Product Details

• Actors: Peter O'Toole, Joanna Lumley, Penelope Keith, Anneliese Uhlig, David McCallum
• Directors: Giles Foster
• Writers: John Goldsmith, Rosamunde Pilcher
• Producers: David Cunliffe, Rikolt von Gagern, Thomas Mattinson, Tim Buxton, Victor Glynn
• Format: Box set, Color, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 4
• Studio: Acorn Media
• VHS Release Date: September 11, 1999
• Run Time: 199 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 1569382883
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #141,716 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

"I've only been to Nancherrow once. I thought it was very beautiful, but somehow not part of the real world," says the headmistress of St. Ursula's to young Judith. Judith Dunbar, the heroine of Rosamunde Pilcher's Coming Home, starts her journey at this boarding school when her mother and sister leave to join her father in Singapore. It is here that she first gets to know her soon-to-be lifelong friend, Loveday Carey-Lewis. Through Loveday, Judith is welcomed into the Carey-Lewis family and invited to the majestic estate of Nancherrow.

Coming Home truly shows a fairy-tale England. The beautiful coastal scenery and the flawless posh accents of all the characters make this almost unbelievable. Everyone is so kind, so repentant at the first hint of any mistake, and so happy--even the tragedies have their silver lining. Joanna Lumley and Peter O'Toole's roles as the happy Carey-Lewises hardly tax their acting ability, although they portray this frightfully British upper-class couple exactingly.

As the story progresses through World War II, the saga of Judith Dunbar twists and turns. Not without its tragedy, her life is still enchanted by Nancherrow and its charmed residents, as familiar to her as her own family. Coming Home is not part of the real world, but rather an escape that somehow becomes the one place that feels like home. --Amanda Powter

Product Description

Peter O'Toole and Joanna Lumley star in this enchanting period drama, adapted from Rosamunde Pilcher's bestselling novel. A heartwarming story of shared innocence, Coming Home is an epic saga of love, friendship, and the discovery of womanhood. In 1935, Judith Dunbar (Emily Mortimer) is left as a British boarding school while her family is posted overseas. The naive girl makes a lifelong friend in her devil-may-care classmate, Loveday Carey-Lewis, whose wealthy and charismatic family offers Judith a surrogate home at their beautiful Cornish estate, Nancherrow. There, Judith learns about passion, courage and security. But the drama of World War II wrenches her from this privileged life, and Judith is forced to come of age in a tumultuous world...

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A pleasant surprise!, March 3, 2002

By 

Eileen Walker "Book loving Granny" (Columbia, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Coming Home (DVD)

I have read "Coming Home" twice and have listened to the audio tape several times, so when I saw that the novel was available on video I was delighted...I finally found it on VHS on sale and ordered it, just to see for myself, and watched it this past week. What a joy! I loved every minute of it, and the fact that it didn't cover every page of the book didn't bother me at all. Even "Little Women" switched Amy and Beth's position in the family in the 1949 version but it was still a wonderful movie. I am very glad that I have "Coming Home" in my video collection and plan to watch it again soon.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pilcher's Unforgettable Novel Comes To The Screen, June 13, 2005

By 

Antoinette Klein (Hoover, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Coming Home [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Having recently finished a second reading of Rosamunde Pilcher's remarkable novel, I was anxious to watch this while the novel was still fresh in my mind. I thoroughly enjoyed this for its spot-on casting, magnificent scenery, and even the surprising twists the movie took with the novel's plot.

Most surprising was the different direction the love affair between Judith and Edward took. Though completely different than the novel's, the revamped storyline was no less appealing and emotional. Liberties were also taken with the character of Gus, but the end result was just as satisfying. As might be expected, huge amounts of the nearly 1000-page novel had to be eliminated, so don't look for Biddy, Heather Warren, Rupert, and some others. All that being said, this was still an awesome viewing experience for me. Having loved the novel, I was thrilled to see Nancherrow more glorious than I had ever imagined it, the hut, Lavinia's house, the Mews house and so many more fabulous parts of the novel springing to life. A definite must-see for those who love Rosamunde Pilcher's work and revel in the English lifestyle circa WWII.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Faithful Fan of Rosamund Pilcher, October 17, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Coming Home [VHS] (VHS Tape)

After reading the other reviews I decided to order the video and see for myself what the movie was really like. I have read the book at least three times. This video was fantastic! It is very difficult to turn a book into a movie successfully and I am pleased to say that this is a success. Sure there are some differences and some things are left out. It would be a 60 volume set if they were all included. The movie was so well done I felt like I was inside Rosamunds world once again. The scenery breathtaking and the story as richly told. My hats off to this video!