As one beloved period drama comes to an end, fans have been urged to binge another Jane Austen adaptation.
Fans of The Other Bennet Sister will be left devastated as the beloved period drama comes to an end tonight, but another Jane Austen adaptation is free to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Four-part BBC drama Emma first aired in 2009, starring Romola Garai as the titular character.
The series is based on Austen’s 1815 novel Emma, and portrays the heroine as a wealthy, clever, independent woman in the 19th century, who boasts as a matchmaker.
As she meddles in the love lives of those around her, she begins to realise her own possible romantic spark with her life-long friend and mentor, Mr Knightley.
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Despite her own defiant streak and intentions to never marry, the protagonist ends up falling for him.
Emma, which was also adapted into a 2020 film starring Anya Taylor-Joy and Mia Goth, features Jonny Lee Miller as Mr Knightley in the BBC drama.
Michael Gambon plays Mr Woodhouse, and Louise Dylan stars as Harriet Smith, alongside Jodhi May, Robert Bathurst, Rupert Evans and Laura Pyper.
The series has been hailed a “heart-warming masterpiece” by one fan, who wrote: “Nobody can outdo [the BBC] when it comes to English classics.” They went on: “I did not expect this series would move me so much.”
Another said: “Definitely the best Emma I’ve ever seen! The casting was perfect; it is a must watch that goes on the shelf with the other greats, Pride and Prejudice, Wives and Daughters etc. Emma was my favourite book out of all Jane Austens works and this film really does it credit!”
Someone else wrote: “The most perfect adaptation of Emma!,” while someone else shared: “This BBC adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Emma” is a joy to watch from beginning to end. It is a fresh, delightful and more modern interpretation of the classic, but still maintaining a great deal of fidelity to the novel.”
Several others called it a “gem”, while one person wrote: “This is perhaps the best adaptation of a Jane Austen novel that I have seen put to screen.”
Discussing taking on the role in a 2013 interview, Romola reflected on the literary work, saying: “I’ve always found it quite disturbing that Emma is a character that most critics, predominantly the literary canon as controlled by 19th century men, have struggled with.
“For me it’s completely obvious why that is and it’s nothing to do with her personality, it’s because she’s rich and because she doesn’t have to get married.”
She went on: “I actually had to sit on a lot of what I thought about Emma to allow myself to be properly directed and I had to pretend in the audition that I didn’t have lots of ideas that didn’t correlate with the director.
“It’s something I’ve had to learn the hard way – that you don’t always get the job by telling the director in the audition that you have very strong ideas about how it should be played!”
Emma is available to watch on BBC iPlayer

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