Customer Reviews

The Duchess of Duke Street, Vol. 1 [VHS]

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Produced and co-written by John Hawkesworth (best known for his role as producer and co-writer of Upstairs Downstairs), The Duchess of Duke Street tells the story of Louisa Leyton Trotter, a young Cockney woman from a working-class background with aspirations of becoming the finest cook in London. The series open in 1900, with Louisa landing a job as a cooking assistant to one of London's finest chefs. It's the chance of a lifetime for her, but her outspokenness threatens to be her downfall.

Nevertheless, she indeed rises to become a first-rate and much-sought-after cook and the proprietor of London's exclusive and very expensive Bentinck Hotel on Duke Street. Louisa owes much to Bertie, the Prince of Wales, with whom she has a brief affair. But she owes the bulk of her success to her own hard work and determination. The series spans some 30 years, throughout which we are privy to everything the hotel has to offer--from encounters involving aristocrats to the personal problems of the servants. Of course, it is Louisa's life that is at the forefront, and she must make some tough choices as she deals with crises of her own at both a professional and a personal level.

A feisty and independent young woman, Louisa is more than capable of taking care of herself, and she's played to absolute perfection by Gemma Jones. So convincing is she as Louisa Trotter that it's impossible to imagine anyone else in the role. As a point of interest, the character was based on a real-life individual named Rosa Lewis, a mistress of the Prince of Wales who set up a London hotel called the Cavendish. She died in 1952 and was personally known to John Hawkesworth.

Louisa is joined by a motley group at the hotel. The oldest servant, a butler named Mr. Merriman, came with the hotel when she bought it. He's a perennially wingeing old codger who one expects will keel over at any given moment. Then there's the new doorman, the mysterious Mr. Starr, with his trademark squeaky shoes and fox terrier Fred (upon whose supposedly unerring judgement Starr bases his opinion of potential guests!). Another fixture on the show is the Major (Richard Vernon of Sandbaggers), a decent and well-connected but destitute old war horse for whom the Bentinck has become home. Of course, one mustn't forget Louisa's right hand, the devoted Welsh servant, Mary; or Charlie Tyrrell, Lord Haslemere, a man with a permanent residence at the Bentinck and to whom Louisa owes much. In addition to the regulars, fans of British television will enjoy guest appearances by Robert Hardy (All Creatures), Anthony Andrews (Brideshead Revisited), and Joanna David, amongst others.

The series was produced between 1978 and 1980, and the entire series is presented in two video boxed sets. The series was originally televised in episodes of roughly 50 minutes each. For some reason, when releasing the series on video the BBC decided to run three episodes together on each tape, thus creating one long episode of approximately 150 minutes per tape. The editing, however, is beautifully done--apart from a gentle shift in the storyline (ie. old characters gone and new ones arriving), it is impossible to tell where one episode ends and another begins. Overall, the quality of the videos is excellent.

In conclusion, this is one of the best period dramas ever produced. Fans of British period dramas in general--of shows like Upstairs Downstairs, for example--are sure to enjoy it. But I'd go so far as to recommend it to anyone looking for a captivating, well-written, and consummately-acted series. This truly is quality entertainment at its very best!

This series, which premiered on the (old, good) Masterpiece Theatre program in the '70's, covers over 20 years in the life of Louisa Trotter, a thinly-disguised take off on a real-life cockney scullery maid named Rosa Lewis who worked herself up into the "best cook in England," opened a "private hotel for gentlemen" in London, and knew just about everyone worth knowing in her time.

Gemma Jones, as Louisa, is simply stunning in the role, ably supported by a raft of those fine English character actors whose faces you will recognize with delight, if their names escape you.

Like "Upstairs, Downstairs," this series is the REAL DEAL; historically accurate, poignant, hilariously funny, sometimes tear-jerking, as we watch the ups and downs of Louisa's fortunes (and England's) from 1900 to the mid-'20's. The current five tapes cover the period roughly 1900-1910, from the beginning to the end of the Edwardian Age. Further episodes of the series, which went through the First World War and into the Jazz Age, will hopefully be released in due course.

This is a definitely not-to-be-missed and you'll-see-it-over-and-over series for those who love the best in British history on video!

Easily the best television series I've ever seen -- worth watching two or three times. We have three-dimensional characters, brilliant acting, and a realistic view of life in Edwardian England. There's nothing romantic about World War I in this series. We see how war damages young men who set off idealistically. And there's nothing romantic about Louisa's rise to riches: she works hard and knows when she can't buck the system.

In fact, there's little romance at all here. We have unrequired love and unhappy men and women trapped in marriages of convenience. We have servants working long hours for low wages with little personal freedom. (Applying for a position as assistant cook in an elegant household, Louisa learns she will be expected to attend church -- C of E, of course.)

Louisa's spirit triumphs through adversity -- with some help at important moments from her special friends, especially one Lord Hazlemere. She has a knack for making friends with men and she's a gifted administrator.

I'm incredibly fussy -- and I LOVED this series.

