Mr Selfridge writer Andrew Davies has adapted Leo Tolstoy’s 1869 literary masterpiece War and Peace for BBC One. Directed by Tom Harper (Peaky Blinders), the six-part series stars Lily James (Downton Abbey) as Natasha Rostova, James Norton (Grantchester) as Prince Andrei Bolkonsky and Paul Dano (12 Years A Slave) as Pierre Bezukhov. The cast also includes … >
I shouldn’t like to have lived in the Russia of War and Peace, as pretty as it may have been. The consequences of Natasha’s momentary lapse of sanity have come to light: James Norton plays Andrei here with a stoicism so fragile you can see his brokenness leaking out through the fractures in it – … >
They’re really putting the dick in Dickensian this week. In news that will surely redefine forever the way you read Oliver Twist, or watch Sir Harry Secombe belting out ‘Boy for sale!’ in Lionel Bart’s eponymous musical, we discover that corpulent literary fixture, Mr Bumble, has a nickname for his penis. It seems to be … >
Andrew Davies’ new adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s classic novel War and Peace arrives on DVD and Blu-ray on Monday 8 February. Set in Russia, 1805 and starring Paul Dano (Love and Mercy), Lily James (Downtown Abbey) and James Norton (Happy Valley), the epic six-part series is also available to download and keep from BBCStore.com. > … >
So, sweet Natasha and nice Andrei get themselves engaged after all – but there’s a catch! At his grumpy dad’s insistence, he has to spend a year abroad first, backpacking through Europe, presumably. This will definitely end well for our lovebirds, won’t it? Meanwhile, Nicolai’s mum and dad politely request that he marry a nice … >
Ever heard of Parkinson’s Law? No, no, it’s not the law of celebrity chat shows. It goes like this: ‘work expands to fill the time it takes to complete it’. You know, like when you have a week to write a review of Dickensian and somehow manage to take all week to write it, when … >
I wished for more nice Russian songs in War and Peace, and last night’s third episode delivered! Pierre, thank goodness, decides to take steps toward being a better person, after shooting (but not killing) the very naughty Dolokhov in a duel, and later meeting a freemason and being invited to learn the secret handshake. Helene … >
Dickensian is a nice enough drama for a half an hour at a time, but here’s where it’s gone wrong – it’s not a show about solving a dog murder. Because I don’t know about you, but right now I’m more interested in seeing Compeyson being brought to justice over the murder of Jip the … >
If you were expecting BBC One’s gorgeous new adaptation of War and Peace to be a joyful comedic romp where people get to be happy, you probably should have Wikipedia’d a synopsis of the book before getting to the second episode, my friend. This week’s instalment sees Pierre (played with maximum awkwardness by the adorable … >
After suffering some unsteady Christmas scheduling, Dickensian is settling down for a regular Wednesday/Thursday night slot. God bless us, everyone! Because even at a time when an audience can record, download, binge, and then awkwardly chill while the dog’s not watching, there’s no better way to kill a show – especially one that acts like … >