Northanger Abbey 

Catherine Morland is a young woman who enjoys reading Gothic Novels. She is invited to Bath by a family friend, Mrs. Allen, and there she meets Henry Tilney and his sister Eleanor. Upon ... See full summary »

Director:

Giles Foster

Writers:

Jane Austen (novel), Maggie Wadey

Stars:

Katharine Schlesinger, Peter Firth, Robert Hardy

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Katharine Schlesinger	...	Catherine Morland
Peter Firth	...	Henry Tilney
Robert Hardy	...	General Tilney
Googie Withers	...	Mrs. Allen
Geoffrey Chater	...	Mr. Allen
Cassie Stuart	...	Isabella Thorpe
Jonathan Coy	...	John Thorpe
Ingrid Lacey	...	Eleanor Tilney
Greg Hicks	...	Frederick Tilney
Philip Bird	...	James Morland
Elvi Hale	...	Mrs. Thorpe
Helen Fraser	...	Mrs. Morland
David Rolfe	...	Mr. Morland
Elaine Ives-Cameron	...	Marchioness
Angela Curran	...	Alice

Storyline

Catherine Morland is a young woman who enjoys reading Gothic Novels. She is invited to Bath by a family friend, Mrs. Allen, and there she meets Henry Tilney and his sister Eleanor. Upon returning to her home with her family, Eleanor invites Catherine to come along as her guest and companion. There Catherine's imagination continues to flourish and she begins to suspect a dark secret at Northanger Abbey.

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Plot Keywords:

reading | novel | secret | young woman | guest | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

PBS [United States]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 December 1987 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Assembly Rooms, Bath, Somerset, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC),A&E Television Networks

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The The striped muslin day dress worn by Helen Fraser (Mrs. Morland) at Fullerton is the same costume worn by Kate Ashfield (Ella, the Worrell's maid) in Princess Caraboo (1994), Toni Collette (Harriet Smith) wears while reading Mr. Elton's charade, Sophia Myles (Susan Price) at Portsmouth in Mansfield Park (1999), and Charity Wakefield (Marianne Dashwood) wears when Edward calls at Mrs. Jennings' London house in Sense & Sensibility (2008).

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Connections

Referenced in 100 Girls (2000)

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Soundtracks

The Lancer's Quadrilles: La Dorset
(uncredited)
Composed by Spagnoletti
[Catherine dances with Henry Tilney at the Cotillion Ball]

User Reviews

What were they smoking?

The filmmakers were clearly on drugs. That's the only explanation I have. How else do you explain this travesty of a Jane Austen adaptation? Northanger Abbey is a parody of a Gothic novel. But this film was made as if it WERE a Gothic novel. The bizarre music and dream sequences to me suggest drug-induced hallucinations rather than a naive, innocent girl with an overactive imagination, as Catherine of the novel is...

The actress who played Catherine just stands around bug-eyed all the time. Peter Firth looks at least 10 years too old to play Henry and he actually seemed a bit on the gay side to me. I don't see the attraction between him and Catherine. John Thorpe's portrayal was rather odd but Isabella actually wasn't that bad. But nothing could save this PIECE OF CRAP movie! One more thing- This film invents a character not in the book, a French friend of General Tilney's, "The Marchioness." Why exactly they added her is beyond me. Must have been the drugs. She is scary-looking beyond belief, with white foundation, red lips and black lines randomly painted on her face (dimples?).

You'd think this would at least be entertaining in a "so bad it's good" quality but unfortunately, it's not. It's just BAD.