By Michaela Gordoni
MISS AUSTEN is getting a second season on PBS.
The first season premiered on the network in May with four episodes. It was based on Gill Hornby’s eponymous novel.
The second season is based on Hornby’s novel, The Elopement. The story is set in 1820 and focuses on Mary Dorothea Knatchbull, Jane Austen’s great-niece, Deadline reported Tuesday.
The Los Angeles Times said Season 1, “wonderfully delivers the love and loss Jane Austen fans know by heart.” And Air Mail said it was “an emotional story of sisterly love, placed within a richly-imagined historical setting.”
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Executive producer Susanne Simpson said, “After the success of Miss Austen, I am thrilled to be working again with the incredible author Gill Hornby, and the impressive team of Andrea Gibb and Christine Langan, who created the first series that was such a moving experience and a joy to watch. I am pleased to be able to announce the return of the series just as we are about to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth.”
The cast includes Keeley Hawes, Rose Leslie, Jessica Hynes, Max Irons, Alfred Enoch, Patsy Ferran, Phyllis Logan, Calam Lynch, Mirren Mack and Kevin McNally. Andrea Gibb, who penned the first season, will also write the second.
Executive producer Christine Langan said, “Fueled by another wonderful Gill Hornby novel, the journey of Miss Austen continues, going deeper into the intimate life of the Austen family. Love, loss and laughter mingle irresistibly in this fresh take on Jane Austen’s world brought to life by a dazzling array of characters both familiar and brand new.”
Part of The Elopement novel’s description reads, “‘It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.’ 1820. Mary Dorothea Knatchbull is living under the sole charge of her widowed father, Sir Edward — a man of strict principles and high Christian values. But when her father marries Miss Fanny Knight of Godmersham Park, Mary’s life is suddenly changed.”
Mary finds friendship through Fanny’s sisters and brothers and becomes particularly fond of Mr. Knight.
“Soon, they are deeply in love and determined to marry,” the description continues. “They expect no opposition. After all, each is from a good family and has known the other for some years. It promises to be the most perfect match. Who would want to stand in their way?”
According to TV Insider, the new season will have four episodes, and the release date is not yet announced.
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