The hilarious thing is that Mr. Darcy obviously liked Caroline Bingley enough (she was the sister of his closest friend, after all), but was impervious to her attempts at flirtation.
According to Wikipedia, Ms. Chancellor is a great niece, eight generations removed, of Jane Austen. Is that six greats, tacked onto great niece? Seven greats, plus the word niece representing the eighth generation? I've no idea. My condolences go out to Ms. Chancellor, and Jack Scot, her ex, on the recent death of their daughter, Poppy, who died from leukaemia on 29th September 2023 aged 36. 🕊🙏🏻
Yes, it’s from chapter 8 of the book: “Not at all," he replied; "they were brightened by the exercise." A short pause followed this speech, and Mrs. Hurst began again:” And I love that in this version Darcy says that then sips his tea, while leaving Caroline speechless.
Something I always liked about this adaptation was Mr. Hurst. He is a crude, ill-mannered drunk but that's ok with them because he has money and social standing. His characterization in this film does a great job of demonstrating the hypocrisy of Caroline Bingley and others like her. She jumps on any opportunity to try to demonstrate that the Bennets are uncultured and beneath them, but completely ignores the behavior of Mr. Hurst because he's a "gentleman".
One of my favourite Mr Hurst bits is when Mrs Bennett and the younger girls visit Netherfield to see Jane. You can actually hear him go "Oh God" when they enter the room
Mr Hurst is depicted as an alcoholic. Even in a breakfast scene he’s reaching for more wine, and when Darcy, Bingley, and Hurst return from a day’s shooting, he’s shown swigging from a spirit flask. 😏
He conveniently ignores the fact that his AUNT is even more vulgar than Mrs. Bennet. He ignores the fact that HE is rude to the people of Meryton from the first. He needed that slap Lizzie gave him.
I love how Elizabeth understands Darcy's insinuation immediately, then during their verbal sparring, which is clearly enjoyed by Darcy, Caroline is apparently confused. It's so obvious she thinks she understands him, but that the only thing she really has in common with Darcy is their mutual disdain for others, and so she's mystified when he finds a genuine kindred spirit in Elizabeth.
they were absolutely kindred spirits, maybe its been a while since you read the book but the way they take care of their younger siblings, reading into other people, passions for studies and obviously the ease of their back and forth are all ways to show that they were made for one another. The book also goes out of its way to mention that neither of them were super attractive so there probably wasn't a ton of sexual stuff there. The fact he called her 'not handsome enough to tempt me' shows he initially didn't find her physically attractive but grew to once he unlocked more of her personality@@tonyausten2168
No. There is another. 1980 miniseries by the BBC and Australia Broadcast Company. It is practically word for word the book. This 1995 version adds scenes that never happen such as the lake swim and the double wedding.
@@Secretagent71114 But I find the 1980 adaptation so lifeless and staged. Elizabeth Garvie did nicely as Lizzie but David Rintoul was absolutely wooden as Mr. Darcy.
I love the look on Caroline’s face when Darcy says “Not at all; [Elizabeth’s eyes] were brightened by the exercise.” Anna Chancellor’s expression is clearly the vividest unspoken “Oh, bollocks!” moment in television history.
Perfectly put. It's hard to find a better ensemble cast. I bet there are outtakes in which the actors yell "Shut up, Caroline!" and then everyone cracks up.
The thing is, he comments so much about Eliza's eyes being pretty, but the actress Jennifer really does have beautiful eyes. They're so warm, she looks like such a kind person😊
So true! I love that Jane Austen addressed it in the book, in chapter 45, perhaps as a warning(?), certainly as a lesson. "Persuaded as Miss Bingley was that Darcy admired Elizabeth, this [Miss Bingley speaking of Miss Elizabeth Bennett with backhanded compliments] was not the best method of recommending herself; _but angry people are not always wise;_ [emphasis mine, not Jane Austen's] and in seeing him at last look somewhat nettled, she had all the success she expected." When one talks ugly about a person, they're only showing their own ugly thoughts.
