Somerville and Ross: The Real Charlotte, The Silver Fox & The Experiences of an Irish RM

Summary

BBC productions of the best-known works of Somerville and Ross, plus a docudrama about their remarkable literary partnership

Edith Œnone Somerville and 'Martin Ross' (the pen name of Violet Florence Martin) were cousins, born into the Irish landed gentry in the mid-19^th century. They began writing books together as a joke, but quickly developed into serious artists, producing several works now recognised as classics such as The Real Charlotte and Some Experiences of an Irish RM. This collection includes both those titles, alongside The Silver Fox, described as their ‘miniature masterpiece’, and a fascinating biographical drama telling the story of their writing partnership.

The Real Charlotte – Reluctantly obliged to look after her penniless young cousin, respectable spinster Charlotte Mullen decides to marry her off to a rich man as soon as possible. But Francie is both beautiful and wilful, and Charlotte soon finds her carefully laid plans going terribly awry… Sorcha Cusack, Elaine Symons and Lorcan Cranitch star in this satire of genteel 19^th-century Irish society.

The Silver Fox – Captain French, recently returned from India, has reopened his ancestral pile in west Cork. But his restless new wife and a strangely elusive silver fox hint at troubled times ahead. John Dougall and Gillian Kearney star in this dark, politically astute tale of hunting, friendship, love and the national battle for freedom.

The Experiences of an Irish RM – When the affable, if somewhat dim, ex-British Army officer Major Sinclair Yeates is appointed Resident Magistrate in west Cork, he finds himself among a people who seem dedicated to thwarting him. As the years go by, he gradually becomes accustomed to their eccentricities – with the notable exception of his nemesis, Flurry Knox... Alex Jennings stars in this adaptation of Somerville and Ross’s comic novels set in rural Ireland.

Somerville and Ross – Written and narrated by Denys Hawthorne, this captivating tale explores the lives and fiction of the remarkable literary duo, whose works chronicled the twilight world of the Anglo-Irish ascendancy – a world of hunting, tennis parties, amateur theatricals and decaying country houses. Eithne Dunne stars as Somerville, with Kate Binchy as Ross.

First published 1894 (The Real Charlotte), 1897 (The Silver Fox), 1899 (Some Experiences of an Irish RM)

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