Pride and Prejudice

This five-hour adaptation of Pride and Prejudice was a massive success, getting the nation's ladies very excited by Colin Firth's Mr Darcy, no more so than when he appeared, in a scene not in the novel, in a wet shirt. To be fair, Jennifer Ehle, who makes an excellent Elizabeth Bennett, had already raised male temperatures wearing considerably less in The Camomile Lawn (1992). The result is certainly a colourful, vibrant romantic drama, which, though adored by millions, was not without its critics. Some argued it was unnecessarily sensational, or, given that the BBC had already made a fine Pride and Prejudice (1979) from a script by Fay (The Life and Loves of a She Devil) Weldon, simply unnecessary. Writer Andrew Davis has since scripted Moll Flanders (1996), Emma (1997), Vanity Fair (1998), Wives and Daughters (1999), and returning to Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey (2000). --Gary S. Dalkin