I like that, although she was vulgar, she did have a line of morality. Like suggesting they paly music to diffuse Darcy and Elizabeth from fighting and also trying to warn Elizabeth off Wickham. She doesn't reject Elizzabth and Darcy's relationship in the end, unlike his aunt and cousin, and she does care about her sister.
Lack of breeding, it always shows. As Jane Austen scornfully notes of the Bingley sisters; _"They were of a respectable family in the North of England; a circumstance more deeply impressed on their memories than that their brother's fortune and their own had been acquired through trade."_ chap4
@@dawnkindnesscountsmost5991 So true, if it were Beth Dutton's character playing the role of this Caroline Bingley, the outcome would have been different! Just my own private joke! 😄
I do have to be honest it's embarrassing when Caroline thinks he's talking about her as the pretty woman when he's literally staring at Elizabeth like ma'am use a sliver of common sense here please I beg of you
Funny how after Mr. Darcy speaks of women reading etc. You see Caroline trying to read a book to please Darcy but she's bored and notices Darcy and Elixa reading and she stops her from reading her book. 😜
It is even more absurd than that. I think in a scene before he also pointed out that Elizabeth eyes were shining because she walked to the Bingleys. So in this scene she is like "I'm gonna walk AND read at the same time. That mu's impress him." I adore the writing so much!
this miniseries is literally just so good, but i think it's in these sections where it shines the most, it feels the truest to what jane austen intended when she wrote the book in the first place. these sections hit so hard in the book and these scenes live up very well to the original.
Caroline and Mrs. Hurst being snubs is something I can never understand. They aren’t like Lady Catherine, who herself is an aristocrat of an ancient house and is probably also married into another ancient noble house. Caroline is in the same class as Jane and Elizabeth, both without any blood and marital connections to the nobility. And actually unlike the Bingleys, the Bennetts have clearly been landed gentry for generations while the Bingleys newly moved into the landed gentry from trade just in their generation. Even their father is still not in the class of landed gentry yet. This means that according to the societal standards back then, at least the Bennets’s money are all “honorablely” earned while the Bingleys’ wealth stink of trade, Caroline’s dowry included. Honestly while Elizabeth can claim to Lady Catherine she is a gentleman’s daughter, Caroline can’t. Her effort trying to convince Darcy that they are in the same class and are both superior than Elizabeth is just ridiculous. Additionally, Caroline’s dowry isn’t nearly enough to be Darcy’s equal. If Darcy wants to marry someone who is his equal, he can easily find an aristocratic lady who has tens of thousands pounds of dowries like his father did with his mother. After all, he is among the landed gentries who have strong aristocratic lineage and his wealth is well above the average aristocrats, which means he is among those who can easily intermarry with the nobility. By suggesting Darcy shouldn’t marry Elizabeth because of her low station literally cuts off her chance of ever marrying Darcy too.
@@aslater5 The Bingleys’ income is quite considerable, considering the average aristocrats earn about 7,000 pounds a year at the time and the Bingleys earn 5,000, so Mr. Bingleys’ wealth could probably compare with some minor aristocratic lords or second sons of wealthy, major aristocratic families. But the society back then value status and connections above money, especially in the upper class. The Bingleys, though very loaded in their purses, are actually really low in status and connections. An aristocratic lady with less dowry than Caroline would actually be much more preferable than her. After all, Darcy really doesn’t lack money. And Caroline’s wealth doesn’t even nearly compare with the aristocratic ladies Darcy could marry. So her constant reminder about status, connections, and money to Darcy is truly baffling to me. I feel like if I am in her position, that would be the last thing I want to do. Honestly to Darcy, marrying Caroline and marrying Elizabeth aren’t that different. He needs to equally endure low connections, humble status, and lack of wealth and respectability. Though Caroline may have comparatively more wealth than Elizabeth, Elizabeth definitely has more respectability than Caroline. Elizabeth only lose this advantage after Lydia’s elopement. The only initial advantage that Caroline actually holds is her brother: Darcy can respect and cherish his friendship with Mr. Bingley a lot, but the Bennets certainly don’t have that.
