Jane Austen
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“the cradle of her genius”: Jane Austen and Steventon
It’s long been on my list to take a trip to the small village of Steventon, Hampshire. Steventon is small, but incredibly auspicious, as it is the birthplace of Jane Austen. Not only that, but it is where she largely spent the first twenty-five years of her life, leading her nephew, James Edward Austen-Leigh, to read more
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Jane Austen in Bath
Humphry Repton, North Parade, Bath, 1784, Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection, B1986.29.460. Bath, a Georgian city that was descended upon during the eighteenth century for its fashionable surroundings, for its healing waters and its vibrant social scene, had many famous residents during its historical heyday. However, as the eighteenth century became the read more
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The Rules of the Ballroom
Watching Bridgerton, and ultimately reading a LOT of Regency romances recently, has had me fascinated even more by the ritual of attending balls: and of course, balls in the eighteenth and nineteenth century were governed by strict rules. Here are some of them below: Firstly, you should never attend a private ball without an invitation, read more
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Adapting Jane Austen | My Top 10 “Pride and Prejudice” Adaptations
It’s 207 years today since Jane Austen passed away, so, in her honour, it’s time to talk about the best adaptations of her work: specifically, my favourite of all her novels, Pride and Prejudice. I don’t want to ignite the Darcy debate, but I have to list some of my favourite – and some of read more
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Attending a Ball in Regency England
If you could time travel to Regency England, what better way to spend a Saturday night than at a ball? (My dream, really!) If you were attending, you would arrive late in the evening: if you think we head out dancing late now, that has always been the case, with the earliest arrivals coming at read more
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What actually was the London season?
It seems that whenever we turn on the TV to watch Regency-based period drama, or pick up a historical novel set during this period, there are so many references to the London season. Bridgerton, of course, has much of its storyline powered by the London season and the actions of the ton in the capital. read more
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Book Review | “The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh”, by Claudia Gray
When you think of the novels of Jane Austen, if you were pressed to think of the most odious of all her characters, who would you choose? One of my favourites, so to speak, is Lady Catherine de Bourgh of Pride and Prejudice. Whilst not an outright villain, she is utterly – sometimes deliciously – read more
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What women read in the 18th & early 19th centuries
To celebrate – finally! – the release of the second half of season 3 of Bridgerton, in which I’m hoping our lovely heroine Penelope Featherington gets her happy ending, let’s talk about one of Penelope’s favourite activities: reading. Her mother makes her pretend in front of Lord Debling that she doesn’t understand the book she read more
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Adapting Jane Austen | A shirt for sale
Good morning! I couldn’t resist sharing this news story with you: the shirt worn by Colin Firth in the 1995 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice is up for auction today! As part of an auction for charity, it goes up with 68 other lots from iconic period dramas, from Poldark to Ever After. I’ve been read more
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Adapting Jane Austen | “An American in Austen”
Film poster copyright Hallmark Channel. Anyone who is a fan of Jane Austen, and Austen adaptations, has been pretty spoiled this February if they also like the Hallmark Channel. Confession: I enjoy the Hallmark Channel a lot. I have watched their previous Jane Austen forays (and there have been a few… watch for a future read more
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