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Vanity Fair

(8 Posts)
crimson Mon 20-Feb-12 12:33:08

Does anyone remember the Andrew Davies BBC adaptation of this? It was probably one of the first adaptations he did [I could be wrong] and I was glued to the telly each week. However, I decided to read the book before I watched the last episode, taped it, and, you can guess the rest; never got round to reading the book and then lost the recording. Anyways, my son bought me the dvd a couple of years ago and, in my new capacity of 'lady who lounges on the sofa at night watching telly' I've been re watching the whole series. No wonder I loved it so much first time round. Phillip Glennister played dear old faithful Dobbin [what a brilliant name for such a character and who would think he would one day become a sex symbol as an anachronistic chauvinist; couldn't be further removed from Dobbin!]. Realised that there has been a film made since with Reese Witherspoon as Becky [pouquoi??], but may buy is because Gabriel Byrne is in it also [sigh].SPOILER ALERT. The only thing I feel different about this time is that, towards the end I started to wish that Dobbin would walk away from dull Amelia and have a 'good time' with bitchy Becky. Oh it were wonderful. Jayne Austen meets Sex and the City......

HildaW Fri 24-Feb-12 15:40:28

Crimson........I too loved the BBC 'Vanity Fair'.....was full of such wonderful characters....actually got me to read the book!! The Reece Witherspoon one is actually not as bad as one would think.....Gabriel Byrne does the evil bit very well. The ending is a bit too cosy tho.......but then thats hollywood for you!

wotsamashedupjingl Fri 24-Feb-12 15:52:25

Crimson we've been looking for another series to get after finishing Downton Abbey. That sounds just the ticket! Off to see if you can still get it. smile

wotsamashedupjingl Fri 24-Feb-12 16:06:39

Yes. I've ordered it from Amazon. smile thanks Crimson

I ♥ Phillip Glennister.

crimson Fri 24-Feb-12 19:57:45

Oh I hope you like it! I worry about recommending things to people blush. It's very quirky. Perhaps I liked it because of my teenage passion for reading Georgette Heyer Regency Romances.

HildaW Thu 01-Mar-12 16:35:37

Crimson........oh lor Georgette Heyer got me through several years of teenage angst!

Ganja Tue 13-Mar-12 08:39:53

Just got the DVD of film So glad Gabriel Byrne was in it. He almost made me cry at the end of The Man in the Iron Mask, which apart from an excruciating performance by Leonardo dI Caprio, was a brilliant film. Jeremy Irons, Gerard Depardieu and John Malkovich, the best three musketeers ever.

Annobel Tue 13-Mar-12 09:22:23

I'd forgotten that there had been an adaptation of Vanity Fair, but I must have watched it - I always watched the adaptations of the classics. Philip Glennister as Dobbin rings a bell. I read the book in my teens and loved it - must have read it again for my degree. Becky Sharp is a wonderful character, an anti-heroine if ever there was one.