Jilly Cooper's Rivals on Disney - episode 1 discussion thread WITH SPOILERS! Open the Pouilly Fume & curl up on the sofa with a lurcher puppy here!

[TheSecondMrsCampbellBlack]

Exciting!

Taggie is still only 20 here and Rupert early 40s. She is hardly aged up at all from the books. Maybe a year?

She is still the innocent near virgin type.

Absolutely loving it.
Fell asleep last night watching it, so still to watch the last couple of episodes

Fantastic adaptation.
Loved the books , even tackle.
Would be amazing if Disney picked up the entire series- ambitious, but..,,, - best thing on tv for ages.

I find the Rupert and Taggie thing weird, as she barely looks 20 and he could easily be in his 40s. If they wanted us (viewers) to root for them they should have aged her up a bit more and aged him down. And removed the groping scene.

@burnoutbabe you are right of course, but at 20 it is marginally better than a literal teenager - but still creepy by modern standards although I guess it was / is perfectly normal for aristocrats to marry young, Diana and Charles is a perfect example, although Declan is obviously not from that world and very unhappy with the prospect.

It's so good - some quibbles
I think Maud is a bit too toned - I'd have thought a slightly softer more voluptuous look would be better. And does she always have to be in green?
Maggie is perfect acting-wise but why not darker 'cloud like' hair?
RCB is perfect in terms of body and clothes and general rakishness but should definitely have had blonde hair
James Vereker is perfectly cast - blonde, vain...
David Tennant is superb acting-wise, although I thought he'd be slightly more suave, when he goes pure evil it's a bit of a surprise
Aidan Turner is absolutely perfect I think - dark, brooding, poetic and perfect accent
Cameron is good
Patrick O'Hara is fine
Fred-Fred - I'm sad not to see the curls
Lizzie is perfect, and her and Fred Fred so great

But the music, sets, wardrobe are all completely spot on. Tony's accessories are completely perfect

Taggie and Caitlin are (I think) 17, maybe 18, and 13 in the book. In the series I think they are 20 and 16.

Just seen episode 2 and definitely liking Danny Dyer! The Johnny Friedlander bit was odd though, a sex tape in the 80s???? I know in the book it was an underage sex scandal so obviously had to be changed but it jarred a bit.

David Tennant is doing his usual manic mugging thing and it’s not working for me. Great for Barty Crouch but Tony B is more sinister and thuggish.

Loved Sarah Stratton spraying perfume up her skirt: so absolutely Cooper!

Oh Im surprised at people saying Caitlin jars - I think she looks EXACTLY how I would imagine and has just the right manner - in fact im in episode 7 and sad she isnt't in it more.

Maud is uncanny - exactly how the book portrays her - beautiful but also basically narcisstic but in a complex way as the book does gently reveal that being married to declan is awful - and there is a real sesne of that in the tv episodes -

something that is only gently carried in the tv adaptation as well but so important is how many women were bored and domesticated - its not just the power shoulder pad age - maud is just drifting at home with her girls -

I love it!!

David Tennant is a good actor and has made the role fun but for me to find his Tony B believable he needs to be sexier - cameron is meant to be hugely attractive and a lot younger than him and he just doesn't carry that off believably.

other point - they have toned Cameron down too much she is meant to be a total bitch and mad character and just comes across as quite a bright intelligent strong woman.

Lizzie Vereker steals the show im glad they have brought that character out - I wonder if they did it to compensate for lack of Billy as Ruperts friend

The actress Lisa McGrillis playing Valerie Jones is being interviewed on Sunday Brunch and she has a completely different accent

She's clearly a brilliant actress because Valerie is a million miles away from Lisa as a person

I haven't the read the books which I'm surprised at actually but we were reading Jackie Collins back then

Therefore for me every single character is perfectly cast

The 1980's as seen through a 2024 lense as it were

My teen years were the 80's

I'm really enjoying it but RCB is a huge no from me

Ah so Rivals so far is the first half of the book apparently and they're hoping to film the second series, based on popularity, as the second half from what Lisa was saying

So I guess a second series is definitely on the cards

Hurrah

I stayed up and watched it all last night. Loved it. Really hoping they film the reaminder of the book.

Maud is too slender for me, I'm sure she's described differently in the book. More voluptuous. Character -wise though, she's great.

I'm finding RCB a bit too fleshy in the face, I imagined a more patrician, slender face. But maybe others didn't 🤷‍♀️

It is an absolute delight though - I'm not that well at the moment, and watching it is really cheering me up. I've saved the last two episodes for tomorrow.

The New Year's Eve party seemed wildly improbable when shown on screen-taggie doing a sit down meal for that many people? Whereas in the book i never dwelled on it.

I agree nowhere near good looking enough

I have had to stop, as I'm watching it too quickly - 2 eps left.
I'm definitely warming to Rupert and Declan now that they have joined forces. And both such good actors - real quality.
But my faves are Lizzie and especially Monica - a wonderful woman who knows the score and makes the ghastly Lord B look a tiny bit human.

Dont stop, just watch it twice 🤣 that's the bonus of there only being 8 episodes

I love the bad 80s dancing at the party

Taggie and Caitlin are 19 and 16 when the book finishes.

I can’t get on board with the casting of R CB, however I loved it 😂 took me right back to my youth. Jilly had me convinced that any future heartbreak was going to see me drop pounds, turns out I’m a misery eater 😂😂

I had the exact same thoughts about how improbable it was for Taggie to cater for the sit down NYE party 😂😂

My favourite is Lizzie 🥰

Was i the only person loving all the old cars and old TV sets and telephones? And the clothes!!! And the dancing - did people ever really dance to the Birdie Song at a posh pool party?!!!

Agree with @waterrat that they toned Cameron down way too much and made her too tall and rounded - she was short haired, feisty and spiky with a perfectly toned body in the book. Not a tall long haired beautiful lady with boobs!
I warmed to DT as Tony by the end but Aiden Turner as Declan was the most perfect casting ever. Maud too was perfect - although I wish they had used her affair with Tony rather than had her disappearing off to London as her departure. She didn't love Taggie either - she was embarrassed by her and ashamed for not realising she was dyslexic sooner when she could have got help! A PP said she wasn't voluptuous enough but in the book she steals Taggie and Caitlins clothes so cant be too voluptuous! Wish they hadn't made Archie Baddingham gay either - he was definitely into girls in the book.

Love Caitlin zooming around on roller skates changing the place cards, and the bit with Rupert and the photographer was very sweet. Archie Baddingham feels all wrong but I absolutely love the Makepeace kids 😂

im confused by the idea of series 2 - is there enough left? to happen?

I really enjoyed it. Especially the clothes and cars and the music and of course Lizzie and Freddie.

It's been a really, really long time since I read the books and maybe I've amalgamated a few of them in my head. But I felt like it was far too much about the men, especially from half way through when it focused on the TV bid.
When reading them it's the women I remember more and the men were often just talked about rather than being fully present.

The woman playing Taggie looked like a young Liz Hurley and so in my head I kept thinking she'd grow up glamorous and not be down to earth Taggie.