the bingley’s aren’t even landed gentry! they rent netherfield and they own no property of their own. the bennetts are a higher class than them! by bingley marrying jane, he married up on terms of class, and she married up in terms of money. sure darcy’s mom was of noble blood, be he has no aristocratic title. lizzie and him are equals in rank, and the darcy family is superior only in money. she makes fun of sir william lucas offering to introduce her at st. james’ court, which would be a HUGE advantage for her. silly man or not he has a TITLE. his wife is LADY lucas! she throws away a great opportunity to rub elbows with the upper echelon of british society because she thinks she is better than him because her father is rich. that’s what is so funny about caroline’s hypocrisy! she is outclassed by the bennett sisters in rank and family connection, but caroline’s obsession with wealth is a signal of her nuveau riche status, and she doesn’t value quality connections
@@dgnas I do see why Caroline will be offended by Sir William Lucas’ offer. First, I don’t believe he was offering that sincerely, but rather was just boasting his knighthood. Sir Lucas is not a courtier, but instead just have been knighted in court. And being introduced by him is probably not gonna do much for Carolina anyway. Just look at the fact that Sir Lucas’ daughters themselves aren’t benefiting from his rank and we know enough. It could even make Caroline a laughing stock at Court and amongst her connections. Like…a tradesman’s daughter being introduced by another silly tradesman knight. But what’s truly a great offer is what Lady Catherine has offered Elizabeth while she was at Rosings. However condescending Lady Catherine may be, her offer to take Elizabeth to London and to sit in her box at the opera is huge. This could allow Elizabeth to become acquainted with aristocratic ladies, aristocratic second sons who don’t lack money, and wealthy landed gentry men. With Elizabeth’s wit and beauty, if she has Charlotte’s mindset, then she may very possibly find a very eligible match (in terms of rank and wealth), like with another Colonel Fitzwilliam who spends more prudently than him. But clearly our Lizzy isn’t like that. She had a lot of self-respect and would settle for nothing less than true love. Otherwise, she would have just accepted Darcy in his first try 😂
Caroline is richer, but Lizzy is higher born. I suspect that Caroline has found that bossing and mean-girling her way through life, so that nobody would dare question aristocratic rank, was probably something she adopted early on.
Can we have some appreciation for Rupert Vansittart (aka Yohn Royce in GoT) as the always-soused Mr Hurst. I crack up every time hes onscreen. Not too many actors can be funny just by lying there.
Just three days ago I was telling my younger sister to read Pride & Prejudice and Then watch this series because everytime you watch this you feel like you are reading the book again. I don't know how they did manage to do it and I enjoy rewatching this series. One of my favs.
What is especially funny here is that even if Mr. Darcy were at all interested in Miss Bingley, which he very obviously is not, there is absolutely *no* way that she would have been even remotely prepared to face the wrath of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Her ladyship was quite set upon her own daughter Miss Anne de Bourgh marrying Mr. Darcy despite them being first cousins. I can't imagine that Lady Catherine would have been any nicer about verbally assaulting Miss Bingley than she was to Elizabeth.
No if anything I think she would've been worse cause when she first goes there she's being "nice" to Elizabeth because she thinks she can just tell her to reject Darcy and she is literally going there to calm her mind cause there's no way Elizabeth would do this to her after all the nice things she did for her. Caroline has no connection to her and I think her lack of a backbone would've made Lady Catherine much more mean if she thought she was getting somewhere with convincing her
@@victoria139and I think as Lady Catherine is the snob she is, she might be harsher to Caroline for the Bingleys are from the trade while Lizzie is from the gentry. At least Lizzie and Mr. Darcy is from the same class while Caroline was born lower (in terms of class) than both of them. She might be considered a worse social climber in the eyes of Lady Catherine.
