Kim Wilson, the author of the book Tea With Jane Austen, will appear at the Harry W. Schwartz Bookshop in Brookfield, Wisconsin on November 21 at 2 p.m. If you go, we’d love to publish your report.

Uma Thurman is a Jane Austen fan! Who knew?

(Isn’t she a trifle young to have a biography written about her, though?)

Alert AustenBlog Reader JaneFan writes to tell us that a digitalized version of the manuscript of Jane Austen’s “History of England” is available at the British Library’s Turning the Pages site. The software mimics the action of turning the pages of a book. Enjoy!

JaneFan found the link at Civility, maintained by our friend Cordelia. Thanks for the heads-up!

A review of a biography of Patrick O’Brian and the final, unfinished work by O’Brian in the Sunday Times (U.K.) mentions Jane Austen.

Then came an occasion in October 1996, when O’Brian was fêted in the great Painted Hall at Greenwich — a magnificent dinner at which I saw more admirals than I thought the Royal Navy still possessed, all there to honour the creator of — as John Bayley wrote — “this incomparable series (which) will live forever in the reader’s mind . . . he has been called ‘Jane Austen sur mer’!”

We also bring it to the attention of our readers because we know that many Janeites share with Jane a fascination with and affection for stories of the Royal Navy of that time.

The review was written by Robert Hardy, who portrayed General Tilney in NA1 and Sir John Middleton in S&S2 (and Harry Potter fans know him as Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic). Judging from this article, Mr. Hardy has led a most interesting life himself!

My tutor at Magdalen, very many years ago, was C. S. Lewis. Before the war he and E. M. W. Tillyard of Cambridge published a controversy called The Personal Heresy. It was about the value of pursuing details of the lives and personalities of artists. Lewis’s most valid point for me was that any great artist gives us a window to look through into a world of his creation, and that it is neither wise nor rewarding to look inwards through that window, into the shadows of the room within. It is much more difficult now to avoid the peering gaze of the media, and it is a natural human desire to know more about the lives of those whose achievements we admire. But I am tempted to believe that what O’Brian has created will enthral and endure far longer than the details of his own life.

Fortunately, we have never had occasion to regret reading any Jane Austen biographies.

The Lincoln Journal-Star has a favorable review of the stage production of PRIDE AND PREJUDICE currently showing at the Haymarket Theatre in Lincoln.

Other notable performances include Brad Boesen, as the Adam Sandler-inspired pastor, Mr. Collins

Adam-Sandler inspired?

Well!

It’s a good thing that Dorothy, the faithful retainer at AustenBlog World Headquarters, added a nip of Tullamore Dew to the Editrix’s Orange Pekoe tonight (just to ward of the evening chill, naturally) or there might have been a Regrettable Incident.

We are pleased to report that AustenBlog’s Screening Crew recently embarked on a mission to disprove all the negative reviews that BJ:TEOR has been receiving of late. Our undercover agent came up with the following report:

Book!Bridget fans will be pleased to hear that the movie is relatively faithful to the book. Same old embarassing job, same old embarassing public events, same old Thailand drug bust. Renee Zellweger did a fabulous job as Bridget, although she appeared a bit heftier this time around. Was very surprised to see a large amount of Daniel fans in the audience, but glad that there were more Darcy fans, myself included. Must admit, though, that Grant was excellent as Daniel. If anything, Daniel has become more cad-ish in this film, and his wicked ways are more obvious to everyone with eyes and/or ears. Golf claps to Grant.
Note to all reviewers who thought Grant stole the show: get your eyes checked. It’s all about Bridget and Darcy. Bridget is as lovable and clumsy as ever, and Darcy’s got that oh-so-gorgeous stick up his rear. Zellweger and Firth have excellent chemistry together, and their old-married-couple type of bickering is priceless. Standing ovation for the both of them!
Must not forget supporting cast, though. Gemma Jones and Jim Broadbent invoke Archie and Edith Bunker - should have had more screen time. Shirley Henderson, Sally Phillips, and James Callis are the perfect best friends a Bridget could wish for, although Book!Bridget fans will miss the Jude’s wedding subplot. Oh, and then there’s Rebecca. Not the Jellyfishing Trollop you’d expect. . . not at all what anyone expected. Let’s just leave it at “Jacinda Barrett is a very talented and lovely actress.”
As before, the script was brilliant - possibly better than the first. Daniel is witty, Darcy is smart and romantic, and Bridget is Bridget. No need to rely on slaptick comedy - despite the obvious Bridget moments, the script was chock full of witty and sometimes unconscious humor (the latter almost entirely on Bridget’s part). Most memorable line of the film (don’t worry, no major spoilers!):
“Why don’t you just marry her, Darcy? Then she’ll definitely shag me.”
Total recap:
Number of Bridget Jones sequels watched: 1
Number of cast members who weren’t brilliant: 0
Number of swoons after CF shows up on screen: 9,437,692
Number of tears shed, either in laughter or sadness: infinite
Number of negative reviewers completely off the mark: all of them
Overall, an excellent movie.

Based on our undercover report, the AustenBlog Screening Crew is pleased to give BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON all the stars in this galaxy and the next three over as well. We’d also like to remind our readers not to see movies based entirely on the reviews they receive. All reviews, even the one above are merely fancified opinions, and should not be the deciding factor in choosing to see a film. Remember what happened to Anne Elliot - do not allow yourselves to be as easily persuaded as she, Gentle Readers. See the film for yourself and decide.

As always, your own reviews are more than welcome.