BBC Four - A Very British Romance with Lucy Worsley, Episode 1 (original) (raw)
Episode 1
Lucy's romp through 300 years of love's rituals begins with the Georgian age, when the rules of courtship were being rewritten, and women and men made their own romantic choices.
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Lucy Worsley presents a series about the 'invention' of British romance - our very own, surprisingly passionate, tradition of love.
Lucy's romp through three centuries of love's rituals begins with the Georgian age, when the rules of courtship were being rewritten. Traditionally, marriage had been as much about business as love. Now, a glamorisation of romantic love inspired women and men to make their own romantic choices - they could flirt in newly built assembly rooms or elope to Gretna Green as an act of romantic rebellion.
But the main force of change was the arrival of the novel - Samuel Richardson, Fanny Burney and Jane Austen didn't just map out women's changing desires, they made people seek out the feelings and emotions described in their own lives, permanently changing how the British feel.
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Clips
Poor Mary
Duration: 02:37
Peak hair
Duration: 01:32
Music Played
Peter Skellern
Love Is the Sweetest Thing
Peter Skellern
Love Is The Sweetest Thing
The Count Basie Orchestra
Basie's Back in Town
Peter Skellern
Love Is the Sweetest Thing
Carl Davis
Pride & Prejudice Theme
Orchestra: The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach
Rondo II
Robby Poitevin
Forever Yours
Michel Blavet
Flute Concerto in A Minor
Ennio Morricone
Moments in Love
Todd Hannigan
Thicker Than Water Show more / Show less
Lucy on Jane Austen's "Persuasion"
Jane Austen’s final completed novel, Persuasion (1818) is one of the most romantic books ever written. About losing love and unexpectedly finding it again, it’s the first book in the world to reveal the thoughts and feelings of a normal woman approaching middle age and regretting turnings not taken.
When the romance genre first emerged, it took place in faraway lands and its heroines were rich, beautiful and adventurous. But with Jane Austen romance was brought home to Georgian England, and unfolded in homes and locations her readers would have recognised from real life.
Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Presenter | Lucy Worsley |
| Executive Producer | Michael Poole |
| Executive Producer | John Das |
| Director | Sebastian Barfield |
| Producer | Sebastian Barfield |
Broadcasts
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