English author Jane Austen (1775-1815) is a huge part of the frock flicks canon. Her novels fulfill the dream criteria for stories to adapt into historical costume movies and TV series: the period is historical, the characters are complex and relatable, the stories are female-centric and complex, and there are swoon-worthy heroes. She may only have written six full books (and many unfinished ones as well as shorter pieces), but they’ve been adapted over and over again, especially once TV became a Thing. It also helps that there’s a whole subset of people who are interested in the Regency era, although that’s probably at its root due to Jane Austen.

Austen spent her life in smaller, rural towns except for a period of time she lived in Bath (then a fashionable spa town). Her father was a rector; his family was wealthy, but he was the poor relation as he had been orphaned as a child. He and his wife had eight children, Jane being the second youngest. Jane was sent to school, first by a private teacher and then at a boarding school. She was, of course, a great reader and also enjoyed home theatricals.

Jane started writing poems and stories around age 11, and began her first book-length manuscript around age 20. It took many years before her books were published, beginning with Sense and Sensibility (1811) and continuing with Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), and Emma (1816). Her books were published anonymously, as she was a female writer; they sold well, but not so well that her lifestyle changed very much. She lived with her family continuously and never married. By 1816, Austen began feeling unwell, and died in 1817. Her novels Northanger Abbey and Persuasion were both published posthumously in 1817. And later on, various unfinished writings and juvenalia were published as she grew to increasing fame.

Let’s take a look at Austen and her works on screen, particularly emphasizing what we’ve reviewed here at Frock Flicks! Of course, there have been many modern-set adaptations, from Clueless (1995) to Bride and Prejudice (2004). Given our focus on historical costumes here at Frock Flicks, I’ll only be discussing the films and TV series that are costumed historically. Feel free to discuss modern adaptations in the comments!

 

Book Adaptations

Sense and Sensibility (1811)

The first of Austen’s books to be published, it tells the story of two impoverished sisters who, with their younger sister and widowed mother, are forced to leave the family estate and downgrade to living on the estate of a distant relative. Both sisters fall in love, and each learn different things through that process.

The story has been on television four times:

• In 1971, the BBC adapted it into a four episode TV miniseries starring Joanna David as Elinor and Ciaran Madden as Marianne. The costumes were designed by Charles Knode, but none of us have watched it, so that’s all you’re going to get!

• The BBC televised it again in 1981, but this time with seven episodes; it starred Irene Richard as Elinor and Tracey Childs as Marianne. We’ve got a short review, and it’s been too long for me to remember anything more than what I wrote there: I noted that I enjoyed seeing some of the more minor characters, found the characterizations of Edward and Col. Brandon convincing, and found Marianne VERY teenage-angsty and annoying. The costumes were designed by Dorothea Wallace, and unfortunately the budget was clearly limited, with lots of cheap cottons and synthetic glitz.

• The BBC adapted it again as a miniseries in 2008, with Hattie Morahan as Elinor and Charity Wakefield as Marianne, plus Dominic Cooper as Willoughby, Janet McTeer as Mrs. Dashwood, David Morrissey as Col. Brandon, Dan Stevens as Edward, and Mark Gatiss as John Dashwood. According to our short review, it was solidly decent in terms of story, acting, and costumes (by Michele Clapton – “nothing memorable” I wrote) but nothing to compare with the 1995 feature film (discussed below).

• Then in 2024, the Hallmark Channel made a truly dire (costume-wise) adaptation with Deborah Ayorinde as Elinor and Bethany Antonia as Marianne. The update was casting Black actors in those lead roles, but the film didn’t address how race would have affected the characters/story. Sadly, it featured what our review called the “clunkiest of clunker costumes” (by Kara Saun) that were “over-designed and under-fitted,” and those terrible costumes ruined what could otherwise have been a solid adaptation.

However, the 1995 feature film version is most people’s be-all-and-end-all, and that probably has to do with a beautiful script by Emma Thompson, the performances of the many leads and supporting actors (including Thompson as Elinor, Kate Winslet as Marianne, Alan Rickman as Col. Brandon, Greg Wise as Willoughby, Gemma Jones as Mrs. Dashwood, Harriet Walter as Fanny Dashwood, Imelda Staunton as Charlotte Palmer, Hugh Laurie as Mr. Palmer, and Robert Hardy as Sir John Middleton). Ang Lee’s direction clearly plays an important role in the film’s success, although I have a harder time identifying those elements other than saying the film comes together beautifully! Some people object to the fact that some important plot points were changed in the interests of time, and of course you can’t get to all the minor characters and sidebar plots in the limited time of a feature film.

