Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell BBC Adaption

Azrayne

Azrayne

Irenicus did nothing wrong
2,161
786
BBC AMERICA to Premiere Series in 2014 | Anglophenia | BBC America

Announced today, BBC AMERICA is co-producing for Supernatural Saturday a new drama series, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Based on the bestselling novel by Susanna Clarke and adapted by Peter Harness (Wallander, Is Anybody There?), Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell (7 x 60) is set during the Napoleonic Wars in an England where magic once existed and is about to return. The series will premiere in 2014 as part of BBC AMERICA?s Supernatural Saturday programming block.

The series is produced by Cuba Pictures (Boy A, Broken) for the BBC and co-produced by BBC AMERICA, in association with Feel Film, Bell Media?s Space, Far Moor and Screen Yorkshire. It is distributed by Endemol Worldwide Distribution.

Toby Haynes (Doctor Who, Sherlock, Wallander) directs, Nick Hirschkorn (Feel Films, Five Children and It) will produce with Greg Dummett, on behalf of Quebec?s Cite Amerique. Executive producers are: Nick Marston, Tally Garner and Dixie Linder for Cuba Pictures, Endemol Worldwide Distribution and Thomson-Glover and Patrick Irwin for Far Moor. Matthew Read is the executive producer for the BBC.

Nick Marston CEO of Cuba Pictures says: ?The production has now developed into a seven part series and we are delighted that Peter Harness is well on the way to completing all seven hours. He has just delivered episode five and, with Toby Haynes on board to direct, we are in an excellent position to begin pre-production later this month with production due to start filming in late summer.?

Richard De Croce, SVP Programming, BBC AMERICA says: ?Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is one of our next big series for our Supernatural Saturday block, as Susanna Clarke?s stories transcend borders and are perfect for our US audience. It?s another high-end drama for BBC AMERICA and we?re proud to be working with Cuba Pictures and BBC One.?

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell is going into early pre-production this month and filming will take place in the UK including Yorkshire as one of several key filming locations and Canada beginning late summer 2013.

Supernatural Saturday is the home of bold and original programming including BBC AMERICA?s Peabody-winning series Doctor Who, Orphan Black, The Nerdist, Being Human and In The Flesh.
Click to expand...
I know it was announced a while ago (I don't remember seeing a thread for it - if there is one, merge it) but I loved this book and have been waiting for an adaption for years. I just hope they put the budget into it that it deserves.
 
Lusiphur

Lusiphur

Peasant
595
47
Well, the book while ok was unecessarily long and drawn out. It will be interesting to see how they get it down to that running length.
 
D

Devlin

Golden Squire
832
9
Lusiphur_sl said:
Well, the book while ok was unecessarily long and drawn out. It will be interesting to see how they get it down to that running length.
Click to expand...
I have the book and have definitely read it but have absolutely no recollection of what the story is about other than there are wizards in it.
 
khalid

khalid

Unelected Mod
14,071
6,775
One of my favorite books, but I agree with Lusiphur that at some points it is unnecessarily drawn out. Can't wait to see this.
 
Azrayne

Azrayne

Irenicus did nothing wrong
2,161
786
It's definitely something they'll have to condense for the miniseries format, but I think whether the book felt "drawn out" is a matter of personal taste. I can definitely see how people might find it that way, but personally I enjoyed the meandering pace for the most part, it was a book you could really sink yourself into, get to know the characters and the world, immerse yourself in the whole vibe of it. There was a lot which wasn't essential to the core plot, but I felt it added to the overall experience of the novel and really showed the work Clarke put into the backstory. Which is strange, because I usually hate it when authors drag things out unnecessarily (WOT being a good example - I found myself skipping up to 1/2 of several of the books on my recent reread).
 
khalid

khalid

Unelected Mod
14,071
6,775
Azrayne_sl said:
personally I enjoyed the meandering pace for the most part, it was a book you could really sink yourself into, get to know the characters and the world, immerse yourself in the whole vibe of it. There was a lot which wasn't essential to the core plot, but I felt it added to the overall experience of the novel
Click to expand...
I agree with much of that. The backstory of the characters, the history of the world, the constant citations, are all great. However, I do think there is a particular section of the book that definitely drags. If they condescend that part, i will be happy.
 
K

Karloff_sl

shitlord
907
1
Pretty good so far, it's been a long time since I read the book and was a bit worried that the show would drag like the book did for long stretches but it's exceeding my expectations. Getting a sting vibe from Dune though with the Gentlemen but that's not a bad thing, he was a good actor in Hustle.
 
R

Running Dog_sl

shitlord
1,199
3
Karloff_sl said:
Pretty good so far, it's been a long time since I read the book and was a bit worried that the show would drag like the book did for long stretches but it's exceeding my expectations. Getting a sting vibe from Dune though with the Gentlemen but that's not a bad thing, he was a good actor in Hustle.
Click to expand...
I think he does a good job showing the malevolence of the character in an understated way. Brings to mind Tim Roth's performance in Rob Roy, a dandy that you did not want to cross.

Oddly enough I would have liked one or two more episodes, there are some places where it feels they've skipped a bit too far. The acting overall is great though, and it's been good to watch.
 
khalid

khalid

Unelected Mod
14,071
6,775
Really think they have done an incredible job with the translation to tv. I think they especially nailed the 6th episode. Can't wait for the finale.
 
khalid

khalid

Unelected Mod
14,071
6,775
At least to me, being a big fan of the book, I think they nailed it with this miniseries. I am curious how non-book readers take it though, as quite a lot is going on and it might be confusing for them.

Either way, can't recommend this enough really. Check it out!
 
gogusrl

gogusrl

Molten Core Raider
1,359
102
I liked it a lot (as a non-book reader). Could have toned it down a bit with the "english magic". Did they have a quota of saying that per episode ?

what happened at the end ? did the raven king choose stephen to be his successor ?
 
R

Running Dog_sl

shitlord
1,199
3
gogusrl_sl said:
I liked it a lot (as a non-book reader). Could have toned it down a bit with the "english magic". Did they have a quota of saying that per episode ?

what happened at the end ? did the raven king choose stephen to be his successor ?
Click to expand...
IIRC the book's ending is pretty ambiguous. Stephen became the king of Lost Hope, Strange and Norrell are trapped somewhere but where and what they are doing about it isn't clear. English magic(!) has returned to the land.

The author's supposed to be writing a kind-of-sequel set a couple of years later, featuring Childermass and Vinculus, but she works at GRRM pace so don't hold your breath.
 
E

elidib

Vyemm Raider
2,050
3,449
Just finished watching this. One of the best shows I've seen in years. If The Magicians manages to capture even a tiny part of the feeling of this it could be good, but Syfy vs. BBC? no chance in hell.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.