Rent North and South (1975)
3.3 of 5 from 55 ratings
3h 19min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Margaret Hale, 19, has her life turned upside down when her father, the pastor, leaves the Church of England and settles with his wife and daughter in the Black Country. A textile-producing region, it is engaged in cotton-manufacturing and is smack in the middle of the industrial revolution where masters and workers clash in the first organized strikes. Margaret finds the bustling, smoky town of Milton harsh and strange and she is upset by the poverty all around and by her meetings with a Mr Thornton (Patrick Stewart). From the outset, Margaret and Thornton are at odds with each other: she sees him as coarse and unfeeling; he sees her as haughty. But he is attracted to her beauty and self-assurance and she begins to admire how he has lifted himself out of poverty. This classic four part BBC series is based on the novel by Elizabeth Gaskell and stars Patrick Stewart and Rosalie Shanks. - Actors:
- Rosalie Shanks, Patrick Stewart, Robin Bailey, Rosalie Crutchley, Norman Jones, Peggy Ann Wood, Kathleen Byron, Barbara Hickmott, Pamela Moiseiwitsch, Christopher Burgess, Gail Harrison, Ian Marter, Ginette McDonald, Frank Mills, Ray Mort, Peter Welch
- Directors:
- Rodney Bennett
- Producers:
- Martin Lisemore
- Writers:
- David Turner, Elizabeth Gaskell
- Studio:
- Acorn Media
- Genres:
- British TV, TV Classics, TV Dramas
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Reviews (1) of North and South
1975 vs 2004 - North and South review by BN
I got this version out because I'd recently watched the DVD of the 2004 remake of NORTH AND SOUTH with Richard Armitage, Daniela Denby-Ashe and Sinead Cusack. Like so many Dickens, Gaskell and Trollope novels, to name a few, they've had various versions made over the years, so I wanted to compare the two, plus I partly revere Rosalie Crutchley, she's great in anything.
To be honest, so far I've only viewed Disc One of this earlier version, containing a measly 2 episodes, but on reflection felt that compared to the newer one, it lacked much punch and verve.
All the sets and costumes and hairstyles were brilliant, as only the BBC USED to do so well, unfortunately nowadays we get very little of merit or viewing interest from that corporation.
Patrick Stewart, looking incredibly young and with hair(!) was a bit insipid as the factory owner and the lady playing Margaret (Rosalind Shanks, not really known to me, now or then) seemed to lack the fire and passion that Daniela brought to the role.
We got much more of a view of the horrors of the factory, its flying fluff, and the ire of the workers compelled to strike, plus all the dirt and squalor of the factory in the sordid Midlands town that Margaret rails about, in the newer version.
Will I persevere to Disc 2?
Yes probably, if only to see the resolution.
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