Next Sunday "Masterpiece Theatre" - produced by WGBH - kicks off a new season with adaptations of all six Jane Austen novels. The series' newly minted host, Gillian Anderson, has gotten a bit of attention. But the endeavor rests more heavily on screenwriter Andrew Davies: He wrote four of the adaptations to be aired, including the acclaimed 1995 "Pride and Prejudice" miniseries and a new version of "Sense and Sensibility." His other works include the "Masterpiece Theatre" series "Bleak House" and the feature film "Bridget Jones' Diary." We spoke to him this fall about Jane, Elizabeth, Bridget, Colin, and the public's fascination with British costume drama. - JOANNA WEISS
Q. I wonder if you could take me into your head a bit. When you pick up a novel to adapt it, where do you start?
A. I usually re-read it in as innocent a way as I can. I try to pretend I just picked it up for the first time to enjoy the story. Doing that, I'll be noticing bits that will make wonderful movie moments and also gaps that I think might need a bit of filling in. Then I try to decide how long it's going to be and how to divide the thing up. And that's about it.
Q.What sorts of things have you needed to fill in?
A. With "Pride and Prejudice," I thought we ought to see a bit more of Mr. Darcy. So I wrote a number of scenes in which we get to understand him a bit better. With "Sense and Sensibility," I think the book did need a little bit of help, especially with the two men who get the girls. I had to do some quite hard thinking about the guys, and devise scenes in which the audience would fall in love with Edward when Elinor does. And also to convince the audience that Colonel Brandon is definitely the man for Marianne. Really, "Sense and Sensibility" was one of the most difficult ones I'd done in a long time.
Q.What's your philosophy about using the writer's language?
A. Most of these great writers have amongst their skills the ability to write really good dialogue. Sometimes it's a bit lengthy and wordy for our taste, and I do prune even Jane Austen. But I do try to use as much of her dialogue as I can, simply because it's so good. And there are so many fans of the novels, they will want to hear their favorite line.
Q.How about incorporating the narration itself? I remember being impressed, way back when "Pride and Prejudice" first aired on A&E, with the way the novel's famous first line came out of Elizabeth's mouth.
A. I remember thinking, in "Pride and Prejudice," that there are only two characters in that novel who are intelligent enough to use Jane Austen's jokes or speak in Jane Austen's voice, and that's Elizabeth and her father. It would be wrong to hear her ironic tone coming from anybody but them. In "Sense and Sensibility," Colonel Brandon is the only one quite capable of that ironic detachment. You've got to sometimes say, "Well, if people want it, they'll just have to go to the book."
Q. After adapting so many classic novels, what was it like to take on "Bridget Jones' Diary"?
A. I'd already read "Bridget Jones' Diary" and really loved it. Partly, of course, because Bridget's such a fan of my adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice." So when I got asked to adapt it, I made it a condition that I would be allowed a night out with Helen Fielding and we would go to all her favorite wine bars and get drunk on Chardonnay. And indeed we did, and became quite good buddies. They already had a script by Helen herself which was very funny, but it was kind of rambling. It hadn't made up its mind what sort of movie it was. And I said, "It really has to be a romantic comedy and concentrate on the main plot of Bridget and the two men." I also said that Mark Darcy has got to be more like Mr. Darcy. Less of a comic character and more of a hero. That was really my contribution.
Q. You must have been thrilled to when Colin Firth - who played Mr. Darcy in your "Pride and Prejudice" - came on board as Mark Darcy.
A. I think they had to work quite a bit to persuade him to revisit Mr. Darcy. But he did, and he did an absolutely wonderful job again. He's just such a favorite of mine. His Mr. Darcy of "Pride and Prejudice" was just so terrific. I think that was the best performance of anybody in any script that I've written.
Q. Why do American audiences find such unending interest in British costume drama?
A. Part of it is the pleasure of visiting an age that's different from ours. Jane Austen's period, it's such a lovely period for costume. The men look tremendously masculine and glamorous in the wonderful fine britches and high polished boots and long riding coats and big hats. And the women look absolutely ravishing. It was actually a sexually permissive age: very little in the way of underclothes. They were running about in things that looked like nightdresses. So that's all very appealing. Also, although the costumes are rather different and the social conventions are rather different, the primal urges are exactly the same. The longing and the jealousy and the ambition and the spite and the greed and the betrayal and the affection and the love, they're all stuff that we recognize and identify with now.
