Jane Odiwe Jane Austen Sequels

I'd like to wish you all a Happy Easter - I'm having a bit of a break from blogging to spend time with my family - I hope you all have a lovely holiday. This is quite a long post but one thing seemed to lead to another! I'm very busy writing another book at the moment and drawing on lots of research which is always lots of fun. A lot of the action takes place in Bath so I'm hoping to spend some time there over the holiday period. This week, one of the lovely things that happened was 'meeting' Jennifer Duke and discovering her blog. She was born in England and even attended the the Abbey school as Jane Austen did. Her time there sparked an interest in all things Regency and a love of Jane Austen. Jennifer lives in Australia now and told me that although she loves Sydney, she still gets homesick for England. She wrote to ask me if I would do a question and answer for her blog, which I was thrilled to do. Here's the link: The Bennet Sisters Thank you very muc...

Here, for your delight is an extract from Pride and Prejudice with accompanying photos of Chatsworth! The weather was lovely up until the time I got the camera out - wouldn't you know. My sister and I visited Derbyshire last year all in pursuit of research - Mr Darcy's Secret is my next book which Sourcebooks are publishing next spring. We visited Bakewell and the surrounding area - I absolutely fell in love with Haddon Hall which became my inspiration for the house the Darcy's stay in on holiday in the Lake District. Oh, yes - Elizabeth had to see the Lakes at last! Anyway, here is Jane Austen's wonderful Pride and Prejudice - Lizzy is travelling with her aunt and uncle and sees Pemberley for the first time. Elizabeth, as they drove along, watched for the first appearance of Pemberley Woods with some perturbation; and when at length they turned in at the lodge, her spirits were in a high flutter. The park was very large, and contained great variety of ground. They e...

The dining room was used for a scene at the inn at Lambton in the 2005 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. It is quite a small room which would have been used by the family for their private quarters. The plaster ceiling dates from the early 1500s and is decorated with a Tudor rose and Talbot dog in recognition of Sir Henry Vernon's marriage to Anne Talbot. In the window recess are carved figures in the oak panelling - these are thought to be Queen Elizabeth of York and her husband King Henry V11. I loved the windows at Haddon with their beautiful examples of early stained glass. Here is a photo of the ceiling showing the Talbot dog device.

The chapel at Haddon Hall was used in the 2005 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen. It's a marvellous example of an early chapel with separate seating for the gentry, wall frescoes, and 15th century painted glass. The south aisle dates from the 12th century and was widened during the 15th century when the north aisle was added. The atmosphere in such a place is incredible, you can almost hear the walls breathing and catch the scent of an Elizabethan lavender pomander. The air reverberates with a sense of the past and images of ladies in stiff brocade with pointed bodices and narrow frills about their necks loom before you on herb strewn flagstones vanishing into the shadows as quickly as they appear. It is still the parish church of Nether Haddon which is one of the smallest parishes in the country. The high-sided oak pews are probably date from the 15th century and were for the family and their guests. Covering the walls are some beaut...

When walking around Chatsworth there is so much to see that it's difficult to know where to look first. In the painted hall alone which is the first major space you encounter there are statues and paintings galore all vying for your attention. Most incredible is the painted ceiling showing the apotheosis of Julius Caesar as a demi-god, which tends to overshadow everything else. They do provide mirrors to hold so that you don't have to get a crick in your neck! I'm always fascinated by these ceiling paintings in great houses and wonder what it must have been like for the poor artists who worked on them day in and day out - a truly remarkable feat. The photo to the left shows the painted ceiling above the Great Stairs which are also shown in this post. High up on the walls are coloured paintings in the style of Verrio's ceiling. There are three sculpted figures by Caius Gabriel Cibber brought in from the garden in 1692 and busts placed in the niches. There are also grisai...

We were very lucky to be staying in Beeley because it is a short walk to Chatsworth. We set off across fields and over a bridge finding the river on the other side and following it all the way. It was a lovely sunny day when we first did the walk and signs of spring appearing in green shoots on the trees and primroses and daffodils in the hedgerows really lifted our spirits. This extract from Derbyshire UK  website gives us some information about the river on which Chatsworth sits.  The River Derwent, some 50 odd miles in length, is the longest river in Derbyshire. Apart from its short passage through the City of Derby it is a completely rural river, finally joining the River Trent just south of Derby. The Derwent's source is at Swain's Greave on Howden Moor on the flank of Bleaklow Hill. The river Derwent soon flows into the first of 3 large reservoirs, built in the early part of the 20th century to satisfy the growing demand for water from the expanding cities of Derby, Notti...

I've been to Derbyshire for a few days on a research trip - (that's my excuse anyway) with my lovely sister, her husband and my own. Derbyshire, of course, is home to Mr Darcy at Pemberley, and I wanted to see the landscape through Elizabeth Bennet's eyes if that was possible and to see if I could find Pemberley. I've tried to do this before and have never really found anywhere I thought fitted exactly what I imagine to be Elizabeth and Darcy's home, but wandering around places like Chatsworth and Haddon Hall is always a delight and very inspiring for my writing. I did see Mr Darcy - sort of - but I'll tell you about that later. As I travelled through the Peak District it was easy to see why people still flock to this area for the splendid scenery and vast landscapes which are stunningly beautiful. On our first day we arrived at Beeley where we were going to stay in the Devonshire Arms which is still a part of the Chatsworth Estate and within walking distance o...