The film was costumed by the dream team of Jenny Beavan and John Bright, both known for their historical accuracy in costumes for numerous Merchant/Ivory films. We’ve done deep dives into the film’s costumes, looking at Elinor and how the women’s costumes fit into the c. 1800 period, give or take; and Marianne, in which we talk about some of the 1790s influences in the costumes. We also did deep dives into supporting characters, including Mrs. Dashwood and Mrs. Jennings, touching on generational differences for older women; Fanny and Lucy, two very different iterations of the bad girl character; the rest of the women, including Margaret, Charlotte Palmer, and Miss Grey; and then a photo-heavy, research-light look at the main male characters, specifically Brandon, Willoughby, Edward, Mr. Palmer, Sir John Middleton, and John Dashwood.

Those male characters, particularly swoon-worthy Colonel Brandon and hot cad Mr. Willoughby, are so good that we’ve even done detailed looks at them on screen as part of our Man Candy Monday series.

 

Pride and Prejudice (1813)

Austen’s second novel and most adapted to date is about a young woman who falls in love while learning not to make hasty judgements and to appreciate depth of character. Meanwhile, she deals with annoying family members, while her love interest learns to look past the surface and remove his snobbish (metaphoric) glasses.

There have been numerous TV adaptations that we’ve totally missed; some of them are reviewed in this article from the Jane Austen Society of North America’s online journal:

• 1938: the BBC televised a live performance, but it was never recorded and so is now lost. With Curigwen Lewis as Elizabeth and Andrew Osborn as Mr. Darcy. No costume designer is listed on IMDB.

• 1949: a one-hour episode of the American TV series Philco Television Playhouse (NBC), with Madge Evans as Elizabeth and John Baragrey as Darcy. (Ditto no costume designer listed).

• 1952: another live BBC version that is again lost. With Daphne Slater as Elizabeth and Peter Cushing as Darcy, plus Prunella Scales as Lydia. Once again, no costume designer is named.

• 1957: an Italian adaptation, with Virna Lisi as Elizabeth and Franco Volpi as “Signor” Darcy. Still no costume designer recorded!

• 1958: another BBC production that’s now lost. Jane Downs as Elizabeth, Alan Badel as Darcy, no costume designer listed.

• 1961: a Dutch version with Lies Franken as Elizabeth and Ramses Shaffy as Darcy. No costume designer recorded.

• 1966: a now-lost Spanish TV adaptation. Elena María Tejeiro played Elizabeth, Pedro Becco was Darcy, and someone needs to write down the costume designer’s name!
• 1967: the BBC again, with Celia Bannerman as Elizabeth and Lewis Fiander as Darcy. And hallelujah, the costumes were designed by Joyce Macken!

We have, luckily, watched and reviewed the big productions, which include:

The 1940 black-and-white feature film starring Greer Garson as Elizabeth and Laurence Olivier as Darcy, plus Ann Rutherford as Lydia. Legendary designer Adrian set the costumes in the 1830s, a very different silhouette from “Regency” being about 20 years later, and he went Full Romantic on them in terms of giant silhouettes. Nonetheless, it’s an enjoyable watch given the quality of Garson’s and Olivier’s performances, even if they make Mr. Darcy a bit squishier than he needs to be.

Many people swear by the 1980 BBC TV miniseries, but I probably came to it too late (having watched the 1995 on repeat). Elizabeth Garvie played Elizabeth, David Rintoul took on Darcy, plus Judy Parfitt was Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Despite being a much older production — with lower quality film (or is it video? probably a mix of both) and a no-doubt small budget, I enjoyed it, particularly Garvie’s performance. Although it’s been too long to remember, I called the costumes (by Joan Ellacott) “fine” but “nothing to get excited about.”

There’s a death match between those who love the 1995 BBC TV miniseries and the 2005 film, and this blog is very much in Team 1995. So much so that we did a whole week of reviews of the film, with a detailed costume analysis, plus discussions of Colin Firth’s portrayal of Mr. Darcy, the character of Lydia Bennet, our favorite moments from the series, and the role of feminism in the novel/adaptations. There’s so much to love here, from the amount of time given to the story (so you can enjoy the minor characters and plot digressions), to standout performances from SO MANY that have become simply iconic, to the beautiful way they allow the relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy to build, to the high quality and highly accurate costuming. This series has also been featured in SO MANY of our top 5 posts, it’s not even funny, from wedding gowns to dance scenes, mothers, houses, guys taking baths, bitches, fathers, bad girls, manchildren, dinner scenes, eyeglasses, PJs, the countryside, buddies, sick and injured cliches, and an entire post about why it’s The Best.

