Lark Rise To Candelford

[lesbiassparrow]

To cheer myself up I started watching this even though it was a Christmas gift and I should not be watching it so early. I am enjoying it muchly, even though Dawn French's acting is right out of the 'Buxom Wench #4" box. It's all chest heaving and winking.

(I would probably enjoy this more if I hadn't recently been to a lecture on the horrors of urban poverty in the English countryside in the 19th century. I want to think about happy peasants, not people scrubbing for a crust.)

Comments

[namastenancy.livejournal.com]

I know what you mean; I wanted to give myself over to wallowing in nostalgia but the realities of rural poverty and class injustice kept intruding. As for Dawn French, well, subtle has never been her strong suit.
Nevertheless, I really enjoyed it and hope that Dorcas, the postmistress, ends up happy.

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

Yes; despite all my twitches I am still enjoying it. It does make the countryside look so lovely.

[chelseagirl47.livejournal.com]

I read this in a grad school class. As far as I can recall there was no plot, it was just all "oh wasn't rural England lovely . . . "

So I've been curious about how they dramatized it.

[elspethsheir.livejournal.com]

The dramatization is much much better! The books were very... gentle. So is the series, but with an occasional bite!

[chelseagirl47.livejournal.com]

Good to know -- thanks!

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

Watching this is like taking a nice warm bath; I am not sure if it will turn out to have a plot, but all the same it is rather fun. (I have owned the book a few times but never read it.)

[alexandral.livejournal.com]

hee! At the same time I bet people were happy too. I am just comparing my life now with the life we had in 60-80s in Russia(food shortages, totalitarism, etc, etc) . I remember some things and I shudder sometimes, but at the same time I remember we were happy too. I have a 100 times better life now but I don't think I am actually happier, well , may be a little happier but mostly not because my life is easier but because I have found a good partner, etc. etc..

And my mother always remembers WW2 years with nostalgia - yes it was a real hard time back then , but she was young back then so she was happy..

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

I think people have a remarkable ability to be happy with not very much, especially when you are part of a community going through the same. I grew up in rural Ireland where everyone was poor and I don't remember being unhappy (though I suspect my parents must have had some bad times.)

[elspethsheir.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you're watching it! Sometimes, the story resolutions are a bit... too pat, but I want to be Dorcas when I grow up. Tea is my one weakness!

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

I want her baths! They look quite lovely, even though I know it must have been a pain boiling all that water.

[wistfulmemory.livejournal.com]

It always makes my day when "buxom wench" is able to somehow find its way into a conversation...

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

The fact that there are so few opportunities to use buxom wench in ordinary conversation is one of the signs of the decline of Western civilization. I am convinced of it.

[queenthesixth.livejournal.com]

I never got into that series which is odd because it's kind of thing I usually like. Maybe it has to do with me being in hospital during the first series and it reminds me of that or something, I don't know. I have the book upstairs, never read that either. But as I usually buy way more books than I have time to read at any given time, there's no big conspiracy on that score at least.

[lesbiassparrow.livejournal.com]

It's quite pleasant viewing really; it reminds me of Cranford a bit. And Dawn French heaves her bosum at least five times a minute.

[queenthesixth.livejournal.com]

And I love Cranford! I re-watch it regularly so I'm not sure why Lark Rise made such little impression on me. I should really give it another go.