The Paradise on PBS Masterpiece

Well my dear readers, The Paradise is finally here on PBS Masterpiece starting tonight at 9 pm. This BBC offering is an adaptation of Émile Zola's novel Au Bonheur des Dames (The Ladies' Paradise) but moving the early department store to the North of England instead of Paris.

Tonight we follow Denise Lovett (played by Joanna Vanderham) as she moves from her small town in the North of England to get a job with her uncle in his draper's shop. He is unable to hire her as he is getting squeezed out by "The Paradise", located across the street and one of the first high end department stores in England.

Denise of course gets a job there instead and promptly falls in love with the gorgeous boss, John Moray (played scrumptiously by Emun Elliott). So you see where this is going of course! A bit of back stabbing amongst the shop girls, a love triangle involving the boss and...well...I don't want to give it all away!

Speaking of scrumptious, my preference in male characters is Dudley (played by Matthew McNulty), Mr. Moray's right hand man and friend from childhood. He is gorgeous and that lovely Northern accent reminds me of a certain other Victorian Northerner, Mr. Thornton! My online friends will know what I mean!

Although based on a wonderful novel by Émile Zola, don't expect high art from this series. This is more Downton Abbey than it is Pride and Prejudice. However it looks like a lot of fun. And my friends in the UK seemed to like this one better than the similar ITV offering Mr. Selfridge. I think NOT having Jeremy Piven in this makes me like it better already. I am not a JP fan!

If you enjoy Victorian dresses as much as I do, you will appreciate this one for the fashion alone, but it seems there is much more to it than pretty costumes. The Beeb has already commissioned a second series which is a good sign, but then ITV is doing more Mr. Selfridge as well. Perhaps the battle of the Victorian/Edwardian department store series will be determined conclusively when we get to see the second seasons!

So tighten your corsets my friends and enjoy the ride. It will likely be a bumpy, melodramatic but satisfying romp. And come back and comment with your impressions after you watch the first episode.



Cheers!

P.S. Apologies for not including the caveat "Check local listings". My local station WNED is at it again, not airing something that PBS has sent me promotional material on! Grrrr!!! If you are in the USA, the first episode is available online for a limited time, so catch it while you can.

Impressionism, Fashion & Modernity (& Film!)

Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926)
Women in the Garden, 1866
Oil on canvas; 100 3/8 x 80 11/16 in. (255 x 205 cm)
Musée d'Orsay, Paris

Well, if you have been wondering why I haven't posted in a while, I have been in NYC on a business trip. I managed to get to a wonderful exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (the museum set into the east side of Central Park) and wanted to share it with you.

Day Dress
American, 1862–64
White cotton piqué with black soutache
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Gift of Chauncey Stillman, 1960

I was in heaven, as I adore both Victorian dresses and impressionist art and it was such a wonderful change from the optometry lectures I have been attending. The combination of paintings, dresses, early photographs, fashion plates and various accessories such as fans, shoes and corsets was brilliant. Kudos to whoever thought up this dreamy exhibit.

Albert Bartholomé (French, 1848–1928)
In the Conservatory (Madame Bartholomé), ca. 1881
Oil on canvas; 91 3/4 x 56 1/8 in. (233 x 142.5 cm)
Musée d'Orsay, Paris, Gift of the Société des Amis du Musée d'Orsay, 1990

For some paintings they found similar dresses to exhibit nearby, but in the case of the painting above, they had the actual dress! And was it ever gorgeous!!! (see below, but way better to be able to steam up the glass case in person, not that my nose was pressed that close of course)

Summer Day Dress Worn by Madame Bartholomé in the Painting In the Conservatory
French, 1880
White cotton printed with purple dots and stripes
Musée d'Orsay, Paris, Gift of the Galerie Charles and André Bailly, 1991

So if you would like to see this exhibit yourself, it is at The Met until May 27, 2013 and then moves to the Art Institute of Chicago from June 26- September 22 2013. The exhibition was organized by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Musée d'Orsay, Paris.

James Tissot (French, 1836–1902)
The Shop Girl, from the series Women of Paris, 1883–85
Oil on canvas; 57 1/2 x 40 in. (146.1 x 101.6 cm)
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Gift from Corporations' Subscription Fund, 1968

If you would like some film recommendations, I was reminded of a few great films and miniseries today.

The Paradise is the new BBC series inspired by the 1883 Emile Zola novel The Ladies' Paradise. We have no word yet on when we will see this in North America, but some of my British readers are loving it! The BBC changed the setting from Paris to London but The Shop Girl above could easily be a character in the story anyway!

We however will soon see the ITV series Mr. Selfridge on PBS starting Sunday March 31. Although set a bit later in 1909, it gives a great feel of period shopping in London. And who wouldn't love to go shopping in London in 1909?

Claude Monet (French, 1840–1926)
Camille, 1866
Oil on canvas; 90 15/16 x 59 1/2 in. (231 x 151 cm)
Kunsthalle Bremen, Der Kunstverein in Bremen

And if you would like to see a fabulous story about some of the Impressionist painters (hey even Emile Zola the novelist is a character) The Impressionists is a wonderful miniseries. If you need any more coaxing, Richard Armitage plays Claude Monet and Amanda Root plays Alice Hoschedé, his second wife. When I get home tomorrow, I am digging out my DVD to see and hear my dear Richard as Monet again. And to see those gorgeous dresses of course!

Mr. Selfridge and Call the Midwife Season 2 starting March 31 on PBS

It will be another month before we in North America get to see the new ITV/Andrew Davies series Mr. Selfridge, about the flamboyant American retailer Harry Selfridge who founded his namesake department stores in the UK in 1909. It stars Jeremy Piven playing the lead and Frances O'Connor as his wife Rose Selfridge. I was able to preview the first two episodes and I can absolutely recommend this for great Sunday night viewing. However, I think PBS missed the opportunity to retain it's Sunday night audience by delaying the airing of Mr. Selfridge until the end of March!

Doesn't Jeremy Piven look thrilled to be surrounded by those gorgeous women?

In the UK, the BBC rushed their very similar offering The Paradise (loosely based on Emile Zola's department store novel The Ladies' Paradise) to the small screen in the fall of 2012 whereas Mr. Selfridge didn't start on ITV until January 2013. 

It seems that the BBC didn't want to be burned again like when Upstairs Downstairs was pipped at the post by the superior Downton Abbey from ITV. This time the viewers and critics are torn, so there seems to be no clear winner yet in the UK. There is no word yet on when we in North America will see The Paradise.

I will admit that I am besotted with Call the Midwife, so I have also previewed the first episode of Season 2 for you (what a sacrifice I make for my online friends!). I loved it, as usual. This show is so charming and it really is "Girl Power" circa 1957. You go girls!

If you haven't seen Season 1 of Call the Midwife, many PBS stations are replaying it (Sun March 10 and 17 8-11pm) so you can catch up. Unfortunately not my local station out of Buffalo, but perhaps you will be luckier. Remember...Check Local Listings!

My review of Call the Midwife Season 1 is here. And my sister's review of the Christmas episode of Call the Midwife is here! Have fun with your Sunday nights in April my friends!