In film, I am driven with performance and the acting rather than the just the visual mise en scene. It is the dialogue and characterisation that interests me, so of course I knew I would enjoy the "one off" Cranford Christmas which aired this evening.
Who wouldn't enjoy the wonderful ensemble cast of British theatre Royalty...Judi Dench,Jonathan Pryce,Francesca Annis,Julia McKenzie,and Barbara Flynn, they all make this reworking of Elizabeth Gaskell's original novel highly entertaining, but I didn't quite enjoy this second visit to early Victorian Cheshire as much as I wanted to, as writer Heidi Thompson had literally over filled the whole thing with wall to wall characters, many of which we had never seen before...
Thank God for the brilliant Imelda Staunton who plays the vital and hilarious Miss Pole (above), with a face twitching with constant indignation under a succession of bonnets, her clever portrayal of a village gossip had me chuckling into my dressing gown!
Wish I could watch this show over here.
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