Lost in Austen 

Amanda, an ardent Jane Austen fan, lives in present day London with her boyfriend Michael, until she finds she's swapped places with Austen's fictional creation Elizabeth Bennet.

Stars:

Jemima Rooper, Elliot Cowan, Hugh Bonneville

Cast

Series cast summary:
Jemima Rooper	...	Amanda Price 4 episodes, 2008
Elliot Cowan	...	Mr. Darcy 4 episodes, 2008
Hugh Bonneville	...	Mr. Bennet 4 episodes, 2008
Florence Hoath	...	Kitty Bennet 4 episodes, 2008
Alex Kingston	...	Mrs. Bennet 4 episodes, 2008
Morven Christie	...	Jane Bennet 4 episodes, 2008
Perdita Weeks	...	Lydia Bennet 4 episodes, 2008
Tom Mison	...	Mr. Bingley 4 episodes, 2008
Ruby Bentall	...	Mary Bennet 4 episodes, 2008
Christina Cole	...	Caroline Bingley 4 episodes, 2008
Tom Riley	...	Mr. Wickham 3 episodes, 2008
Guy Henry	...	Mr. Collins 3 episodes, 2008
Gugu Mbatha-Raw	...	Pirhana 2 episodes, 2008
Daniel Percival	...	Michael 2 episodes, 2008
Gemma Arterton	...	Elizabeth Bennet 2 episodes, 2008
Lindsay Duncan	...	Lady Catherine de Bourgh 2 episodes, 2008
Michelle Duncan	...	Charlotte Lucas 2 episodes, 2008

Storyline

Amanda Price is dissatisfied with her life in modern London. Her favorite escape is getting lost in the pages of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. One night, Amanda is startled to come face to face with the novel's protagonist, Elizabeth Bennet. A small door in her apartment mysteriously links their worlds. Eventually, Amanda becomes trapped on the other side, while Elizabeth remains in the modern world. Now as the events of her favorite book unfold in all the wrong ways, Amanda tries desperately to set things straight, but inevitably makes things worse. Will this fractured version of a classic tale lead Amanda to her own happily-ever-after?

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Plot Keywords:

jane austen | time travel | romanticism | portal | period piece | 

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Romance | Sci-Fi

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Details

Official Sites:

ITV [UK]

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 September 2008 (UK)

Also Known As:

Eksyin Jane Austenin maailmaan

Filming Locations:

Allerton Castle, Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mammoth Screen

Technical Specs

Runtime:

180 min (4 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The white polka dot dress with ornate floral pattern on the bodice that Ruby Bentall (Mary Bennet) wears to the Meryton Assembly Ball is the same costume Julia Sawalha (Lydia Bennet) wears while observing Wickham horse riding in Pride and Prejudice (1995), and Dagmara Dominczyk (Mercedès Iguanada) wears at the office of Monsieur Villefort in The Count of Monte Cristo (2002).

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Goofs

When Mrs. Bennet and the girls' carriage has broken down, just as Wickam arrives, you can see a airplane or helicopter in the distant sky over Mrs. Bennet's head.

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Quotes

Mr. Darcy: [In note] Not one heartbeat do I forget.

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Connections

Version of Pride and Prejudice (1980)

User Reviews

Brilliant!

Hard to imagine how this could be better. The casting is close to perfect. Mr and Mrs Bennet as played by Hugh Bonneville and Alex Kingston quickly outshine previous inhabitants of these roles. This Mrs Bennet is neurotic but also strong, and Mr Bennet is suitably acidic but also very affable and easy to like. The Bennet sisters are very well presented. Jane has a very gentle quality. Kitty and Lydia and Mary are a pleasure to see on screen. Gemma Arterton is as impressive as we would expect in the role of Lizzie. Best of all is Jemima Rooper as Amanda, a fine young actress who here gets the chance to take centre stage and to properly show us what she can do. The men inhabit their parts well - some very good work from Tom Riley as Wickhan, Eliot Cowan as a smouldering Mr Darcy and Tom Mison as a very winning Mr Bingley. Christina Cole is on great icy form as Mr Bingley's sister. And Mr Collins is truly repulsive as played by Guy Henry, looking like the grim reaper and finding a grotesque comedy in this very oily character. But what is most clever about this new 'spin' on Pride and Prejudice is the way it takes a story we all think we know and then turns it upside down. Guy Andrews writes very funny dialogue for both Amanda as a modern woman and the characters we know from Jane Austen. The comic set pieces are directed with real aplomb by Dan Zeff, but it's also surprisingly moving at times. Costumes and sets all look good. Having seen this I don't know how we'll take another 'straight' Austen adaptation seriously again!