Black Narcissus

[2Rebecca]

Is going too OTT on the woo and melodrama for my tastes.

Can anyone tell me what happened to Sister Adela when she went with Sister Clodagh to keep watch on the bell tower, she was no where to be seen when Sister Ruth appeared and tried to kill SC. I believe Sister Adela left Sister Clodagh to it?

when Sister Dorothea says SC is to take Sister Ruth with her was there already concerns about her mental health because she seemed very reluctant to take her. It wasn't just that (but maybe she did have a 'feeling' about her) but that the traits that Sister Clodagh disliked in Sister Ruth were the very same as the ones Mother Superior intimated that SC displayed herself (isn't it often the way that we dislike people who are actually similar to ourselves?).

@woodhill

Yes I liked Barbara Pym

Very strange masculine names given to the Godden family

I think that Rumer was Margaret. Her sister Jon was christened Winsome, but wrote under Jon. (I only know this because I had never heard of her until this thread, and looked her up)

Can anyone tell me what happened to the black nun, Sister Phillippa?

I went for a wee at one point, and didn't realise that she had gone until they were leaving at the very end. I know she was talking about how she felt unsuited to Nepal because she was so overwhelmed with the beauty of it, she didn't want to grow vegetables or something.

Did Gina McKee (whom I hadn't noticed from the start) take her place? Mr Schaden, who is about as much use as a glass eye with a patch over it when it comes to keeping track of the stories in my programmes, had no idea. (He had been instructed to watch it and let me know if anything happened. When I came down and asked - "Anything I need to know about?" he said "No". I knew I should have stopped the programme! I never learn.)

Sr Philippa was supposed to be planting vegetables, but was taken with the beauty and planted a whole load of colourful flowers instead. She wanted to look out on colour. Later we saw Sr Adela digging them up and chucking them out.

I didn't notice her leaving at the end with the other nuns Maireas - did I just miss her in the "My name is Catherine" moment?

No, Schaden, she left well before that. After a direct interview with Clodagh about veg!

I remember the Turnip Revolution bit - I hadn't realised she'd actually gone. That must have been when Nature Called.

My husband’s comment when it ended “3 hours of my life I’ll never get back”

We both hung on assuming the final episode would produce a thought provoking wrap up.... ah well

NewModelArmyMayhem18

Thanks for replying, I hadn't thought about the comparisons between the two and yes Sister Adela must have left her to it, I think I might watch the whole thing again over the weekend, we are back in full lockdown where I live so nothing else to do

I also think the actress playing Sister Ruth was brilliant, I know she was in The Fall (I didn't watch that yet) and also Game of Thrones so I expect we'll see her in a quite a few more dramas etc.

Happy New Year to you all and hopefully 2021 will be a lot better

When I first saw Sister Ruth I thought oh that’s that mad girl from The Fall, oh a very different character here playing a nun...

I like Gina Mckee’s accent but it stuck out compared to everyone else’s clipped tones.

@TooOldforBouncyCastles

My husband’s comment when it ended “3 hours of my life I’ll never get back”

We both hung on assuming the final episode would produce a thought provoking wrap up.... ah well

That's what we said. Complete waste of time.

Always like Gina McKee

I do too @woodhill but quite surprised to see her in more of a bit-part role. Mind you, with the pandemic impact on the entertainment industry, I should imagine most actors are happy to get any 'gigs' they can at the moment.

I'm impressed that you recognised the teenage peril from The Fall. I knew I'd seen Sister Ruth actress some place else but the wimple meant I found it more difficult to place her. Same with Rosie Cavaliero (who was in series 2 of Unforgotten).

Just watched the film. Worth watching but prefer the re-make. Builds the tension better, some subtle plot alterations which make the story hold together better. Prefer the scenery.

I loved the first and last episodes. Felt it sagged in the middle episode. Agree with others it would have worked better as a 90 min/2 hour one off drama. I loved the Sister Ruth character. I don't think she is 'mad' at all. She is overwhelmed by altitude, cabin fever, lust, frustration (e. G. The lace school being taken away from her) and an ability to see through the others' facades.

Sr Ruth was also the only one who mastered the language with seemingly little effort. In Sr Clodaghs conversation with the mother superior, one of the reasons she didn't want to take Sr Ruth was because she was highly able/talented and knew it - that's what the mother superior identified as the same trait Sr Clodagh had.

@mrwalkensir

I was at an all girls senior school late 70s year 7&8. Apart from those who had brothers or had come from co-ed junior schools, the hysteria around anything vaguely male was freakishly overwhelming. A shock to then go to a co-ed school and find that boys were human(and very funny).... So yep - can completely understand the freaking out around men.

Ha, same here! I remember one day there was some painting being done near the stairs by a youngish man in overalls. The word went round and we were all taking a detour that way. And as for a young male teacher that wasn't an actual gargoyle...well it was all a bit much...

Same here, too! I remember two young workmen walking down the corridor, and all our class rushing to the classroom window shrieking.

Wasn’t her name Kathleen?

I liked it. I loved Sister Briony; great character, great actor.

Same the other way too. When I taught at a boys' school we once had to black out the windows of the classroom a good looking supply teacher was working in, and position staff on the corridor to hold back the crowds. Poor woman, she never got asked back...

@IntermittentParps

Wasn’t her name Kathleen?

I liked it. I loved Sister Briony; great character, great actor.

Interestingly I just reread the book, and in that Clodagh is her birth name as well as her name in religion. So the "name" scenes were totally the invention of the TV adaptation. I thought it was a very clever idea, and perfect for creating that moment of intimacy at the end.

What channel was it on?

@LesLavandes

What channel was it on?

BBC iPlayer

I felt with the 3 episodes you got more of a sense of the change between Sister Clodagh and Mr Dean.

I liked Sister Briony and the actress but she only seems to play that role of brisk, no-nonsense etc.

The classic film adaptation by Powell & Pressburger is on BBC2 this Saturday 9th Jan at 13:15.

That’s my Saturday afternoon buggered then!

Thank you tellingbone