The Other Bennet Sister (2026) turns the spotlight from the four more interesting Bennet sisters in Jane Austen‘s perennially relevant Pride and Prejudice and singles out Mary Bennet, the hitherto overlooked and “boring” middle sister.
Based on the novel of the same name by Janice Hadlow, the formula is one that was exploited to sensational affect in books like The Other Boleyn Girl, and it’s probably not a coincidence that there’s a similarity in the titles. But where Philippa Fucking Gregory had historical intrigue to exploit, the character of Mary Bennet is less defined, which makes exploring what, exactly, is up with this awkward girl lost amongst her prettier and wittier sisters ripe for viewing Austen’s world through new eyes.
Other adaptations of Pride and Prejudice have attempted to give Mary the tiniest hint of something deeper lurking under the bland facade — blink and you’ll miss Lucie Bryers’ subtle longing glances and clumsy attempts to catch Mr. Collins’ attention as he fawns over Lizzie and Jane at dinner in the 1995 miniseries, but it’s a flash and then the story has moved on to more interesting pursuits.
This much is evident: Mary is a girl who is well aware that she lacks what her siblings have in spades, and it’s probably not really her fault that she’s been overlooked in favor of her beautiful older sisters and her wilder younger sisters. Everyone has a role in Regency society, and Mary’s is along the same lines as Anne Elliot’s in Austen’s novel Persuasion, though much less nuanced. She’s the sister who is destined to stay home, care for her parents in their dotage, and die an old maid, while her other sisters move upward in society through advantageous (if not disastrously impetuous) marriages (though she is given something of a happy ending in an epilogue written in A Memoir of Jane Austen, written by her nephew James Edward Austen-Leigh — Mary allegedly was destined to marry a law clerk and moved to Meryton, so she dodged the spinster bullet).
So far these are the only photos of the production that I’ve been able to uncover, but it’s definitely gotten my interest piqued!
Are you excited about The Other Bennet Sister (2026)? Tell us in the comments!
I’m not sure that I find anything particularly compelling about Mary’s character. Considering the 1995 series has Mr Bennett lumping her in as one of the silliest girls in England, I don’t see her as being knowledgeable – although she does try to hold her own in conversation. Lucy Bryers did add those layers of yearning for something more to the character. I never quite conflated her with Anne Elliott before, likely because Anne is the capable one, and Mary hasn’t reached that stage yet in the slice of her life that viewers see. She tries to show intelligence as well as morality, and her piano playing might be good, but the depiction of her singing has always been for comic relief. I suppose I’ll wait for reviews before adding to the watchlist. Have to say that expression on Tanya Reynolds looks a wee bit sniffy, which seems appropriate. She’s got some competition with Duckface to make her fully faceted.
I am! It actually looks delightful. Way more excited about this than the Netflix P&p coming up.
I really enjoyed the book, and I’m incredibly picky about Austen continuations or spinoffs, so I have fairly solid hopes for this adaptation!
I agree!
I follow Richard E. Grant on Instagram and he’s been posting a few behind the scenes looks at this show recently so it’s got my interest peaked. Especially since from the couple of clips he’s shared, it looks like he’s playing a more hands-on/forthright Mr. Bennett, which I appreciate compared to some of the completely off in his own world, la di da versions we’ve seen in other adaptations.
I’ve seen the play Christmas at Pemberly, which gives Mary her own pleasant self-actualization story of maturation and enjoyed it very much. I’m not so sure this version is going to give me the same warm fuzzies.
I’m also mildly disappointed at the lack of lace upon Mrs. Bennet’s head, but this does look enjoyable. I assume that’s Lydia in green, that seems like it should be her color.
Justice for Kitty!
Meow!
On a more serious note, Ms Varma, Ms Jones, Ms Reynolds AND one whole Richard E. Grant? That definitely sounds like a cast worth watching no matter the show!
Also, why has nobody yet asked Mr Grant to play Sherlock Holmes and thereby make amends for that ludicrously foolish decision by the BBC to sub in Mr Richard Roxburgh for HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES before going on to cast Mr Richard E in the show anyway?
What I actually hope is that they do hold onto how Mary was written in the books, and keep the fact that, knowing she wasn’t a “pretty sister”, she needed to compensate for that by being “the smart sister”, only to not actually be that smart. Maybe it’s me, but that’s a great starting point for a character! I want the show to keep the fact she is vain, and mediocre, and judgemental! Let her be flawed and funny, and yeah, give her likable traits too, explore how it must affect her confidence to be the plain sister in a family of beauties, and raised in a chaotic household and treated with no respect, and how the impact on her personality is realistically not that flattering, and then give her a story that lets her grow as a person so she earns a happy ending. I don’t really expect that, or at least, they will significantly tone down Mary’s flaws to make her more generically likable, but I live in hope.
What I appreciated most about The Other Bennet Sister is how faithfully it stays rooted in the world of Pride and Prejudice while gently widening the frame. It never feels like it’s rewriting Austen so much as stepping into the shadows of her story and asking, “What was happening over here?”
Seeing events through Mary’s perspective reframes so much of what we thought we knew. Instead of the flat, moralizing caricature we meet in Austen, we’re invited into the interior life of a young woman shaped by neglect, comparison, and the quiet ache of never quite being chosen. Her self-righteousness and awkwardness begin to read less as personality flaws and more as armor.
There’s something deeply satisfying about watching her grow—not through a sudden transformation, but through gradual self-understanding. The novel allows her to soften, to be loved, and to discover who she might have been had she been nurtured differently. Her eventual happiness feels earned, not bestowed.
In the end, it’s a story about being overlooked and still finding your place. And that’s a beautiful thing to witness.
I read the book and really enjoyed it. I hope the to series does it justice.
It looks as if Mary has been well cast.
I’m looking forward to seeing it.
I’m glad they managed to include the excellent potatoes! No P&P adaptation is complete without them
I’m on episode 4 and thoroughly enjoying it! Looking forward to seeing your costume analysis as well…