The miniseries was costumed by Dinah Collin, and she did a great job creating a visual shorthand to distinguish various characters both in terms of class but also personality. Most everything was custom made, from fabrics to individual costumes, except for the uniforms. The actors were given a wardrobe and allowed to choose for themselves, within reason, what to wear for different scenes (including what to rewear, which helped make them feel like real people with real clothes). There were some deviations from the period, like low necklines worn for daywear on the less dowdy characters, and not featuring the wide-and-separated bustline actually worn in the period. That being said, the eveningwear was particularly well done, with beautiful fabrics and some of the fashionable elements of the period. The men looked good to my less-educated-about-that-eye, and I loved that they wore the newly fashionable long trousers for day and more formal knee breeches for evening.

I will accept that other people love the 2005 film (known as Pride & Prejudice & Pigs around here), even if I personally think they’re insane. My guess is they came to that first and hadn’t seen the 1995 miniseries? Because sure, it’s a damn good story, even if I am on record as thinking Mathew Macfadyen is sallow and homely and Keira Knightley just doesn’t suit so many historical eras. We’ve had knock down, drag out fights in the comments of my list of 11 reasons to be irritated by the movie, so much so that we turned off comments on posts older than a year. We even went so far as to republish a very witty review written by a regular guest poster that takes down the film. Nonetheless, some of y’all love it, but you’re probably not going to find that love echoed here.

Jaqueline Durran‘s costumes just didn’t do the film many favors. From messy hair to nubby homespun fabrics, the Bennet sisters looked like rode-hard-and-put-away-wet poor people. Meanwhile, Caroline Bingley wore weirdly sleeveless dresses, Mr. Bennet’s beard was farmhand scraggy, and both Elizabeth and Darcy wandered around outside in their nightclothes, just an absolutely not done thing in the period. This is what we call “heavy-handed costuming”: clearly the filmmakers were afraid the audience wouldn’t understand the class difference between the various families, and so made everything extreme.

The characters are so iconic that we’ve done looks at several, including Lydia, Wickham, Elizabeth, and of course swoon-worthy Mr. Darcy.

 

Mansfield Park (1814)

Possibly Austen’s least popular of her main novels in terms of adaptation, this is the story of comparatively unspunky Fanny Price, who is sent to live with wealthy relatives, is treated like the poor relation she is, and falls in love with her cousin.

The “lesser” adaptations include:

• According to Wikipedia, there was a 1930 film starring Ann Harding as Fanny and Roland Young as Edmund with this note: “The film was considered lost until 1990, when a color print was discovered by Arthur Wilkens, a guard at the Library of Congress.” However, there’s no citation and I can’t find the film listed on IMDB.
• For a long time, the 1983 TV adaptation was all we had to work with. That long-ago year means it’s a pretty stagey production that’s hard to watch for modern viewers. Sylvestra le Touzel played Fanny, Nicholas Farrell was Edmund, and the costumes were designed by Ian Adley.

More recently, the 1999 feature film incorporated Jane Austen’s juvenile writings to try to spice up the story. The acting is pretty good, with Frances O’Connor as Fanny, Jonny Lee Miller as Edmund, and some really good supporting work from Lindsay Duncan as both Fanny’s wealthy aunt, Lady Bertram, and her poor mother, Mrs. Price; Victoria Hamilton as elder cousin Maria and Justine Waddell as younger Julia; Embeth Davidtz as Mary Crawford; and Hugh Bonneville stealing every scene he’s in as Mr. Rushworth. However, the filmmakers really went dark with the themes, particularly around feminism and slavery. The costumes — by Andrea Galer — are hit and miss, with spot on ensembles worn by some and then weird, modernized shirt and blouse combinations on Fanny and “sexy” modern dresses on Mary.

Sadly, the only other contender really is the 2007 TV miniseries with Billie Piper as a toothy, giggly Fanny Price (very much NOT how the character is written in the books), plus Hayley Atwell as Mary and James D’Arcy as Tom Bertram. As I wrote in my short review, “this production attempts to be more modern and relevant… — and, predictably, fails as a result.” Worst of all, the costumes. Designed by the epically talented Mike O’Neill, I can only assume they had no budget because it’s a raft of recycled costumes with Fanny Price looking like a slattern with no hairpins and wearing 20 years out-of-date dresses that give her WAY too much cleavage. Fanny Price is shy and retiring, she would LITERALLY DIE before popping out a boob.

