Gentle readers, I broke my foot and thus the blog will be quieter than it has been for a while. Thank you for your patience! Meanwhile, to keep you amused, I shall pair an image with a Jane Austen quote in a few posts until I regain my energy.
Mr. Knightley (Jeremy Northam) drinks tea
During the Georgian era, tea was a new luxury item that was kept under lock and key. Jane Austen estimated that the consumption of tea at Godmersham was 12 lb. A quarter. - Jane Austen and Food, Maggie Lane
The third episode of Emma 2009 will be shown tonight on PBS (in competition with the Super Bowl!) You have had the opportunity to visit a number of fabulous houses used for the location shots. This week we ask you,
Whose drawing room best suits your taste?
Mr. & Mrs. John Knightley, Brunswick Square, London
The Woodhouse's drawing room, Hartfield in Highbury
Emma 2009 airs tonight on PBS at 9 PM EST! Oh, what joy for Jane Austen fans. Laurel Ann from Austenprose, Kali from Emma Adaptations, and I (Jane Austen's World) will be hosting a twitter party in conjuction with PBS. Click on this link for details. In tonight's broadcast, three mansions in Highbury will be showcased. Which one catches your fancy?
"Emma Woodhouse’s home, Hartfield, was filmed at Squerryes Court, just off the M25 in Kent, and Mr Knightley’s Donwell Abbey at Loseley Park, near Guildford. Both houses were intended by Austen to represent the solidity of the old landed gentry as opposed to flashy new Regency fashions." - Times Online
Hartfield, Mr. Woodhouse and daughter Emma Woodhouse (Squerryes Court, Kent)
Donwell Abbey, Mr. Knightley (Loseley Park, near Guilford)
Randalls, The Westons (Can anyone help to identify this wonderful house? Is that an oast house attached to the outbuildings?)
Georgette Heyer is tweeting The Grand Sophy on Twitter! Follow her as the book is being released. Sample tweet: "He is the kind of odious little toad who kisses the housemaids on the stairs." Click here to read the tweets.
In addition, seen at Wimbledon: Two yummy men. Jonny Lee Miller, our future Mr. Knightley, and Jude Law.
Emma's ruined outing at Box Hill vexed readers most. Emma, as we have all read, has become the most popular girl's name in the U.S., besting Emily. In keeping with the name theme, who is the most aptly named Jane Austen character? Mr. Wickham or Mr. Knightley. You decide who is
Most Aptly Named
Mr. Knightley, Emma Mr. Knightley defends Miss Bates with a vengeance, telling Emma in no uncertain terms that she had made cruel sport of a defenseless woman. He also comes to Miss Harriet Smith's rescue, dancing with her when Mr. Elton so rudely snubs her at the Crown Inn ball. Who among us cannot admire such a chivalrous character? Emma observed: "In another moment a happier sight caught her;—Mr. Knightley leading Harriet to the set!—Never had she been more surprised, seldom more delighted, than at that instant. She was all pleasure and gratitude, both for Harriet and herself, and longed to be thanking him; and though too distant for speech, her countenance said much, as soon as she could catch his eye again. His dancing proved to be just what she had believed it, extremely good; and Harriet would have seemed almost too lucky, if it had not been for the cruel state of things before, and for the very complete enjoyment and very high sense of the distinction which her happy features announced."
Mr. Wickham, Pride and Prejudice The wickedly devilish Mr. Wickham is one of those bad boys who some women tend to love no matter what. On the surface he seems charming, but his selfish actions could have ruined Lydia, since he did not intend to wed her. An unabashed fortune hunter, Wickham almost ruined innocent Georgianna Darcy and badmouthed her brother to Elizabeth, lying to her in the process. Elizabeth eventually caught on to his schemes. She also learned the following information from Mrs. Gardiner about Wickham's behavior in London: "[Mr. Darcy] thought, to secure and expedite a marriage, which, in his very first conversation with Wickham, he easily learnt had never been his design. He confessed himself obliged to leave the regiment, on account of some debts of honour, which were very pressing; and scrupled not to lay all the ill-consequences of Lydia's flight on her own folly alone. He meant to resign his commission immediately; and as to his future situation, he could conjecture very little about it...Wickham still cherished the hope of more effectually making his fortune by marriage in some other country."
Mark Strong plays Mr. Knightley to Kate Beckinsale's Emma in the 1996 A&E Production of Emma written by Andrew Davies. Goodness, but this man is aging well. His film career is thriving (6 films in one year), though he's transitioned from hero and leading man into a smooth villain. Never mind. Many women love men who are dark and dangerous. I'd say Mark fits that bill to perfection. Click on the following links to learn more about him.
The Mark Strong Information Page links to a large series of pictures of Mark Strong as Mr. Knightley. Click on English, for the blog is also written in German.
