Portrait of a Lady, by Henri François Mulard
Remember this post, where I mentioned a rumour which said that the BBC were planning on making a new adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma?
Well, the BBC have now officially confirmed it!! Read the press release for yourself! See also this article from the Telegraph, and this post on AustenBlog.
It will be a four-episode miniseries, each episode 1 hour in length. Sandy Welch has written the screenplay (Ms Welch, who did a wonderful job adapting North and South and Jane Eyre for TV!).
Filming will begin in late spring/early summer this year (that's in the northern hemisphere, of course!) and it will be aired in autumn 2009, as the centrepiece of the BBC's autumn 2009 drama lineup.
American audiences will no doubt get to see it a few months later as a part of the Masterpiece season on PBS. As for us poor Janeites Down Under, I don't know when we'll get to see it!! I'll order the dvd online from America or the UK - I probably won't bother waiting for it to be on TV here. Would you believe that Sense and Sensibility 2008 still hasn't been on telly here?? And it was on tv everywhere else over a year ago. . . I gave up waiting and bought the dvd from America months ago, together with Cranford, which hasn't yet been aired here, either.
So - getting back on-topic - we know pretty much everything about this new adaptation except for the cast!! Am I the only one, or does anyone else think they might just burst with curiosity while waiting for the cast to be announced sometime in the next few months?!!
Current Mood: 
Excited
8 comments:
Isn't that so exciting??!!! I was shown that news by a friend who stumbled across it and we both have been VERY excited ever since! I'm just hoping they get the perfect actress to play Emma. Hopefully an unknown, like they've been doing! :-)
Btw, have you seen the new "Wuthering Heights" yet? I really really enjoyed it. Though, I happen to be one of those (scarce) Heathcliff fans. hehe. :-D And the costumes were lovely. I think I fast forwarded two parts...mostly because they were a bit *uncomfortable*...nothing terrible, though.
I hope Masterpiece Theater keeps these costume dramas rolling! I'm absolutely loving it! :-D
Yes, it's all organised, Richard Armitage must, simply has to be Mr. Knightley. But as for Emma - I am really undecided! I'm with you, I really hope they are able to find the right person! What do you think of the actress who played Pet Gowan nee Meagles in Little Dorrit? (She also played Rosamond Oliver in Jane Eyre 2006.) I can maybe see her playing Emma. . . I'm not sure. . .
Yes, I've been watching Wuthering Heights on Youtube! I've been watching the second episode this afternoon, in fact. I'm about half-way through episode 2. I skipped through a few of the more squirm-inducing scenes, too. ;-)
I think it's okay - from what I've seen so far, I definitely prefer the 1998 version. I quite like Tom Hardy as Heathcliff - I've been quite impressed with his acting. I'm not so sure about the girl who plays Cathy, though. And I think the actress who plays Catherine Linton is a bit annoying. . . and I don't like this Hareton as much as Matthew MacFadyen's Hareton. . . but then maybe that's just because I love Matthew MacFadyen. . . LOL!
All in all, I am enjoying it, and I think it is a worth-while adaptation of WH, but I don't think it will become one of the classic miniseries - like P&P, North and South, or even Daniel Deronda. It just seems a bit too modern - I'm afraid it might date itself, like the 1992 version did. I still like it though! I am loving the gorgeous costumes! This version seems to be set a few years later than most other adaptations, in the early 19th century/Regency era, rather than late 18th century.
Cranfords been aired here? A short while ago, I watched it.
You mean it was on tv in NZ before it was on here?? Oh well.
Actually, there have been ads on the ABC saying that Cranford is "Coming soon to ABC1, etc." so it should be on sometime in the next few weeks. It's been a loooonng wait, though!
Too bad, I went one better than the ABC and bought the dvds from overseas! :P
Oh, my this is so exciting!!
Thanks for informing me of the delightful news!!! ;)
Love & Blessings,
Miss Jen
No worries! When I hear about news like this, I get so excited I feel like I just have to share the news with someone! :-D
Yeah, we watched it over ytube first... with Japanese subtitles. (I think they were Japanese anyway. :])
Oh, okay. . . yes, I think I remember seeing Cranford on Youtube, but I waited for the dvd. I had heard so many recommendations for Cranford that I knew it would be worth the wait. :-)
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