Cheap Jane Austen TV Films on iTunes

Last year ITV had a Jane Austen Season and showed three new adaptations and one older one on the telly. One of them I didn't like at all, one was oke and two where very good indeed. See my review below for more info. For all of you who already know all about any and every Jane Austen Adaptation I shall come straight to the point.

On the English version of iTunes (I don't know if other county versions have the same) you can get Emma with Beckinsale and Nothanger Abbey with Felicity Jones for a mere £ 1.98!!!!
To find these by going to the iTunes Store. Click on 'TV Programmes', you can find this in the top left menu. A new menu appears below the one you just clicked with 'Studio/Channels'. Find 'ITV' in the list and click it. A new page loads with all that ITV offers including the two Jane Austen Films. Hooray!!!

To be clear. After you bought the films you can only download them once. So download them to your home computer (not work as I almost did). After they are downloaded you can watch them on screen and/or place them on your iPod. Watch them as often as you like! I've watched Nothanger Abbey on my screen and the image was pretty much what I expected for a tv movie: not great, but by no means bad. I thought it well worth the money and now I've seen how good the movie is I'll be looking out for the DVD as well as I wouldn't mind having one version on my iPod for when I travel and one for watching lazily from the sofa.


The Jane Austen ITV Adaptations




There was the horrible version of Mansfield Park with Billie Piper who really didn't pull off the role at all. I'm a very great fan of Jane Austen Adaptations off all kind and not very critical at all. If it remotely resembles the story and people wear pretty froks I'm half on my way of being pleased. But with this Mansfield Park I didn't get much futher than half way as indeed the best thing I can say about this tv movie is just that: it remotely follows the story line of Jane Austen and there are girls in pretty dresses. Although to be fair it seems hard to make into a good movie from the story. The 1999 version of Mansfield Park is alright, but by no means great. And although I liked actress Frances O'Conner, she was rather too old!



And older adaptation they showed again was Emma with Kate Beckinsale. This adaptation I liked, but for some reason I had trouble liking this Emma. When Gwyneth Paltrow plays her, Emma has a certain sweetness over her that I also see in the book. Kate somehow doesn't have that, which makes me feel that her Emma is a little bit more stuck up and less remorsefull of her own actions. Nevertheless I bought the DVD and it's part of my collection and long over due a view.



The last film I saw last year was the new adaptation of Persuasion. I always loved the book and the film version of Persuasion (1995) with Amanda Root. The story is very mature and the new adaptation had a very fresh feel without sacrificing the familiar story too much. Ofcourse a tv film has only a certain amount of minutes to tell the story so it has been cut, but all in all I really loved this version and it's on my 'to buy list'. Actress Sally Hawkins did a good job!





The only film I missed out on last year was Nothanger Abbey. I felt really sad as I would have like to see a different version that the horrible 1986 Northanger Abbey in my collection. So when I spotted it at iTunes for a very good price I grabbed my chance. And what a relief... it's great. It has that fresh feel to it. The actress playing Cathrine, Felicity Jones, is great she has that fresh faced young girl feel to it, with an overactive sensual imagination which young girl so often have. I loved it!!

Must listen podcasts!!! Part 2

As promised here are some more Podcast favorites. If you haven’t read my first blogpost Must listen podcasts!!! Part 1 yet then please do. In that post you also find instructions on how to listen to these great programs. :D Enjoy!!!

Knit Picks
If you are a knitter I recommend this podcast. It's made by the employers of Knit Picks, a online yarn and pattern shop. I picked up loads of good advice since they started podcasting. Favorite was Episode 14: Keeping Track of Stitches. They gave lots of brilliant tips :D Hooray!


Manic Mommies
They are mommies who go manic every now and then because they wanna do everything and then some! Erin and Kristin present this funny podcast for parents. They juggle kids, careers, life, husbands and households and do this with a humor. From the disasters of going out to dinner with the kids to a discussion how much something would cost if paying with designer shoes.. Erin and Kristin got it. :) Mucho Recommendado!!

Lime & Violet
Miss Lime and Miss Violet are two of the funniest people I’ve ever known. Listening to their podcast is like having a great night out (or in) with your girlfriends. If you are in need of some laughs, crazy situations and Yarn Porn, then L&V will provide this in no small amounts. They address all subject and nothing is Taboo. I really liked the episode where they visit yarn shops to see how they react. Lime being the nice ‘normal’ girl and Violet being a bit ‘alternative’. I’m a big fan of treating everyone decently no matter what their appearence. In short these goofy, crazy, fun girls are a hit!! We loveeeee L&V!!! Also check out their blog: Lime & Violet The Daily Chum..

Sew Forth Now
One of the best sewing podcast I’ve found. The presenter Lori has good tips every time, but also gets guests that are fantastic. She has links to tutiorals and alls sorts. In the end it’s just another good quality craft podcast that you shouldn’t miss if you are a sewer!!

Stash and Burn
If you like giggles and knitting then I must recommened this podcast. It’s one of my favorites and I download it as soon as it becomes available. Then I keep it till I go home or to work. It’s great entertainment for travel. Nicole and Jenny are the presenters and they are GOOD! They struggle with stash, patterns and other knitting related subjects. In short they are like you and me and just discuss their everyday knitting struggles. Should be in your list if you are a knitter!

