The Making of Pride and Prejudice (BBC) [Paperback]

Susie Conklin (Author), Sue Birtwistle (Author)

Book Description

Series: BBC | Publication Date: August 26, 2003

The Making of Pride and Prejudice reveals in compelling detail how Jane Austen's classic novel was transformed into the stunning television drama starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle. It vividly brings to life every stage of production of this sumptuous series.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sue Birtwistle is the former director of the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Education Company in Edinburgh and founding director of the Nottingham Playhouse Roundabout Company. Susie Conklin is currently a drama script associate at Granada Television.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics) (August 26, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014025157X
• ISBN-13: 978-0140251579
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #235,655 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

160 of 162 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a lovely companion to the bbc miniseries, April 8, 2002

By 

audrey (white mtns) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: The Making of Pride and Prejudice (BBC) (Paperback)

There is no denying that Sue Birtwistle's production of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is an exquisite adaptation of one of the finest novels in English literature. The cast is magnificent, the script knows when to be faithful and when to adjust, the music is lovely, and the settings are lush perfection. Knowing all this, one does wonder about the many other people who brought this fine work to fruition. (If you have the DVD Special Edition, you may have met some of these individuals in the featurette "The Making of Pride and Prejudice".) This book is absolutely loaded with pictures and photographs that cover every aspect of the work behind-the-scenes and in front of the camera, from location scouting to casting, music and choreography, costumes, makeup, filming and post-production. I especially enjoyed the long conversation with Colin Firth (Darcy), the head shots of the actors (who sometimes look very different than one expects -- Jennifer Ehle with blonde hair comes to mind!), the typical day's schedule, and the locations map. I learned a lot about this production and filmmaking in general.

This book is interesting, informative and very entertaining. If you like the book or the miniseries, you should enjoy this volume very much.

104 of 105 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have Behind-the-Scenes Companion Book!, September 9, 2002

By 

Tiggah "the Anglophile" (Calgary, Alberta Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Making of Pride and Prejudice (BBC) (Paperback)

For anyone who has enjoyed the outstanding rendition of Jane Austen's classic novel starring Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle, this delightful, informative, eye-opening (and often humorous) behind-the-scenes book is a must have. I for one had no idea of what is involved in successfully adapting a classic period novel, and I am grateful to producer Sue Birtwistle and script editor Susie Conklin for taking us through the entire process.

Chapters include "The Script," which deals with the many difficulties that had to be overcome in adapting a novel effectively to an entirely different medium, while "Pre-production" deals with casting the actors and finding and securing suitable locations (no mean feat in itself!). We also discover what many senior behind-the-scenes personnel do. "Production Design" deals with the hands-on task of getting the locations ready--whether it's designing and creating a set or stripping a real-life location of all its 20th century trimmings (from unsuitable flowers, antennae and phone lines on the exterior to central heating pipes, light switches, electric light bulbs, and inappropriate furnishings on the inside). Tremendous research was involved in both "Production Design" and "Costume, Make-Up, and Hair Design". The latter chapter deals with decisions that had to be made concerning the palettes and styles of costume and hair for each actor. One also learns about the expensive and painstaking wig-making process and discovers that not only were the costumes made, but so were the fabrics!

The chapter entitled "Filming" chronicles the steps to be taken and the difficulties often incurred on the day of filming--things like checking the weather (and having contingency plans for rainy days) or requesting local air force bases not to fly over the location. With 12- to 16-hour workdays per person, the filming day is long indeed. For the actors, it's two-hours in make-up followed by 10 or 11 hours of actual filming. After filming, the crew must then prepare for the next day--with chores like washing and setting wigs, cleaning costumes, and packing up props and horses! Finally, "Post-production" deals with the months of work involved in editing, inserting sound tracks, and so on, to get the final product ready for the screen.

It's always nice when the authors of behind-the-scenes' books have the full support of all involved in the production (from cast to crew), and such is most certainly the case here. In fact, the book is rife with their many quotations and anecdotes, with certain members of the crew even contributing paragraphs describing the work they do and the process by which they achieve their goals. Last but not least, there is a full nine-page "Conversation with Colin Firth," set in question and answer format, wherein Firth provides an insight into how he went about capturing what he felt was the essence of Darcy and the difficulties he experienced along the way.

