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Masterpiece Theatre on PBS
Old 02-01-2010, 12:22 PM   #1
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Masterpiece Theatre on PBS

Don't know if anyone else is watching these shows but I would highly recommend them. They are all BBC productions and are very well done renditions of the classics.

We have been watching Little Dorritt over the past 4 weeks or so. It's a Charles Dickens that I had never heard of, and would have to say it's been some of the best viewing I've ever seen. Over the past few weeks it has featured Dracula, Emma and upcoming is Wuthering Heights.
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Old 02-01-2010, 12:26 PM   #2
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I love Masterpiece Theatre; I watch it all the time. My other favorite is Agatha Christie's Poirot with David Suchet. We have the collection and watch them as a family all the time.
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Old 02-01-2010, 12:30 PM   #3
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We viewed Little Dorritt last season and found it to be an outstanding series.

My wife had an episode of Emma (Woodhouse) on last evening, even though the ratings were not that good for the series, released mid-2009.

Generally, BBC production of the classics are, well "classic" in nature and very well done...
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Old 02-01-2010, 01:21 PM   #4
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I enjoyed watching Emma. There's something that makes them so charming and relaxing while watching period pieces like that. I felt like giggling like Emma while watching it.
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Old 02-01-2010, 02:08 PM   #5
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Thanks for the reminder!

I saw the end of Emma last night on our PBS station. I like the BBC flavor in those adaptations, too, and any Austen, any time, is good IMHO.
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Old 02-01-2010, 02:10 PM   #6
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We DVR all the episodes so I am only about half way through the first episode of Emma. I find it ok, however I think following on from Little Dorritt it just suffers as being the poor relation for me. However, will see it through to the end. I love period shows, however my fantasy of living back in those days involve living more like Emma than Amy Dorritt.
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Old 02-01-2010, 02:35 PM   #7
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I checked "Upstairs, Downstairs" out of the library recently and found it didn't interest me as much as it did when it was first broadcast here. Seems like we followed those characters for years. Don't watch much TV now beyond evening surfing, HGTV, and "L&O." Maybe I'll get back into those series as I'm trying to slow down; I do enjoy reading a bit of Dickens here and there; when I was a kid I hated his long descriptions, now that is the part I like best.
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Old 02-01-2010, 05:41 PM   #8
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I did enjoy Little Dorrit.

The most compelling recent BBC production was the new version of Jane Eyre. I thought it was just incredible. The only downside was that it was produced in the old "squarish" TV format instead of widescreen. But the acting and photography and dramatic impact was just incredible. Masterpiece Theatre | Jane Eyre

There was some controversy/criticism about the story being a little updated/modernized, but I thought they very much kept to the spirit and sensibility of the original.

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Old 02-01-2010, 06:06 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DangerMouse View Post
We DVR all the episodes so I am only about half way through the first episode of Emma. I find it ok, however I think following on from Little Dorritt it just suffers as being the poor relation for me. However, will see it through to the end. I love period shows, however my fantasy of living back in those days involve living more like Emma than Amy Dorritt.
There are much better versions of the Jane Austen than what have been showing on Masterpiece theater.

A huge exception being the BBC production of "Pride and Prejudice" - the BBC one with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle was really fabulous and I doubt it can be topped. I originally saw this on A&E, but I think they have showed in on Masterpiece theatre within the past year.

I think the Gwyneth Paltrow version of "Emma" is my favorite version. I can't quite remember the name of the british actor in the version of "Sense and Sensibility" that I liked best. Oh wait - that was "Persuasion" - I really liked the version with Ciarán Hinds. I didn't really care for either the Emma Thompson/Hugh Grant version of "Sense and Sensibility" (although I did enjoy Alan Rickman's character) or the more recent BBC version which I really disliked.

One of the wonderful things about that period is that people really appreciated financial independence in terms of living off investment income (not having to work)!

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Old 02-02-2010, 07:09 AM   #10
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I didn't really care for either the Emma Thompson/Hugh Grant version of "Sense and Sensibility" (although I did enjoy Alan Rickman's character) ...
Heresy! That's a great version, even if it is only marginally close to the book.
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Old 02-02-2010, 08:38 AM   #11
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Heresy! That's a great version, even if it is only marginally close to the book.
Sorry - but I recently saw the last half hour of the movie and that last scene between Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant just made me cringe!!!

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Old 02-02-2010, 08:49 AM   #12
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Sorry - but I recently saw the last half hour of the movie and that last scene between Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant just made me cringe!!!

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Nope, brings a tear to my eye every time.
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Old 02-02-2010, 09:48 AM   #13
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Actually I prefer the productions when they feature British actors. Can't stand Gwyneth Paltrow as I think she has gotten where she has based on family connections rather than any acting ability. After the Oscar that was purchased on her behalf for her lame performance in Shakespeare In Love, that turned me off Ms Paltrow forever.

CuppaJoe, know what you mean about Upstairs Downstairs. I can remember as a child watching shows such as Are You Being Served which I thought were hilarious. Now I watch and cringe in embarassment at the crudity and the obviousness of it all.
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Old 02-02-2010, 09:56 AM   #14
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Tough crowd.... I admit liked Gwyneth in Shakespeare and in Emma.

It's not Masterpiece Theater, but we used to watch BBC's No Honestly in the early/mid 70s and have the two seasons on videotape. It's held up pretty good but then it was a contemporary-at-the-time story, so it is fun to see the cultural references and mores in it. Maybe DH and I will watch a couple of episodes on Valentine's Day and bring back our youth.
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Old 02-02-2010, 10:14 AM   #15
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Yeah, I am a Gwyneth Paltrow fan. I thought she was very good in Shakespeare in Love and Emma, and I really enjoyed her in Sliding Doors.

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Old 02-02-2010, 01:40 PM   #16
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I think our enjoyment of actors and films is very personal, just like any artwork. Some will think a Picasso is fantastic whereas the next person will think it is garbled rubbish.

There is something about GP that bothers me. I did enjoy the movie Sliding Doors, I thought the concept was good. Not sure that she added anything that any other actress wouldn't have, but then I didn't switch it off due to her presence.
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