Colin Firth as Mr Darcy

[Thurlow]

I haven't watched this in years.

Good lord. Has there ever been a better - or fitter - bit of casting than this?

Much as I love Richard Armitage in North and South...

Darcy's hair alone has me going weak at the knees though the wine may have something to do with that too

Agree wholeheartedly, OP, Colin Firth is the best Darcy, I love that production of P&P, it turned my dh into a fan of JA, and period/literary drama adaptations in general.

Another perfect casting imo is Toby Stephens as Mr Rochester.

and Richard Armitage as anything.

I saw Firth and Everett "Another Country" in the West End in 1983.

Firth is a wonderful Darcy, but then so is Eliot Cowan in "Lost in Austen"

Ooh, Lost in Austen. I forgot that. That was quite good and yes, Elliot Cowan was alright.

I didn't mind Matthew Rhys in Death Comes to Pemberley but no one is really patch on CF.

Eliot Cowan as Darcy was just plain wrong. He almost spoiled Lost in Austen for me. However the chap who played Wickham totally redeemed it.

Colin Firth is the best Darcy and Toby Stephens was a tremendous, brilliant Rochester.

I was brought up with the David Rintoul and Elizabeth Garvie version. It is wonderful and so completely true to the text. I admit CF is rather better looking though .

I do love a good period drama soon.

There's a scene where he's just looking at Lizzie across the room and smouldering - makes me go totally weak at the knees.

I love the 1995 version and Colin Firth. I wrote out a long post and have lost it so will give you this instead-

EmilyByrdStarr Oh my god that's my favourite scene! The way he looks at her with pride, admiration and good old-fashioned, chest-heaving lust always makes me a bit breathless.

YYYY Colin is the best Darcy and this is the best adaptation, with the best cast. McFadyen and Knightley? Phhhhhhht.

I agree the casting of the two leads is perfect. I have my reservations about Jane (good actress, but everyone in the book describes her as "beautiful", and she's not really) and Mrs Bennet (Alison Steadman overacting like mad).

Interesting timing OP, just read this www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/11021770/Colin-Firths-in-laws-thought-Mr-Darcy-looked-more-constipated-than-sexy.html

Poor Darcy, I thought he was sexy! Not sure how the full frontal would have gone down but like the idea! I remember reading the stage direction somewhere that Firth was given when Elizabeth walked to Netherfield-Andrew Davies wrote that Darcy had an erection

In other useless trivia, I am sure I read years ago that Firth thought he was too old for Darcy and wasn't going to take the role offered at first, and that the BBC didn't initially think he was good looking enough. Oh, and he nearly broke his nose diving into a tank to simulate the Pemberley scene I really should get out more

OnIlkleyMoor my favourite scene too, swoon. That and when he just meets Elizabeth again, having changed at speed, and is all sweet and obvious. I may or may not have a pinterest board for Pride and Prejudice with all such images! The above photo was off the board in fact.

On a wider note, I also loved the recent Lizzie Bennet Diaries on YouTube, modern version. Brilliantly done and the Darcy is also swoon worthy!

How could you not want to watch this ...

Oh, and OP you are my new favourite mumsnetter ever- how have I not seen North and South?! Love the book, love Richard Armitage, love that it is on Netflix, and love you for reminding me I hadn't seen it! Having a great afternoon, onto ep 2 now!
slinks off before totally kills thread, I am not even wearing my P and P user name!

Bit late to this party but I love, love, LOVE CF as Darcy - perfect casting!! I agree the chemistry between CF and JE is smoking hot!

My fave ever JA production but as Hackmum says let down by Alison Steadman's completely over the top performance.

Also wanted to mention the lovely Toby Stephens' masterful and brooding Rochester and in the GOOP version of Emma may I throw in big praise for the very gorgeously handsome Jeremy Northam?

Toby S v good as Rochester, and that uinny little duck-faced girl v good as Jane too.

I adore Matthew M as Darcy - all brown eyed and beautiful, as opposed to Colin F, who looks like a young Judi Dench imho.

And I like KK too.

uinny = funny.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that Colin Firth is the only credible Darcy - all that smouldering passion under a stiff, aristocratic exterior.

Wonderful Lady Catherine and the scene in the little wilderness with Lizzy is superb.

I send no greetings to those of you who disagree with me. you deserve none!!

With apologies to those of you not familiar with P&P speech.

Oh and Lost in Austen - great fun and I bet there's quite a few on mumsnet who have wished they could step through the secret door into Austen's world. Darcy is mine do you hear, all mine

David Bamber is the definitive Mr. Collins. Bit of trivia: he (Bamber) and Jennifer Ehle were in The King's Speech with our man Colin.

Ciaran Hinds as Captain Wentworth may well be my favorite JA casting of all time, though.

EmilyByrdStarr "when he just meets Elizabeth again, having changed at speed, and is all sweet and obvious." Oh yes I love that bit too! He's all excited and eager and trying to play it a bit cool but is just too happy to see her to be able to pull it off. I also love it when he's trying to quell his 'lustful urges' with cold baths and physical exercise "I shall conquer this, I shall!" squee!

OnIlkelyMoorBahtat he just looks so cute and happy! I love the 'but your good opinion is rarely bestowed and therefore more worth the earning.' Translated, I have learnt my lesson, please love me back! Makes me melt every time.

And yes, I love the conquer bit too, I love knowing how she has affected him.

Have some more images on me of the above mentioned parts!

Emily, I'm actually jealous of you experiencing N&S for the first time RA is to die for in that show. Delicious.

I had a bit of a thing for Jeremy Northam in The Tudors, despite the weird cassock he had to wear. And James Frain as Thomas Cromwell. It made reading Wolf Hall even better as I was imagining him all the time.

Ps - love the script notes that Darcy had an erection

I once very sadly listened to the commentary on the KK version of P&P and the director said that scene where Darcy proposes (which was brilliant) is simply about the fact that they fancy the pants off each other. So true.

Has anyone read Sebastian Faulk's Faulks on Fiction, where he dissects a load of characters? He see Darcy as a depressive who needs a happy character around to balance him out, and only falls for the 'happy' Elizabeth because he knows he's about the loose the 'happy' Bingley.

You are all mentioning my favourite scenes!, but I also love the dance Darcy and Elizabeth have at the Netherfield Ball, all that verbal jousting. Andrew Davies said he wanted to look more like a fencing match than dance, hence shooting it the way he did.

Also love the look on Darcy's face during the proposal scene when he says "and this is what you think of me".

Another series that had perfect casting imo, was Poldark - Robin Ellis was perfect, all smouldering and sexy in his breeches.

I am glad others agree with me about Toby Stephens as Mr Rochester, the chemistry between him and Ruth Wilson fair sizzled off the screen and if I'd been in her shoes I'd have been sizzling too.

The most difficult lead seems to be Heathcliff, I thought Tom Hardy in the 2009 ITV series was probably the best I'd seen.

I feel a marathon DVD watching session beckoning.

Ahem Richard Armitage is to die for in anything

That scene between Toby Stephens and Ruth Ellis after the failed wedding where they are on her bed... Oh. My. God. I never thought of Jane Eyre as a sexy book, but that scene was scorching.

I can never imagine who would be right as Heathcliff. I suspect Andrea Arnold's version a few years ago might have got it right with Heathcliff being black. I'd love to be able to ask Emily Bronte if that was what she was writing but everyone just ignored it.

EmilyByrdStarr you must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you