This is a beautiful 9 3/4" x 7 1/2" 117-page softcover. Good quality paper is used, and it is simply filled to the brim with lovely fine-quality colour photos--stills from the series, posed photos of some of the actors in full costume, photos of the actors being made up and the sets being prepared, photos of the filming process and of various crew members, and so on. A nice touch was the tiny b/w studio photos of the actors' faces--how they look in real life (which is very different in most cases!)

In conclusion, I found this to be a simply fascinating book, and one that without a doubt increases one's appreciation of this (and indeed all period dramas) tenfold. It's a book to be treasured, and I highly recommend it. If I have but one word of advice, it is this: Get this book now--before it goes out of print (as companion books so often do)!

99 of 100 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A ravishing companion to an absolutely ravishing film., September 29, 2000

By 

kellytwo "kellytwo" (cleveland hts, ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Making of Pride and Prejudice (BBC) (Paperback)

Regardless of what prompted you to fall in love with the the sumptuous BBC/A&E production of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE, you'll love this companion book, which fills in the background to an almost unprecedented degree.

Written in chatty style by the producer, Sue Birtwistle, and script editor Susie Conklin, the book begins with the very first idea (in 1986) of bringing one of the most loved books in the English language to the screen once again, concluding with the Christmas wedding of Eliza Bennet and Mr. Darcy. The six-hour, six million dollar production very nearly brought England to a standstill during the weekly broadcasts, as an estimated 40 million Brits were glued to the telly to see this (then) one-hundred-seventy-eight year old book brought to life. Almost no detail was allowed to be missed by the scrupulous inspection of the production crew. A few items were anachronistic, but calculatedly so; most notably, the billiard table, and Mr. Darcy's "cool-off" swim.

Each member of the technical staff -- director, casting, costumes -- speaks in his/her own voice, giving reasons for each particular choice made. Even the horse ridden by Mr. Darcy was auditioned. Contemporary pictures were used as much as possible to provide accuracy in costume and hairstyle. Meticulous attention was given to the dancing and the music, of which there is an abundance. Such minor considerations as the number of musicians employed at each dance venue exemplify the care taken with the production. Equally so, the food (of which there was more than enough to make the actors as well as the table groan) was specially prepared from recipes of the time by the appropriately-named chef for the series, Colin Capon, who specializes in period food for the BBC.

The book abounds with color photos, delineating in great detail how reality-based this production really was. In the end, however, it is the broad shoulders of Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy upon which the success of the production rests. As the physical embodiment of the absolutely perfect Regency hero, he smolders wonderfully through the first three hours, sounding very like the young Richard Burton, when he does speak. A female of any age can easily be forgiven for wishing his liquid, dark and expressive eyes, as he surreptitiously follows Eliza Bennet around the room, would gaze at her in just that way. In perfect stillness, those eyes express the depth of his longing for Eliza, as well as his bewilderment by that longing, unsuitable as he deems her to be as a marriage partner.

Eventually, it is her sparkling intelligence and ready wit that win him to her, but only after she has brought him to his knees by refusing his first arrogant proposal. (Mr. Firth candidly explains how he arrived at that scene, in the ten-page chapter nine, "A Conversation with Colin Firth.") Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth was perfectly winsome and charming with her 'fine eyes', a beautiful smile, and an obvious intellect, not readily apparent in her three younger sisters.

Although the book doesn't specifically say so, attention must also have been paid during the casting process to those young ladies who were, perhaps, rather more well-endowed in the bosom department. The necklines of the various gowns are treacherously low, in some cases, which, when coupled with the very vigorous dancing, could make one understand the necessity for the close chaperonage of young women of the Regency. Not to mention those nearly skin-tight 'unmentionables' worn by all the young men!

We should all concentrate on wishing for another such production, especially if it would include the estimable 'Mr. Darcy'.