The BBC’s 7-Part ‘Gothic Jane Austen’ Fantasy Series Is So Good, It Demands A Rewatch

The BBC’s gothic, Jane Austen-inspired, impossible fantasy adaptation is so good, it demands a rewatch. Historical fantasy is difficult to get right, but when it works, it really works. Shows like Outlander and My Lady Jane offer a delectable mix of real-world history and inventive magic systems, a glimpse not only into the past but into a world wholly unlike our own. Finding the right storytelling balance can be tricky, though; how far can a creator push the boundaries of history before it breaks the audience’s belief?

One limited series that found the perfect balance of history and magic is the BBC’s adaptation of Susanna Clarke’s 800-page tome, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. It’s a tale about the dangers, delights, and seductiveness of magic, an examination of the British ideal of “respectability” in the early 19th century, and a reminder of the destructive power of grief and ambition. Clarke’s work is inspired by and even reminiscent of authors like Jane Austen and Charles Dickens, though with decidedly more magic and an eerie, haunting, watchful feel common in the most enduring gothic stories.

The adaptation follows two soon-to-be rival magicians, destined to be the greatest practitioners of their time: the reclusive, academically-minded Mr. Norrell, and the charismatic, charming, naturally talented Jonathan Strange. Increasingly eager to prove their power, Norrell agrees to resurrect a prominent politician’s dead fiancée and strikes a bargain with a dangerous, otherworldly, wild magic fairy, while Strange is soon sent to help Britain’s efforts during the Napoleonic Wars, wowing everyone with his ability to reanimate dead soldiers and conjure a herd of giant, ship-destroying sand horses.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell Is One Of TV’s Best Fantasy Miniseries

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Adapting Clarke’s dense, footnote-filled novel should have been impossible. In fact, it nearly was; New Line Cinema originally optioned the book for a whopping seven-figure deal (via The Guardian). Dangerous Liaisons’ writer Christopher Hampton was first tapped to write the script, followed by Downton Abbey’s Julian Fellowes. Neither managed to crack it before New Line Cinema fell into financial difficulty, at which point it moved to the BBC with writer Peter Harness (Young Sherlock, Constellation) and director Toby Haynes (Andor, Sherlock) leading a new seven-episode format.

What they produced is nothing short of a miracle. On a BBC TV budget — a far cry from current streaming budgets at Netflix and HBO — Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is a gothic, fantastical, Austen-esque, dangerous fairy tale come to life. The show won the 2016 BAFTA for Special, Visual & Graphic Effects and the British Film Institute named it one of the 10 best British TV shows of 2015. Fantasy titan and history buff George R.R. Martin even commended both the book and the show on his blog, writing, “I loved the book and I loved the adaptation. It does not need to be one or the other.”

Of course, Clarke’s source material provided the show’s incredibly engaging story, the animosity between Norrell and Strange, and the shift between the historical real-world and the eerie, trance-inducing ballroom party forced upon Mr. Norrell’s resurrected experiment by Marc Warren’s Gentleman with the Thistledown Hair. The performances bring everything together, however.

Eddie Marsan and Bertie Carvel are excellent as Mr. Norrell and Jonathan Strange, respectively, utterly believable and engaging as they each fall further into despair and face the consequences of their own magical choices. Strange’s wife, Arabella (Charlotte Riley), and the resurrected Lady Pole (Alice Englert) are forces to be reckoned with, even as they’re caught under the Gentleman’s spell. Warren is downright terrifying as the Gentleman despite his quintessential English manners and respectable attire. Everything works. It feels real because magic changes the characters. It doesn’t just exist in the same world as them.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell Is The Perfect Weekend Binge

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Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is the perfect weekend binge; the entire story is told in seven, roughly hour-long episodes, for a total runtime of 6 hours and 52 minutes. That means it’s even watchable in one day, and it’s difficult to stop. Though it aired weekly on BBC One in the UK and BBC America in the US during its original broadcast, the show is engaging from its opening scenes and keeps up its pace throughout. It has incredible momentum.

The building resentment and jealousy between Norrell and Strange is a thing to behold, and once Strange dips his fingers in dark magic, everything comes together with startling clarity and danger. Anyone in the mood for a British period drama, an interesting magic system, parallel worlds, and complex human relationships should watch Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. There’s nothing else like it on TV.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is available to stream on Prime Video in the US.

Release Date

2015 – 2015-00-00

Network

BBC One

Directors

Toby Haynes

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  Bertie Carvel

  Jonathan Strange

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