Inspirational Wednesday
Why did someone ever decide on a five day work week? I tell you that person should be reminded of our suffering for eternity. But now there is a reward if you get through the first half. On Wednesday it arrives in the from of this podcast. The show is filled with great tips, good interview and fun news. The only point I like to make is that you must be able to stomach a great deal of Americanism. Some don’t mind, I think this podcast is good enough to bare it, but the accent is very heavy Southern? American. That and everything is great, fantastic, awesome or fabulous. In short the presenter is a fan of those she has on the show and it shows. :) Still it’s a great way to meet the middle of the week.


Halfway There
A glass can be half empty or half full, depending on your view point and perhaps if you are filling it or drinking the contence. Being a mom is one of the best and thoughest jobs in the world and this Mom is making a podcast out of it. Jessica’s podcast appeals to be because she speaks from the heart. She discusses all sorts of problems with her child in the open and this is great. I really like her podcast and I’m sure I’d love it if I where a mommy. So good listen for non moms and a great one for moms.


Jane Austen Season Audiobooks with ITV1 & Classic FM
I’m so glad to tell you about this podcast. ITV send out three new movies based on Jane Austen Novels earlier this year. As a treat they have these audiobooks for free. They are very abridges, but this is great. I get my full lenght versions from Audible.co.uk and use these short versions for when I have less time and still want to hear the story.  Super duper. There are two free stories: Persuasion and Northanger Abbey. The quality is not bad at all!! If you can’t find them in iTunes, go to the Classic FM website for individual downloads. Unfortunaly the Mansfield Park ones don’t seem to work anymore. Maybe everyone was so shocked with Billy Pipers performance in the movie that no one wants anything to do with it. Hihi.

Craft Fair and Sewing Frenzy

I've had a very cool Bank Holiday this weekend. On Friday I went shopping, see previous post, and bought lots of goodies. On Saturday I started working with these materials to make Baby Booties and a Zippered Pouch. I will post pictures at a later date with more sewing. They are first attempts you see so not at the level I hope to get to.

Saturday night me and my boyfriend went to have dinner with Mark and Julie and it was very nice indeed. They have two beautiful daughters, Katie and Alexandra, who where lovely and funny. The food was good as was the wine, but the company was the best.
My boyfriend Kevin hasn’t always had the best opinion of Julie, mostly because as Marks best friend he heard about the squabbles. Ofcourse the making up and good times were discussed to a far less extent. This coloured his view of Julie. Now he’s finally getting to know her personally and finding her a completley different person from what he had imagined.
I don’t know her too well. I only came to the U.K. less than a year ago and she has always been very kind to me. I admire her taste and knowledge of what is ‘in’. She is also a very good mum. The best I’ve seen in London so far. And the way she goes about raising her children I wonder if I’ll meet a better one soon. If you can even say such things about people. What also speaks in her favour is that she never refused Kevin to enter her home. She’s always been kind and nice to him. I bet that her persistence not to enter into the ordeal was her biggest strenght. Anyway that’s enough about that subject. I had a great time and so did everyone else I dare say. My bf is the best ever!! Julie mentioned going to a handmade crafts fair and he said he was sure I would like to go too. Before I knew it he had arranged for us to go with them the next day.

So we went to the Weald of Kent Craft Show at Weald of Kent Craft Show. I played the tourist on the way over there. Comming from an country that is as flat as a pancake I’m thrilled to see hills. To me they are a source of endless admiration. So foreign to my mind that I constantly went ooooeeehh and aaaahhh. Kent is indeed very lovely in spring. When we got there I was happy as can be. On these nice grounds of a country estate several large tents where raised filled with handcrafted materials. As I’m still on a tight budget and I already bought a lot I only bought one thing: a basket to get flowers and/or veg from the garden. One of those old English style ones. It was handmade on the spot (mine was already made, they where working on the next one). I’ve always wanted one of these. It reminds me of Pride and Prejudice the BBC series. Where Lizzy and Jane are in the garden picking flowers. Jane leaves and their mother comes to Lizzy and asks if she knows how Jane is. In the meantime she attacks the flower bush with a pair of secateurs. Great scene.

Some photo’s of the Weald of Kent Craft Show


Handcrafted wooden earring holders. I didn't buy one and I still reget it. Brilliant solution in my opinion. Found the dealer though: David Stanley, Woodturner, phone: 01707 331964.

The cutest little wooden cats ever. Look at them such cute little things! Made by: Jim Hunter, 01622 719558, Woodcarvings of British wildlife (and cats)

A handcrafted Chess set made from old coins, they even find coins from years matching events in your families history. It did cost a lot. Circa 700 pounds, but if I had it i might be tempted as it's such beautiful handwork! Really stunning to see up close.

Beware of Fainting Fits

And that is what my friend Sarah at work said today. She being English and thus funny beyond believe without her being aware of it, decided to keep a record of events. The Event feeling bad after having eaten certain foods. But not liking boring logs, she gave it the Jane Austen twist. And I found this so funny I had to share it with you. As an Austen-holic I can value people that make everyday mundane things funny, or should I say, witty.

ITV just finished their Austen Season and after seeing a horrible Billy Piper play Fanny Price in Mansfield Park (MP) I was happy with the very good Sally Hawkins as Anne Elliot in Persuasion. Still have Northanger Abbey to watch. It's taped and awaiting the right moment.

On the hero's I can say (again) that I was not very impressed with the guy playing Edward in MP and quite liked the Captain in P. Sigh. Jane is my hero really... if only I could write like that. Or another so I could read it. Ah.. dreams dreams.