Your online source for Jane Austen and her legacy
Ross! Just say yes to the dress, already! Last week in episode two of Poldark we saw Ross and Elizabeth’s sexually charged dance at the assembly ball reveal their continued attraction, the wile Warleggans planting seeds of destruction and Demelza, cleaned up and earning admiration from her employer. This week in episode three we witness... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: We were mesmerized by last week’s premiere of Poldark on Masterpiece. Even though it was a front loading fest—to get us up to speed on the characters and lay of the land—the energy and tension really propelled our interest (and admiring gaze) toward what promises to be a... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress:Â We wonder why tricorn hats went out of style. They were so commanding. In the 18th century, all the important men wore them: General George Washington, King George III, Catherine the Great, Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and Captain Ross Poldark. POLDARK? Who is Ross Poldark you ask? Well period... Continue Reading →
        It’s always a red-letter day to bibliophiles when books originally published eons ago get a new life and a new audience. It usually takes a major television series or movie for this to happen. In the case of Jane Austen, we have seen new tie-in editions for Pride... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: Sooner or later, everything that is old is new again—if we wait long enough! Masterpiece Theatre, and its phoenix Masterpiece Classic, is well-aware of this. Having successfully presented period drama for over forty years they have been a bit redundant at times. I lost track years ago of... Continue Reading →
Jane Austen fans, hold on to your bonnets. The new BBC/Masterpiece screen adaptation of Poldark will air on Masterpiece PBS on June 21st, 2015. Based on the beloved novels by Winston Graham set in 1780's Cornwall, many period drama fans will be familiar with the first screen adaptation by the BBC and Masterpiece from 1975-77... Continue Reading →
Acclaimed by critics and cherished by fans, Downton Abbey is the most popular period drama ever. North America is all anticipation of the premier of Season 5 on January 4, 2015 on Masterpiece Classic PBS. Until then, feed your Downtonite with these great holiday gifts. GIFTS 1. What Is A... Continue Reading →
The long wait is almost over. The two part BBC/PBS mini-series of P. D. James' bestselling novel, Death Comes to Pemberley, will premiere on Masterpiece Mystery in one week on Sunday, October 26 at 9pm (check your local listing) and concludes on the following Sunday, November 2. To get you warmed up for this intriguing... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress:Â I vividly remember sitting in the theatre in 2005 waiting for the curtain to rise on the new Pride & Prejudice movie starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfayden. I was excited that one of my favorite Jane Austen novels was being trotted out as a major motion picture.... Continue Reading →
From the desk of Laurel Ann Nattress: Eighteen years after it first aired on BBC One in October 1995, the television mini-series Pride and Prejudice (1995) is still blowing bonnets off Janeites and wowing them in the aisles! This week in London a twelve-foot statue replicating Colin Firth’s portrayal of Mr. Darcy’s famous wet shirt... Continue Reading →
I have been blogging about Jane Austen here at Austenprose for over five years and I have reviewed many books and movies, yet I have held off writing about the one that really turned me into a Jane Austen disciple—the 1980 BBC Pride and Prejudice. When something is close to our hearts we want to... Continue Reading →
Get ready period drama fans – Season 2 of the new Upstairs Downstairs starts next Sunday, October 7 at 9pm on Masterpiece Classic PBS. Last year we saw the triumphant return after thirty-four years of the award winning and much beloved series Upstairs Downstairs to Masterpiece Classic. The original series (1974-77) focused on the Bellamy... Continue Reading →
