Pemberley (Lyme Park, Cheshire)

Pemberley (Lyme Park, Cheshire)
Oh, to be in England...

My top 10 Period Dramas (top 20? 30?)

This is just a list of films I can't do without and keep coming back to.  As this is my list, yours will obviously be different, and I am always open to suggestions.  This list is in no particular order, although my extra favorites seem to be closer to the top.  This will definitely change over time as well, and there are already way more than 10, so here goes nothing...

  1. North and South 2004 with Richard Armitage and Daniela Denby-Ashe
  2. Sense and Sensibility 1995 with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet
  3. Pride and Prejudice 1995 with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle
  4. Emma 1996 Gwyneth Paltrow and Jeremy Northam
  5. Cranford 2007 with Judy Dench and Eileen Atkins
  6. Wives and Daughters 1999 with Justine Waddell and Michael Gambon
  7. Emma 2009 with Romola Garai and Jonny Lee Miller
  8. Persuasion 1995 with Amanda Root and Ciaran Hinds
  9. The Way We Live Now 2001 with David Suchet and Matthew Macfadyen
  10. Shakespeare in Love 1998 with Joseph Fiennes and Gwyneth Paltrow
  11. A Knight's Tale 2001 with Heath Ledger and Paul Bettany
  12. The Princess Bride 1987 with Carey Elwes and Robin Wright
  13. Impromptu 1991 with Judy Davis and Hugh Grant
  14. Jane Eyre 2006 with Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens
  15. Northanger Abbey 2007 with JJ Feild and Felicity Jones
  16. The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling 1997 with Max Beesley and Benjamin Whitrow
  17. Bleak House 2005 with Gillian Anderson and Anna Maxwell Martin
  18. Gosford Park 2001 with Maggie Smith and Kristin Scott Thomas
  19. Anne of Green Gables 1985 with Megan Follows and Colleen Dewhurst
  20. The Buccaneers 1995 with Carla Gugino and Mira Sorvino
  21. Amadeus 1984 with F. Murray Abraham and Tom Hulce 
  22. A Child's Christmas in Wales 1987 with Denholm Elliot




37 comments:

  1. AnonymousFebruary 22, 2011 at 9:53 PM

    A great list, but I have to add a few other must-sees:
    Amazing Grace (Ioan Gruffudd)
    Daniel Deronda (Hugh Dancy & Romola Garai)
    An Ideal Husband (Cate Blanchett)
    Little Women (Winona Ryder)
    Miss Potter (Renee Zellweger)
    A Room with a View (Helena Bonham Carter)
    The Young Victoria (Emily Blunt).
    Check them out; no collection would be complete without these.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jenny AllworthyFebruary 22, 2011 at 10:37 PM

    Hi Shannon

    Thanks for the additional films for my list. I will have to add to this list soon, as I am watching Little Dorrit for the second time and it is FAB! Sad to admit that I haven't seen Amazing Grace yet, although I have heard it's brilliant. My next Amazon spree will have to include that. All your others I know and love (especially Miss Potter and An Ideal Husband). As I am writing this, I am thinking of many other additions. Perhaps tomorrow I can add my updates to my list. So many films...

    ReplyDelete
  3. ElleoneiramMarch 5, 2011 at 6:04 PM

    Did you ever see The Cazalets? That happens to be one of my favorite, though some disliked it because of the "unpleasant characters." They're all very complext, in my opinion. Great list! I, too, am a huge fan of North and South, a favorite contender. Sigh.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jenny AllworthyMarch 6, 2011 at 8:20 AM

    Thanks for the suggestion Elleoneiram. I had seen The Cazalets online somewhere (possibly Amazon) but was undecided whether to order it. I might like it better than the new Upstairs Downstairs, which I have seen in preview as it comes to PBS later in the spring. I was pretty lukewarm about Updown. Same time period so I'll see if I like this one better. And I adore Hugh Bonneville.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousSeptember 4, 2011 at 10:49 PM

    Oh I love North and South, Wives and Daughters, almost all the Jane Eyre's and Persuasions - different reasons for each. Northanger Abbey, Anne of Green Gables, Miss Potter, most you've already listed. Larkrise to Candleford love it also. suzan

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousJanuary 8, 2012 at 4:35 PM

    Watch the BBCs Little Dorrit series, I loved it. Also ITVs Downton Abbey, that is great and was something like the most popular TV drama ever, was in the Guinness Book of World Records!

    ReplyDelete
  7. mommbstaMarch 16, 2012 at 7:01 PM

    now i have a list of movies that i can look out for (a few of these i have not seen)and judging from your excellent taste in the first 10 (especilly the first) i'm sure that they'll be good. i now find it difficult to watch period movies without comparing the 'HIGH' to North an South

    ReplyDelete
  8. Stephanie August 1, 2012 at 11:44 AM

    What about the 2007 Persuasion with Sally Hawkins??

