Jane Austen: Pride and Prejudice Persists to This Day
Many readers came to Jane Austen’s work through the 1995 BBC mini-series of Pride and Prejudice, starring Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. Despite passing away at just 41, Austen defined the novel of manners. This 19th-century British author’s five other books – Sense and Sensibility, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion – are all regarded as masterpieces as well.
Jane Austen Travel Tips
Travel to the annual 10-day Jane Austen Festival in her native Bath, England in September. A full-costume parade with Regency costumes kicks off the festivities at the Royal Crescent. Take a Jane Austen walking tour, attend readings of her works at Waterstones Bookshop, check out stage plays and Austen-themed comedy, and much more.
Year-round, explore the permanent exhibitions at the Jane Austen Centre in Bath. With costumed guides, learn about how her hometown shaped her outlook and writing. At the on-site Regency Tea Room, enjoy finger sandwiches, crumpets, and scones with clotted cream and jam. The gift shop stocks Jane Austen-themed china, jewelry, and stationery.
Tour Jane Austen’s house in Chawton, Hampshire, where she spent the last eight years of her life. Surrounded by a garden with roses and wild flowers, the house showcases Austen’s writing table, first editions of Sense and Sensibility and Emma, letters to the author’s family, and so forth.
Visit Chatsworth House, which inspired Jane Austen to create Pemberley, Mr. Darcy’s fictional estate in Pride and Prejudice. This 126-room stately home in Derbyshire, England appeared in the 2005 film adaptation starring Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Bennet. It’s a three-hour drive north of London.
In the Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice, Lyme Park portrays his family home. Even if you’re neither a single man in possession of a good fortune nor in want of a wife, it is a truth universally acknowledged that this elegant 1,400-acre estate with a deer park and rose garden is well worth exploring. Lyme Park, a National Trust property, lies four hours north of London.