Wide Sargasso Sea adapted for BBC4 this Autumn

This is the title of the BBC press release just published. Jean Rhys' Wide Sargasso Sea was adapted previously for the big screen in this 1993 production directed by John Duigan. These are the details of the new production:

Direction: Brendan Maher (Kidnapped and The Secret Life of Us)
Screenplay: Stephen Greenhorn (BBC ONE series Glasgow Kiss and BBC ONE drama Derailed)
Production: Elwen Rowlands
Executive Producers: Jane Featherstone and Claire Parker for Kudos

Cast: (In the picture, left to right)
Rafe Spall.... Edward Rochester
Rebecca Hall.. Antoinette Cosway.
Nina Sosanya... Christophine
Michael Maloney ... Mr Mason
Victoria Hamilton ... Cora
Katrine de Candole ... Annette

---- Some additional cast:
Alex Robertson

Set in the lush landscape of Jamaica after the emancipation of slaves, Wide Sargasso Sea tells the story of the arranged marriage between a white Creole heiress and an Englishman.
Rhys, herself a Creole, felt Bronte had misrepresented Creole women in her work.
She wanted to show an alternative to the story of Bertha Mason, Mr Rochester's first wife, and dispel the 'mad wife' image created by Bronte.
Rhys' powerful work describes not only the meltdown of lust and passion, but also the atmosphere of paranoia and racial tensions that characterised the Caribbean in the 1830s.
The film stars Rafe Spall (The Chatterley Affair) as Edward; Rebecca Hall, appearing in Christopher Nolan's new film The Prestige this Autumn, plays his wife Antoinette Cosway; Nina Sosanya (Casanova) plays her nurse Christophine; Michael Maloney plays Mr Mason; Victoria Hamilton plays Cora; and Katrine de Candole plays Annette.
BBC FOUR Controller Janice Hadlow said: "It's great that Jean Rhys' captivating prequel to Jane Eyre is being adapted for BBC FOUR and with such a fantastic cast."
Claire Parker, Co-Executive Producer, said: "Stephen Greenhorn's wonderful script and Brendan Maher's fresh, original direction have attracted a fantastic cast to the project, from exciting, young, emerging talent such as Rafe Spall and Rebecca Hall, to established names such as Nina Sosanya, Victoria Hamilton and Michael Maloney.
"We are delighted to have the opportunity to bring to the screen Jean Rhys' passionate story of the first Mrs Rochester.
"This is period drama with a twist – contemporary and compelling."
Filming for Wide Sargasso Sea is currently underway in Jamaica and in locations around the UK.
The film is a Kudos Film and Television production. It was commissioned by Julie Gardner for BBC Wales drama.

By the way, sometimes fate has some really funny twists: Victoria Hamilton was Charlotte Brontë in the BBC series "In Search of the Brontës".

Categories: Movies-DVD-TV, Wide_Sargasso_Sea