@@nguyenthanhtam4600 No for sure she would think Caroline is a worse social climber- Lizzie is both a gentleman's daughter but also has connections to Lady Catherine and given her vanity I feel like she'd think those qualities are important. I think Caroline is hilarious confusing being friends with the Darcy's has somehow made her their equal, which is even more funny considering Mr. Darcy is mainly associating with the family because of Mr. Bingley. I mean Mr. Hurst is a drunk no one likes, he never has a direct conversation with Mrs. Hurst, and while we don't think about it at the Meryton Assembly he didn't dance with anyone meaning he also didn't dance with Caroline even though she also knows no one at this party and gentleman were already scarce and it's obvious he thinks she's about as entertaining as watching paint dry
@@nguyenthanhtam4600 Catherine very much takes issue with Lizzie's maternal side of the family though, who are all in trade. But she doesn't have to worry about money being brought into the marriage because Darcy is just so damn rich.
@@MsJubjubbird although Lizzie’s maternal are middle class the Gardiner’s are apparently more sensible and refined than many of their social “betters”. Which would make them tolerable. She would unlikely spend any time with them. So since they were tolerable that’s ok and Darcy wouldn’t be marrying a merchant’s daughter but a gentleman’s daughter. If Darcy were to marry Caroline she would be the daughter/sister of a man in trade. And she would have to associate with her. A gentleman’s daughter marrying a gentleman socially acceptable. A gentleman marrying a daughter of a father/brother in trade less socially acceptable.
Tilda Swinton is great as queen Jadys in Chronicles of Narnia, but seeing Anna Chancelor in all her splendor here makes me picture her as the White Witch. She would be very fitting for the role.
Great putdowns and extreme satisfaction! Anna Theodora Chancellor, who plays Caroline Bingley, is a niece of the journalist Alexander Chancellor, a great-granddaughter of Raymond Asquith (son of the liberal prime minister H. H. Asquith), a first cousin of both the actress Dolly Wells, and the model Cecilia Chancellor, a second cousin of the actress Helena Bonham Carter, and the great niece of Jane Austen eight generations removed.
I suppose that by choosing the right fabric and the right cut and details you could make it flattering for all/most shapes. They used to be very ingenious with their clothes. And underwear, would help get a "better" shape.
Darcy Just answers Caroline But earnestly replies to Liz's queries. Always... Hoping to win her affections...talking to all about her so that everyone they know in common understand... What he means to her.. But Austen scripted it so well till he proposes.. Nobody realized that he indeed had an affection for her... Including Liz.. And her immediate family Xcept charlotte who first has a suspicion about this...
Did you watch the miniseries? Pretty obvious what they used to do together just sitting around. They'd have conversations about whatever while perhaps one member of the group was writing a letter, or one of them would play the pianoforte and everyone would just be in the moment listening to it. They would read, or sew. Darcy spends a good amount of time just staring at Elizabeth.
I think there was a LOT of talking, which is why being socially inappropriate like Mrs. Bennet is considered so awful. If you don't have TV or a phone to distract you indoors then you have to try and make conversation, and if you are stuck with Mrs. Bennet, who shares way more than she should and puts pressure on where it's not needed, it becomes very uncomfortable. If you get the chance to talk with someone who's nice and easy-going, like Mr. Bingley, though, it's a fun time. That's part of why Elizabeth and Jane get a pass from Mr. Darcy; they can actually carry on a conversation and make it worthwhile. Of course, most people didn't live exactly like this--they had work to do, a farm to take care of, or business to deal with--but outside of work it's still mostly just hanging out with people.
Really? I always thought she and the actor playing Mr. Bingley have very similar nose and eye shapes, which gives a general sibling-ish appearance. If anything I think Louisa looks the most unlike the other two.
I prefer the 2005 version, but this is one of the things the 1995 one did better: the character and haughty attitude of Caroline Bingley is portrayed spot on by the actress.
I don’t have a lot of love for Caroline Bingley but that was such a heartbreaking little moment. Anna Chancellor’s acting was perfect in letting you glimpse that vulnerability and obsession underneath her apparent bored snobbishness
GET WRECKT, CAROLINE I feel like if for some reason Caroline Bingley was the only choice for a bride in existence, Darcy would go to the grave unmarried. He has more restraint around Wickham tbh.
