Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, 1832. Anne Lister attempts to revitalize her inherited home, Shibden Hall. Most notably for the time period, a part of her plan is to help the fate of her own family - by taking a wife.… Expand
England's 'first modern lesbian' Anne Lister is heartbroken when her lover chooses another - BBC
5/25/2019Clip
Gentleman Jack: OFFICIAL TRAILER - BBC
3/18/2019Trailer
Reviews
70%
Peter McGinn
narrator56
Created:9/27/2020
Updated:6/23/2021
This series had at least two things going for it, in my view. Creator/director Sally Wainwright and star Suranne Jones as Anne Lister. It presents an interesting juxtaposition: it is a costume drama from the early 1800s, but also tells the story of a woman who tried to live her life as a man, quite amazing at that time.
The story held my interest easily, with strong writing and, as is always the case with Wainwright’s creations, an excellent ensemble cast to back up Jones. Timothy West and Gemma Jones, just to mention two. Apparently there will be a second seri3s to continue the story.
The plot and character were created from a diary actually kept by Ann Lister, which was written in code to protect herself from the stifling social stigmas of the time, so this isn’t a made up story to reach for modern open minded sensibilities. I read about Lister some after I watched it, and it didn’t seem like one of those fantastic reimagining you sometimes get.
So, on to series two!… Expand
