Recent years have seen a vast range of Austen adaptations on both the big and small screens .... but will any ever quite beat that gem of 1995 and Colin Firth's wet shirt ... ? Much as I am fond of Downton Abbey, a blatant attempt to recreate this in Dan Steven's Edward Ferrars (BBC 2008) was never quite the same ...
©BBC 1995
I have always loved this adaptation for exploring Austen's famous novel in so much detail, enabled by the greater length of the series, and for remaining so faithful to the text ... (I recommend the 1995 adaptation to anyone studying Pride and Prejudice and in need of learning quotes ...)
The BBC's adaptation of Emma in 2009 was similarly successful in creating a faithful and detailed tale. However, whilst captivating for a modern audience, there was something lacking in the characterisations of Emma and Mr. Knightley, not least in the close proximity of their ages. Similarly, though I enjoyed the adaptations, none of ITV's offerings have ever been able to capture the imagination in quite the right way ...
In contrast, after nearly 20 years (yes, it was that long ago!!), and varying versions later, the performances of Firth and Jennifer Ehle remain the classic image of Darcy and Elizabeth. The picture quality may be showing its age, but the drama remains a national favourite, with DVDs still on the shelves long after more recent adaptations have been consigned to the back-catalogue ...
The adaptation itself reads as a who's who of before they were famous ... from a young Julia Sawalha and Emilia Fox, to Lucy Davis, just a couple of hundred years before that office ... and now a future king amongst them.
As production on the third Bridget Jones film gets underway, I suspect it's popularity will remain for many years to come ...
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