 

Emma (1816)

Emma is a comedy of manners set in a small rural English town. Main character Emma is almost an anti-heroine at the beginning, being spoiled and snobbish, but she has redeeming qualities that she finds over the course of the story. She considers herself a matchmaker and meddles in various characters’ lives, but then her own heart gets involved and things get complicated.

There have been a LOT of adaptations. Lesser known ones include:

• In 1948, the BBC broadcast a live TV production with Judy Campbell as Emma and Ralph Michael as Knightley. No recording was made, and no costume designer is listed on IMDB.

• The Americans got in on things with a live NBC broadcast in 1954, as an episode of Kraft Theatre, with Felicia Montealegre as Emma.
• Another live NBC TV broadcast happened in 1957 as part of their Matinee Theater series, starring Sarah Churchill as Emma. Again, no designer listed.
• The BBC did another live TV version 1960, with Diana Fairfax as Emma and Paul Daneman as Knightley. This one too is lost. Elizabeth Agombar was the costume supervisor, and that’s as close to a designer as we’re going to get apparently.

• In 1967, Spain got in on the TV miniseries adaptations with Lola Cardona as Emma and Arturo López as Knightley. No costume designer was recorded.

More well known productions include the 1972 BBC TV miniseries, which I tried to watch and failed after about half the episodes. Doran Godwin played Emma and John Carson was Knightley. It’s not bad, it’s just dated. My summary was that it’s “actually a strong production minus the videography typical of its day: it sticks close to the novel (okay, as much as I remember — I’ve only read it once); the costumes are appropriate to the 1815 publication date; the acting is good.” The costumes — by Joan Ellacot — are a mix of “okay that’s really quite good!” and “oh dear that came from the polyester section of the fabric store didn’t it.”

For a long time, we had the dueling 1996 versions: a BBC TV miniseries and a feature film, both released in the same year. My preference is for the TV version, which starred Kate Beckinsale as Emma, Samantha Morton as Harriet, Mark Strong as Knightley, Olivia Williams as Jane Fairfax, and Prunella Scales as Miss Bates. The story takes its time, and the costumes — designed by the incomparable Jenny Beavan — are SO spot on. Hats! Spencers! All the things that make Regency fashion actually good!

However, others love the feature film that was released the same year starring Gwyneth Paltrow as Emma, Jeremy Northam as Knightley, Greta Scacchi as Mrs. Weston, Alan Cumming as Mr. Elton, Polly Walker as Jane Fairfax, Ewan McGregor as Frank Churchill, Toni Collette as Harriet, and Sophie Thompson as Miss Bates. Despite that dream cast, Paltrow just reads as modern in her mannerisms, and since it’s a feature film, it doesn’t have time to get into all the various characters and subplots. The costumes (designed by Ruth Myers) are good but “Regency-esque,” and many of Paltrow’s gowns read as modern in their cut and fit.

Luckily, we’ve had two more substantial contributions, the first of which is the 2009 TV miniseries starring Romola Garai as Emma, Jonny Lee Miller as Knightley, Michael Gambon as Mr. Woodhouse, and Tamsin Greig as Miss Bates. I liked it more than I thought I would, but it doesn’t compare to the Beckinsale/Strong version. The costumes were designed by Rosalind Ebbutt and they definitely do the trick, but as I wrote in my short review, they “were fine — nothing horrible, nothing to write home about — and seem to almost all have been reworn from earlier Regency film/TV productions.”

Luckily we’ve got the masterpiece that is the 2020 feature film adaptation with Anya Taylor-Joy as Emma, Johnny Flynn as Knightley, and Gemma Whelan as Mrs. Weston. The acting was good, the tone was right, and it was downright beautiful. The costumes, designed by Alexandra Byrne, really hit most of the right notes of 1810s fashion, enough that I’m just going to tell you to read our detailed review, which looks at color, characterization, daywear vs. eveningwear, hats, hair, and jewelry. Overall, an A- (the minus is for the men’s pants).

Apparently we’ve decided that only Emma and Knightley are iconic enough to have their own character posts, but who knows, that may change in the future!

