Persuasion

6.2
197145m

Living with her snobby family on the brink of bankruptcy, Anne Elliot is an unconforming woman with modern sensibilities. When Frederick Wentworth – the dashing one she once sent away – crashes back into her life, Anne must choose between putting the past behind her or listening to her heart when it comes to second chances.

Production

Logo for Granada Television

Seasons

5 Episodes • Premiered 1971

Living with her snobby family on the brink of bankruptcy, Anne Elliot is an unconforming woman with modern sensibilities. When Frederick Wentworth – the dashing one she once sent away – crashes back into her life, Anne must choose between putting the past behind her or listening to her heart when it comes to second chances.

Still image for Persuasion season 1 episode 1: Part 1

1. Part 1

Jane Austen's last novel provides the plot for this earlier Granada miniseries. Set in pre-Victorian England, this movie tells the story of Anne Elliot, who now having lost her "bloom" is re-united with the dashing Captain Frederick Wentworth whose advances she had refused seven years earlier. Now that he has gained both connections and fortune in the Napoleonic Wars, she regrets that her neighbor, the meddling Lady Russell persuaded her to refuse his proposal of marriage. Now as she watches him woo the young Louisa Musgrove, she suffers terribly while he appears to have forgotten entirely his earlier attraction to her. Manners and moires often thwart her strong desire to tell her true feelings, but his true emotions too, are masked by fear and the lasting pain of her rejection.

Still image for Persuasion season 1 episode 2: Part 2

2. Part 2

Jane Austen's last novel provides the plot for this earlier Granada miniseries. Set in pre-Victorian England, this movie tells the story of Anne Elliot, who now having lost her "bloom" is re-united with the dashing Captain Frederick Wentworth whose advances she had refused seven years earlier. Now that he has gained both connections and fortune in the Napoleonic Wars, she regrets that her neighbor, the meddling Lady Russell persuaded her to refuse his proposal of marriage. Now as she watches him woo the young Louisa Musgrove, she suffers terribly while he appears to have forgotten entirely his earlier attraction to her. Manners and moires often thwart her strong desire to tell her true feelings, but his true emotions too, are masked by fear and the lasting pain of her rejection.

Still image for Persuasion season 1 episode 3: Part 3

3. Part 3

On a visit to Lyme Regis, it seems that Wentworth, who was engaged to Anne, now has eyes for another.

Still image for Persuasion season 1 episode 4: Part 4

4. Part 4

Still image for Persuasion season 1 episode 5: Part 5

5. Part 5

Anne meets the mysterious Mr Elliot in Bath, but will she marry Wentworth?

Cast

Photo of Ann Firbank

Ann Firbank

Anne Elliot

Photo of Bryan Marshall

Bryan Marshall

Captain Wentworth

Photo of Richard Vernon

Richard Vernon

Admiral Croft

Photo of Basil Dignam

Basil Dignam

Sir Walter Elliot

Photo of Rowland Davies

Rowland Davies

Charles Musgrove

Photo of Mel Martin

Mel Martin

Henrietta Musgrove

Photo of Noel Dyson

Noel Dyson

Mrs. Musgrove

Photo of Michael Culver

Michael Culver

Captain Harville

Photo of Paul Chapman

Paul Chapman

Captain Benwick

Photo of Helen Ryan

Helen Ryan

Mrs. Harville

Photo of Edward Jewesbury

Edward Jewesbury

Mr. Shepherd

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Reviews

N

Peter McGinn

7/10

I watched this miniseries adaptation of the Jane Austen classic many years ago and liked it just fine, and found it to be entertaining when watching it again recently. The actors do a credible job and the writing seems true to the novel.

The production does feel dated now, perhaps not aging quite as well as the content. The overall look of it not as vivid as the more recent version from 2007. It also feels a little restrained, not dramatic enough to jump off the screen and grab the viewer. But it is a product of its time and of the BBC’s treatments of Austen’s novels. I feel like I should watch the later version now to see if it is indeed more energetic as I remember it in comparison.

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