Anna Chancellor was perfect casting for the disagreeable, full of herself, Caroline Bingley; who was so different from her amiable, sympathetic brother.
Just watch Anna Chancellor’s face in slow motion after she says “I’m all astonishment!” at ~0:48 The private pain in the background. That’s what a great actress can do.
In fact Lizzie is socially superior to Caroline, despite Caroline being much richer. Lizzie's father owns land, while Caroline's father made his fortune in trade, which at the time was a big issue. Caroline is dismissive to everyone to disguise her family origins, and wants to marry Darcy to establish herself as a high society lady, because most people see her as a "social climber".
He has women throwing themselves at him because he was rich and the grandson of an earl. He wanted the woman who had some self respect and didn't do that. Everytime she kisses up to him he is less attracted to her
@annebelgard6723 well yes and no. The landed gentry have traditionally looked down upon and excluded almost all others. That said, those giant country estates are (and were even then) exceptionally costly to run, and poor management or investments could make a very very wealthy member of the mercantile classes an acceptable match, especially if they have been able to gain the bearing and manner of the gentry. The Darcy family certainly didn't seem to be wanting for wealth, but taciturn as Mr Darcy is, he wasn't great at the management of social connections that would be part of his role. Caroline would eventually have alienated people, but would have been modestly capable. I suspect Lady Catherine would have positively despised her as an upstart, though.
He is a rich, good looking man who is the grandson of an earl and she is a near-spinster who, while rich, is trying to deny that she is from the working class. This is her last roll of the dice to bag a man and he is the ultimate prize. It would be cool to see a sequel about who or if she went on to marry
@annebelgard6723 , yes but I think she also likes him. Mr. Darcy was already intended for Anne DeBourgh, so she'd have to work twice as hard for his family's approval once she got him to fall in love with her.
She was so good as Caroline! I prefer this so much more than the 2005 version. I prefer Caroline older than her brother closer to Mr Darcy’s age. Jane in the original version never said her age but there are clues countless people pointed out. She was feeling she was running out of time in getting married. She was not between 20 to 26. She felt she was Darcy’s equal. That could be from class but in the way she talked to him like she was closer to his age! She talked to her brother in ways he was younger with the support of her sister. In the original adaptation, the Darcy’s family and the Bingley family knew each other or their parents. Miss Bingley knew Mr Darcy when he was 18 or 19 when he was attending Cambridge. Caroline was young at a marriageable age. It can put her between 15 to 18 as well. She couldn’t be 11 or 12 like the 2005 versions and other adaptations put Caroline. If Mr Darcy is about 28 or 29, then Caroline must have been at least 26 or older. Losing her bloom and looked down on other suitors because they were not her equal. So many clues that people pointed out that people stated before.
The scene where Caroline is reading a book, after realising Darcy is interested in Elizabeth and Elizabeth reads books (that's the only thing she does in Caroline's head) is so funny to me cuz she's almost giving high school mean girl vibes from a sarcastic movie. Like, the mean girl character is not so realistic and exaggeratedly she copies everything the girl does, who the main girl's crush is in love with. Caroline is such a pathetic character I love her
I'd not say she has a crush on him. It's likely she wants to marry him for his social rank (his money would be a nice colateral). See how Mrs. Hurst married.
The first time I read P and P, I was a freshman in HS. I was just beginning to understand boy/girl relationships, and that, indeed, there was even such a thing. At the end of the book, I was genuinely shocked that Elizabeth agreed to marry Mr.Darcy. I thought he was a long-winded creep. Oh, well. What did I know.
OT, but I just want to say that I always thought that Jane Austen and all the following adaptations, like this one, treated Mrs. Bennet very unfair. And I absolutely loath that Elizabeth's father told her that he doesn't respect her mother.
@heidikickhouse- No slack. She's the mother of his five children. And after all, he married her for her money, beauty, and youth. I don't think that he ever treated her as his equal.
