LibGuides: Victorian British Literature: Media

Authors & Their Works

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The Brilliant Bronte Sisters (47:24) Writer and actress Sheila Hancock has long been fascinated by the life and works of the Brontë sisters. In this programme, she searches for an answer to a puzzling question: “How did three spinsters who spent most of their lives in a remote parsonage on the edge of the moors come to write books so shocking, erotic, profoundly moving and quite wonderful?” Hancock embarks on a journey that starts in the Yorkshire village of Haworth and the brutal moors that inspired Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights. She moves on to Brussels, where Charlotte Brontë developed the writing style that made Jane Eyre an enduring masterpiece and examines the nature of Charlotte and Constantin Heger's seemingly romantic relationship. She ends in Scarborough, the last resting place of Anne Brontë whose Tenant of Wildfell Hall has feminist themes.
Gerard Manley Hopkins (01:00:00) A portrait of the life and work of the great English poet—lush word painter of the intensities of beauty and faith, craftsman of intricate rhythms within rhythms and rhymes within rhymes—who recaptured the patterns of Old English while he foreshadowed the formulations and feelings of the 20th century. Written and performed by Peter Gale, this one-man show provides an eminently human and carefully analytical picture of the Victorian who was the first modern English poet.
Hardy’s Wessex (01:01:32) Although Thomas Hardy is interred at Westminster Abbey, his heart is ever in his native Dorset. In this timeless program, Hardy experts James Gibson, Mike Murray, and Martin Seymour-Smith study the life of England’s foremost regional novelist and poet par excellence while discussing many of his works, including Under the Greenwood Tree, Far from the Madding Crowd, The Return of the Native, The Mayor of Casterbridge, and Tess of the D’Urbervilles. Location footage of Hardy’s beloved Dorset, fictionalized in his writings as Wessex, and excerpts from his novels and poems offer deep insights into the people and places that defined his world.
Oscar Wilde: Spendthrift of Genius (58:00) This portrait of the multi-talented and self-destructive fin de siècle genius follows Wilde’s meteoric rise and fall. Portraying the many circles—academic, social, theatrical, literary—in Dublin, Oxford, London, and Paris—in which Wilde circulated, and generously sprinkled with Wilde’s infamous bons mots, the program also includes the only known recording by Wilde (of "The Ballad of Reading Gaol").
Peter Ackroyd’s Charles Dickens (01:05:25) Arguably the greatest of English novelists, Charles Dickens was also one of the outstanding personalities of his age—and preeminent Dickens biographer Peter Ackroyd is just the person to capture his essence. This program merges interview, dramatization, and reenactment to explore the author’s life story, spotlighting the recurrent influence of Dickens’ childhood on his obsessive vision of darkness and light. The mercurial actor John Sessions plays Dickens in a bravura performance, while extracts from A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, The Pickwick Papers, and other stories, plus passages from the writer’s correspondence and memoranda, complete the process of bringing the writer to life.
Robert Louis Stevenson: A Concise Biography (33:03) In this introduction to Robert Louis Stevenson's life and work from the Famous Authors series, the audience gets a look at 19th-century Scotland and the members of Stevenson's family. By the time Stevenson went to university, he'd committed to becoming a writer and sought out a bohemian literary life, which upset and intermittently estranged his father. After he suffered some illness, his parents accepted his lifestyle and supported his writing.

Performances & Readings

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BBC Bleak House Series (8 part series) Acclaimed writer Andrew Davies turns his talents to one of Charles Dickens' most brilliant novels—arguably the greatest ever depiction of Victorian London. Fresh and imaginative, yet faithful to the original, this thrilling fast-paced adaptation is shot with a contemporary edge. At its heart is the story of the icily beautiful Lady Dedlock, who nurses a dark secret, and the merciless lawyer Tulkinghorn, who seeks to uncover it. The generous John Jarndyce, struggling with his own past, and his two young wards Richard and Ada, are all caught up, like Lady Dedlock, in the infamous case of Jarndyce vs. Jarndyce, which will make one of them rich beyond imagination if it can ever be brought to a conclusion. As Tulkinghorn digs deeper into Lady Dedlock's past, he unearths a secret that will change their lives forever, and which is almost as astounding as the final outcome of the Jarndyce case.
BBC Jane Eyre Series (2 part series) The classic saga of Jane Eyre is brought vibrantly to life in this lavish, complex and sexual adaptation of Charlotte Bronte's much-loved novel. After a wretched childhood as an orphan, Jane Eyre accepts the position of governess at Thornfield Hall. She soon falls in love with the brooding owner, Mr Rochester. Jane gradually wins his heart but, before they can find happiness as man and wife, they must first overcome the dark secrets of his past.
An Ideal Husband (01:32:21) This outstanding adaptation of one of Oscar Wilde's major plays was directed by Alexander Korda. It stars Hugh Williams as a honorable politician whose long-ago sins come back to haunt him. Wilde's dialogue is brilliant throughout. Also starring Paulette Goddard, Michael Wilding, and Diana Wynyard.
PBS Masterpiece: Wuthering Heights Series (2 part series) The Earnshaw children expect gifts from their father when he returns to Wuthering Heights after a trip, but are instead greeted with the arrival of Heathcliff, an adopted young Gypsy boy. Quiet and mysterious, Heathcliff is befriended by his new stepsister Cathy Earnshaw, and the two become inseparable. In adulthood their bond deepens to love, but a forced absence opens Cathy to the affections of a different suitor. Given the choice between a life of comfort and one of profound love, Cathy’s actions have repercussions for multiple generations. Tom Hardy and Charlotte Riley star in this adaptation of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights.
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In Emily Brontë's classic and haunting tale, Heathcliff is tormented by his love for Cathy. Will Cathy choose a life of comfort and wealth with Edgar Linton or will she succumb to her love for Heathcliff? Starring Tom Hardy (The Virgin Queen) as Heathcliff and Charlotte Riley as Cathy.
A Tale of Two Cities: Live In Concert (01:44:04) Two men in love with the same woman. Two cities swept up by revolution. Charles Dickens' classic story, live in concert and set to music. Experience the acclaimed Broadway production, which fully captures all the thrills and romance of this timeless tale in a once-in-a-lifetime production.

More Media

In addition to streaming media, we have DVDs, images, audio and more media.

Jane Eyre When orphaned governess Jane Eyre arrives at imposing Thornfield Hall, she's intrigued by her brooding, wealthy employer, Rochester. His dark moods and the strange occurrences in the house lead her to discover a terrible secret that he had hoped to hide from her forever.
Wuthering Heights A tortured love affair between Heathcliff and Cathy ends when Cathy marries the wealthy Edgar. Heathcliff's savage revenge upon the woman he loves explodes in a stunning climax.