After I spied this series on my local library's shelves & saw that it was about a female aspiring chef set in 1900-1910 London, I scooped up all the volumes.
This series really surprised me: It has strong writing and attention to setting. Louisa Trotter is a outspoken, cockney chef who works her way up in her profession and British society with lots of elbow grease, an understanding of human nature, and some luck. Gemma Jones is great as Louisa Trotter and the supporting cast is very solid as well.
I wasn't sure at first if this series was a miniseries or a TV series (It's TV), but it is rather Dickensian in that each episode builds on the previous. And I can pay a series no higher complement than to say that the conflict resolutions are neither trite nor perfunctory. Many allusions to historically accurate events, politicians, and contemporary culture are weaved into the storylines. I feel that I learned more about English classism and social mores from the "Duchess" & the Bentinck Hotel than from my semester abroad in London.
If you like period drama (and comedy) & strong, nuanced heroines with many battles to fight, then you will like "The Duchess of Duke Street." This series stands the test of time. My only complaint is that I did not learn much about the culinary arts, but the writing is so above standard that my complaint is rendered inconsequential.
Although this series began filming in 1976 the production values make it difficult to place. The Duchess of Duke Street is comparable in quality to BBC's 1979 Pride and Prejudice.

Gemma Jones is fantastic in her role as Louisa Trotter. One of the main reasons this is so good is that it has the time to really show an entire life and the changes of the character through it.

I think its much better than Upstairs Downstairs. Somehow Duchess manages to break through another wall and gets you closer to each character. And shows them changing through the years. Not only do you feel close to her, but all her staff as well. And you feel her pain when dealing with her family. Its very very well done.

I only alow myself to watch this once a year, so I dont ruin it for myself. I have been watching it for about 10 years now. I think thats a good recommendation. If you like the things shown on Masterpiece Theatre, then you will defintely LOVE this.

The Duchess of Duke Street is a dramatization of the dramatic life of Rosa Lewis, renowned for her fine cooking, fine hotel, and fine fans in Edwardian London, including Edward VII himself. In this series Rosa is renamed Louisa Trotter and her hotel is called the Bentinck (it was actually the Cavendish), but otherwise the story is pretty faithful to reality. Louisa is shown first as a young girl working as a kitchen maid, then gradually, through sheer grit and determination, becoming the Queen of Cooks. Her hotel is the setting for numerous affairs of the heart, including Louisa's own. The series is light weight but fun, and gives modern viewers a pretty good idea of what life in Edwardian high society must have been like ( and also a fairly good picture of how rough the poor servants for all those glittering people had it. This series ends at about the time World War I begins. Series 2 continues the story.

If I don't get my own copy of these videos for Christmas, I'm going to divorce my boyfriend. The entire series is delightful, funny, sad, happy, just about every emotion comes to play in the series. Each vignette has its own flavor, and the characters grow over time. One of my all-time favorites.

Louisa Trotter is an ambitious young woman even though she's a scullery maid and has a cokney accent that defies all interpretation. She wants only one thing out of life, and that is to be the best cook in England. Little does she know the price she will have to pay in order to achieve her goal. Young Louisa is on her way into a world beyond her dreams.

BBC's Dutchess of Duke Street takes us into the aristocratic society of London in the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. We are introduced to this world through the eyes of Louisa and we see the good and bad of those who have privilege and exert their power on others beneath them. Louisa's cooking is superb but her body is more appealing. If she is ever to achieve her goal, she must decide whether keeping her virtue will get her anywhere.Volume One of this series follows the steps of Louisa Trotter's initiation into the high society of leecherous Lords, titled pimps and an uptight society that doesn't know how to have fun.

Gemma Jones gives an outstanding performance of Louisa Trotter. Through this actor's role we see the dreams, hopes, fears, anger and determination of this woman who refuses to give up. Gemma also shows us the sadness of a young woman who is resigned to make compromises in order to fulfill her dreams. Louisa is adept at hiding her hardness through her sharp tongue, combativeness and brick wall. Will this young woman be more to others than just a cook or pretty face? This is the question you will ask as you view this wonderfully intriguing film of class, politics, and scandal in a society filled with hypocrasy. I enjoyed the intrigues and your eyes will be glued to each episode wondering how Louisa will handle herself. Enjoy this wonderful story based on the true life of Rosa Lewis, the owner of the famous Cavendish Hotel of London

If you loved the BBC mini-series "Upstairs, Downstairs", you will adore "The Dutchess Of Duke Street". Produced by some of the same
people, with many of the same actors popping up in character roles, it almost feels like a re-visiting of the Bellamy household to some extent.
It's the same Victorian-Edwardian time period, similar examinations of the class differences between servants and masters, same colorful,
plucky people going through life discussing politics, war, scandals, etc. Gemma Jones as Louisa Trotter is utterly fantastic in her role, showing
multi-layers of this Cockney girl's character that are absolutely fascinating to watch. Gemma had the role of a lifetime in Louisa, and she is
simply unforgettable. Christopher Cazenove is so handsome as Charlie Hazelmere he just about takes your breath away. He brightens up
every scene he is in with his presence, adorable smile and flashing eyes. Joanna David is touching as the tragic and anorexic Margaret. All the
secondary characters will touch your heart and leave a lasting impression: Mary, Starr, The Major, and the hysterically funny Mr. Merriman
(same actor who played Soames' father in the original "The Forsyte Saga"). This series is definitely worth the money to obtain all 31 episodes
in the currently offered two VHS boxed sets. Just wish it were on DVD. After I purchased mine I watched the entire series straight through
on one weekend; it was completely addictive. The video prints for Dutchess are of much better quality than the ones for Upstairs, Downstairs,
which were grainy and off-colored for the most part. Plus another positive: each tape has three episodes blended into one, without being
interrupted by end titles and music. This allows for smooth transitions and a more enjoyable viewing experience, almost like watching a movie.
Dutchess Of Duke Street is a must-have series for all people who love quality British television.

I found the characters in this series well developed and very interesting. It was much better than what is offered on TV today. The romance between Charlie and Louisa was very touching.