@@elisaa9981 but that is part of the storytelling that neither Elizabeth's mother or father were without faults and that their marriage was a bad match. They were not suited in temperament, making both unhappy which is why Elizabeth and Jane were so keen to marry someone like minded. Mr Bennet does get portrayed rather better in the adaptions but the subtext is there that Lydia's behaviour and the family's near miss with disaster is his fault for too often being uninvolved and even amused at their 'silliness'. In the end Mrs Bennet herself would not complain, she was oblivious most of the time and in the end got what she desired most - two daughters very well married financially and her favourite daughter married to someone she thought was fine and agreeable. (even if he wasn't) Mr Bennet got off lightly too but at least he knows it.
ZINGGG! He is utterly BRUTAL to her. Not that she deserves any better. She keeps setting herself up for these miserable put-downs. My family loves these moments and quotes them all time time. Great lessons from Austen on how to not be a mean-spirited, desperate lady.
@@smallbodyofwaterdon't be ridiculous, she's the colour of cream! That's too tan, she MUST be at least the colour of whitewash to be considered ladylike
mr darcy definitely grew along the series but some of his traits from the beginning were great especially putting down this (please use you imaginations as the kind of words I would describe caroline bingley with would probably get my comment taken down)
Jane Austen is nothing if not objective and understanding of her characters. Caroline's been waiting around for Darcy to like her for years and he hasn't and now that he likes someone else she feels robbed. She's a jerk but we know why. Like, she's wrong but we get it. Also, Caroline being around Darcy goes to show that he really is a catch, even though Caroline doesn't really know or appreciate him as Elizabeth will come to.
is it wrong that...I....somehow....find Caroline's meanness, pride, sarcasm so attractive? A bad girl I will turn good. ;) 2:18 the way she cups her hands in front so innocently while executing her devious plan ;)
It's amazing. Caroline is a textbook mean girl. She has made dozens of innocent women cry and has spread enough fake rumors to make Machiavelli blush. Yet like all women it only takes a few mean words from a man she lust for to put her on the brink of crying
yes and no. She was mean to the middle and lower gentry who were less wealthy than her on the surface because she felt insecure about her position, being from the working class and also insecure about the fact that she was probably approaching spinsterhood without being married. It was also essential in her mind that she and her siblings secured marriages in the middle to upper gentry- her sister had already done so, using her dowry to attract a man of high standing but no money- to secure their place in the gentry. Yet now she has a presumably younger rival and her brother wants to marry said rival's sister. However, despite the superficial meanness and rudeness, she was more of a foil than a villain. When Lizzie and Darcy are arguing she tries to diffuse the situation with music, she tries to warn Lizzie about Wickham- although that may have had some self serving intentions- and she doesn't turn away from Darcy or her brother when they make their marriage choices, attending the wedding and all. Not like Lady Catherine who was just mean through and through just to get more wealth and out of fear of not being able to marry her daughter off.
@@MsJubjubbird Caroline's Dad is an industrialist. She's not working class. She's rich. Financially speaking she was more wealthy than Elizabeth since the Bennett's are cash poor. Would she considered a commoner by the European gentry? Yes. Odds are her ancestors were medieval or Elizabethan era pirates that used their ill-gotten gains to start a business, buy stocks from royal monopolies or become captains of trade ships. But that's usually the case with most rich people. Even for the nobility. Noble warrior or not there is money to be gained from stealing armor from a dead knight and pillaging his castle
@@deeznutz7064 we're talking birthrites here not finances. Birthrites were hugely important then. Their parents were the ones who grew the wealth, then raised the kids as gentry. Kind of like Sir WIlliam to a lesser degree and also Mr Gardiner
@@MsJubjubbird That's why I said financially speaking. For the most part the gentry saw being cash poor as a moral failing. Like most people today they weren't nuanced
@@deeznutz7064 The Bennets are not poor though. And birthrite is still placed above wealth. To not be landed gentry but competitive wth the gentry you had to be extremely wealthy. Not just a bit rich.
