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New UK drama from Julian Fellowes

Downton Abbey's Julian Fellowes is to adapt Doctor Thorne, a three-part drama based on novels by writer Anthony Trollope.

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Downton Abbey‘s Julian Fellowes is to adapt Doctor Thorne, a three-part drama based on novels by writer Anthony Trollope.

The story centres around Dr Thomas Thorne, who lives in the village of Greshamsbury in Barsetshire, with his beautiful niece, Mary, a girl blessed with every gift except money. Mary Thorne has grown up alongside the Gresham sisters – Augusta, Beatrice and Alexandrina and their handsome brother Frank – whose home is the great house and estate at Greshamsbury Park.

When the terrifying Lady Arabella Gresham discovers that her darling son, Frank, has fallen in love with Dr Thorne’s penniless niece, she is horrified. Her husband has frittered away the family fortune and is only being kept afloat by very favourable loans that Dr Thorne has secured from a railway millionaire, Sir Roger Scatcherd. However, Sir Roger is drinking himself into an early grave and the financial future is uncertain, so Lady Arabella believes it is her son’s duty to make a rich marriage to save the family estate and launches a campaign to secure her son an heiress for a bride.

ITV’s Director of Drama Steve November said, “It’s a rich and multi-layered story of class and social standing and a timeless love story which Julian has brought to life brilliantly with his inimitable wit and warmth.”

Julian Fellowes said: “As a lifetime devotee of Trollope, my own favourite among the great nineteenth century English novelists and certainly the strongest influence over my work that I am conscious of, it is tremendously exciting and satisfying to know that my adaptation of one of his best-loved novels is coming to ITV. I could not be more delighted.”

Filming will begin later this year. Fellowes is also writing The Gilded Age for NBC.

3 Responses

  1. I love this man albeit I know he was caned for some errors in Downton. His piece of writing regarding the rape situation was superb. What else could a loving partner say to one who has been so hurt? He’d definitely be someone I would invite to a dinner party.

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