UK Edition
ITV to make 'less bonnet-y' Pride and Prejudice, bringing out Jane Austen's dark side
In years gone by, it would have been a recipe for television gold: a classic romance complete with corsets, crossed-wires and a happy ending.
That tried-and-tested version of Pride and Prejudice is to be given something of a makeover, it has been announced, as a new television adaptation aims to make it “less bonnet-y”.
Mammoth Screen, the team behind Poldark and Victoria, is to adapt the Jane Austen classic for ITV, challenging the BBC as the traditional home of the literary adaptation.
It is now more than 20 years since the BBC’s most famous version, written for the small screen by Andrew Davies and starring Colin Firth as Mr Darcy.
The ITV version, announced in the Radio Times today, will be adapted by playwright Nina Raine, who has never written for television before or seen a Pride and Prejudice adaptation.
Producers said the new version would tease out the story’s “darker tones”.
“Pride and Prejudice is actually a very adult book, much less bonnet-y than people assume,” Raine said of the project.
“I hope I do justice to Austen’s dark intelligence – sparkling, yes, but sparkling like granite.”
Damien Timmer, managing director of Mammoth, said, “In this age of the box set – with audiences loving to binge on complex, serialised dramas – it feels absolutely right to reassess the great classics.
“Every generation needs its own adaptation of this perfect novel.
“Nina Raine is one of the most gifted writers working today, and her wit and emotional intelligence make her the perfect match for Jane Austen.
“She’s a devoted fan of the book, but she’s never seen any previous adaptations – so pleasingly the novel only exists in her imagination”.
Raine’s previous work includes Consent at the National Theatre and Tribes at the Royal Court, which was nominated for an Olivier for best new play.
It will be the sixth television adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, with all previous versions made for the BBC.
Mammoth Screen is already making Vanity Fair for ITV, beginning filming next month in Hungary and England.
A second series of Victoria, and a fourth of Poldark, are also on the way.