    ReplyDelete
  9. megNovember 30, 2012 at 11:57 PM

    Thank you for this treasure trove of period flicks to watch out for!
    I agree with the other commenter that The Cazelets is well worth watching. Also, I am sorrowed to see that Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day didn't make the cut-- it's one of my favorites!

    ReplyDelete
  10. KarinJanuary 9, 2013 at 3:38 PM

    The Princess Bride is just...marvellous. A great film and a even greater book.
    At last someone who likes the Jane Austen-version with Tobu Stevens and Ruth Wilson. And the top seven are also really great films, especially North and South <3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jenny AllworthyFebruary 18, 2013 at 10:41 AM

      Hi Karin. I need to watch Toby Stevens and Ruth Wilson again. Yum! Did you know he is Maggie Smith's son? And North and South is v v v wonderful. Princess Bride too. You have impeccable taste!

      Delete
  11. AnonymousJanuary 10, 2013 at 5:22 PM

    Tess of Durberville

    ReplyDelete
  12. Alix BoyingtonFebruary 17, 2013 at 8:13 AM

    I completely agree with North and South being #1! It is a fantastic drama and I cannot get enough of it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jenny AllworthyFebruary 18, 2013 at 10:42 AM

      Hi Alix. Yes, we need more Richard Armitage in a cravat don't we?

      Delete
  13. AnonymousMarch 8, 2013 at 2:15 PM

    Wuthering Heights, 1939. It's not true to the book in many respects, but I always cry when Cathy dies. It is the only version of the movie that makes me cry no matter how many times I see it. 1992 version is good also, but it's in color and not nearly as foreboding as 1939 version....

    Gone With the Wind....

    Upstairs/Downstairs original.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jenny AllworthyMarch 20, 2013 at 10:28 AM

      Thanks Anon. Great recommendations. Sometimes the oldies are still the best!

      Delete
  14. AnonymousMarch 10, 2013 at 8:09 AM

    I love 'Wives and Daughters' and 'Pride and Prejudice' so much...may I say 'fingersmith'2005 is also my favorite...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jenny AllworthyMarch 20, 2013 at 10:33 AM

      I haven't seen Fingersmith yet. I guess I was just waiting for a good recommendation from a reader. :)
      I am rereading Wives and Daughters again right now. I may have to see the miniseries again soon too. Oh, that Roger Hamley. Man o' my dreams!

      Delete
  15. AnonymousAugust 13, 2013 at 1:15 PM

    Under the Greenwood Tree is very good

    ReplyDelete
  16. AnonymousSeptember 30, 2013 at 7:20 PM

    Small Island, Lark Rise to Candleford, Talk of Angels, Firelight and Dangerous Beauty. ALL so worth seeing!

    ReplyDelete
  17. AnonymousNovember 11, 2013 at 2:12 AM

    2005 Pride and Prejudice...

    ReplyDelete
  18. AnonymousNovember 19, 2013 at 4:06 PM

    Just curious to know what you think of Downton Abbey after reading your comment from two years ago!

    ReplyDelete
  19. UnknownApril 9, 2014 at 10:52 PM

    for those obsessed with pnp 1995. must watch lost in austen, austenland, miss austen regrets, and becoming jane

    ReplyDelete
  20. AnonymousJune 6, 2014 at 12:52 PM

    The Age of Innocence was simply divine! A beautiful adaptation of Edith Wharton's novel. The costumes and interiors were so elegant.

    ReplyDelete
  21. UnknownJune 13, 2014 at 6:37 PM

    The Painted Veil, Atonement, Cold Mountain, Bright Star and Memoirs of a Geisha are also great, in terms of both performances and historical detail and accuracy. Also, anyone who likes Anne of Green Gables will also enjoy another series called Road to Avonlea.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousSeptember 13, 2014 at 3:19 PM

      The Painted Veil and Bright Star are two of my favourite films of all time. So, so beautiful.

      Delete
  22. AnonymousJune 27, 2014 at 10:26 AM

    The absolute best and least discovered movie is FIRELIGHT.
    Amazing. Brilliant. Unforgettable.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Hajirah FarahAugust 30, 2015 at 2:20 AM

    Little Women

    ReplyDelete
  24. UnknownFebruary 2, 2016 at 6:55 PM

    Mansfield Park! Is my #1

    ReplyDelete
  25. AnonymousAugust 15, 2016 at 12:26 PM

    It is certainly in my top 5. I was wondering why there was no mention of it! So funny.

    ReplyDelete
  26. AnonymousApril 18, 2017 at 1:11 PM

    One vote here for the BBC's 1985 Bleak House.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Don R. DalyMay 2, 2020 at 6:20 AM

    By the sword divided. Was on PBS in the 80s. DVD Umavsolable in the US. Though did find it on You Tube..

    Very different from everyone else's Zulu Dawn

    ReplyDelete
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