Jane Odiwe Jane Austen Sequels

Reading Pride and Prejudice at the Jane Austen Festival I'm at the Jane Austen Festival in Bath this week, and was very honoured to be part of the Pride and Prejudice reading that took place on Sunday. The opening chapters were read by the wonderful actors, Adrian Lukis , who played Mr Wickham in the 1995 production of Pride and Prejudice, and Caroline Langrishe , the well-known actress of film, stage and television. I love reading aloud - it's always been a pleasure of mine ever since I was a little girl, but I hadn't really thought about what a huge challenge this was going to be until I actually sat down on the same row of chairs as these wonderful actors! I'm sure appearing on the same bill as Adrian Lukis, Caroline Langrishe and Maggie Ollerenshaw would be the dream of most would-be actors, and all of a sudden the enormity of the whole event struck hard! Anyone who really knows me will appreciate how nervous I felt - I really have to make myself volunteer fo...

Last night we were treated to a delicious evening's entertainment from two of our wonderful British actors at the Jane Austen Festival . Adrian Lukis (who is a very well-known and loved actor in the UK -  he played Mr Wickham in the classic 1995 Pride and Prejudice adaptation )  and Caroline Langrishe (who is well-known for her roles in Judge John Deed, Lovejoy and Sharpe) entertained us with a selection of duologues - some of the most memorable scenes from Northanger Abbey, Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion and of course,  Pride and Prejudice. My personal favourites were the scenes from Persuasion - beautiful! They were absolutely brilliant and brought all of the characters to life - it's always wonderful to hear Austen performed 'out loud' and the audience lapped it up - the room echoed to the sounds of their laughter!   Caroline Langrishe and Adrian Lukis performing Austen duologues - Jane Austen Festival I was very lucky to meet Adrian and Caroline w...

In September of last year I was very lucky to be invited to take part in a television programme here in the UK. It's called Masterchef, and the wonderful cooks below were competing for the title week by week, undergoing a gruelling set of challenges and providing some fabulous food for those fortunate enough to be on the receiving end of all their hard work. This episode coincided with the end of The Jane Austen Festival, and many of the attendees were asked to come along and enjoy some of the food with a Regency theme. The chefs were divided into two teams and they were competing for the chance to cook with top chef, Jason Atherton. The event took place at The Royal Crescent Hotel, and the chefs cooked outside in tents erected on what was known as the Cresent Fields in Jane Austen's day. I was so lucky to be invited to the dinner that took place next day, and meet amongst other distinguished guests, one of my favourite actors, Adrian Lukis, who you will all reco...