’ve been having my own little Pride and Prejudice festival; I’ve re-read the novel and watched Lost in Austen, the 1995 BBC version and the 2005 version (I’ll put my thoughts about the movie adaptations in another post). Once again I am amazed by the brilliance of the writing. This time around a couple of things [...]