 

Northanger Abbey (1817)

A satire of Gothic novels that’s also a coming-of-age romance. Not-very-well-off Catherine Morland accompanies some rich neighbors to Bath, where she meets some nice and not-so-nice people and learns about the world; she then accompanies some of them to their country house, where she indulges her gothic fantasies.

This is another novel that hasn’t been adapted very often:

• In 1968, a Spanish TV company adapted it with Lola Herrera as Catalina (Catherine), Alicia Hermida as Isabela, and Pepe Martín as Henry Tilney. No costume designer is listed on IMDB.
• In 1987, the BBC and A&E co-produced a TV miniseries starring Katharine Schlesinger as Catherine and Peter Firth as Henry Tilney. My short review records, “It’s unfortunately pretty dated looking, the actress who plays Catherine never really yanks my chain, and it’s over-the-top in its interpretations of Catherine’s horror novel reading-inspired fantasies.” The costumes were designed by Nicholas Rocker.

Luckily the 2007 British TV adaptation filled in the gap. Felicity Jones played Catherine, JJ Feild was charming as Henry, Carey Mulligan plays the secretly-bad-girl Isabella, and Sylvestra le Touzel plays Mrs. Allen. Sadly when I wrote my short review, it had been too long to remember specifics about the costumes (designed by Grania Preston), but I don’t remember them making me scream or putting me to sleep.

 

Persuasion (1817)

Persuasion tells the story of an “older” woman who regrets having turned down a proposal in her youth. She re-meets the love interest, and while at first both assume the other no longer cares, things become more complicated. At the same time, she has to deal with her snobby family who are cash poor and a potential suitor who isn’t exactly what he seems.

There were three more minor adaptations:

• A 1960 BBC miniseries with Daphne Slater as Anne and Paul Daneman as Captain Wentworth. No costume designer is recorded on IMDB.

• Another British TV (ITV) miniseries was produced in 1971. It starred Ann Firbank as Anne and Bryan Marshall as Captain Wentworth. The costumes were designed by Esther Dean, and from what I’m seeing below, were VERY of the production period.

• In 1972 Spanish TV adapted it with Maite Blasco as Ana (Anne) and Juan Diego as Michael Trent (Captain Wentworth). No costume designer is recorded.

The 1995 BBC adaptation — shown on TV in the UK and released in theaters in the US — is most people’s favorite. As our detailed review says, “it’s just pure, understated, perfection.” From the cast who are perfect for their roles and give touching, understated performances — Amanda Root as Anne, Ciarán Hinds as Captain Wentworth, Victoria Hamilton as Henrietta Musgrove, Sophie Thompson as Mary Musgrove, Samuel West as Mr. Eliot, and Fiona Shaw as Mrs. Croft — to a story that takes its time to develop, this one is heartbreakingly good. The costumes, by Alexandra Byrne, do an excellent job of looking like real clothes without looking overly distressed à la Pride & Prejudice & Pigs (and get fancy when they need to get fancy!).

ITV tried to remake the magic in 2007 with a TV miniseries starring Sally Hawkins as Anne, Rupert Penry-Jones as Wentworth, and Joseph Mawle as Henry Harville. It’s a solid production: my short review says it’s “a pretty darn decent adaptation,” although “the story is compressed and feels like it rushes to the conclusion, and some plot points are changed unnecessarily.” However, nothing can compare to the 1995 film, so people really should just leave this one alone. I don’t remember specifics about Andrea Galer‘s costumes, sadly. I guess this is one we should rewatch so we have a more solid review?

Happily for Snark Week and sadly for the state of humanity, Netflix attempted a remake in 2022 starring Dakota Johnson as Anne, Henry Golding as Wentworth, and Richard E. Grant as Sir Walter. I only watched the first 30 minutes before I spontaneously exploded. Luckily Trystan made it through the whole thing and wrote a detailed review for posterity, choice quotes of which include, “Within 5 minutes of firing up the actual flick, I knew this was the ‘Jane Austen for drooling idiots who hate Austen’ retelling of her tale” and “This flick feels so damn try-hard, just yearning to be relatable to the Kids These Days, that all of Austen’s prose is stripped away, leaving just the bare skeleton of the story.” The costumes, designed by Marianne Agertoft, are predictably modernized, being unnecessarily stripped down in a “that has been done to death” sort of way.

Thankfully, we have the palate cleanser which is our post counting down all the swoony Captain Wentworths on screen, so I can leave you there.

 

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this guide, where I go over some of Austen’s lesser known writings as well as Austen-as-character and directly-inspired-by-Austen’s-works!