What Would Jane Do?

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Sense and Sensibility is in the cinema again. How does Georgia Oakley's film measure up to the book and its predecessor film? And what might Jane Austen think about it? Watch Julia Golding's review and see if you agree.

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Having just celebrated a family wedding, Julia Golding invites Katy Macfarlane to consider what would Jane Austen do about weddings? Starting with how people got married in Regency times, the law and the practices, they go on to seek out marriages in Jane's life and in her books - they aren't often on the page! Having got to grips with the Regency marriage world, they speculate about Jane's attitude to our modern weddings. Stay tuned for Jane Austen news in the run up to the Bath festival. 

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Julia Golding and Kate Macfalane take a romp through Regency spinsterhood, inspired by the excellent new BBC series The Other Bennet Sister (based on Janice Hadlow's novel). Hear what they thought of the series and join them in finding out the facts underlying Mary Bennet's situation. They celebrate famous spinsters of the era, and dip into the novels for more examples including the most infamous exchange about how to treat a spinster in Emma. In the news section, Katy mentions the regency weekend at West Horsley Place. You need to book in advance here Westhorsleyplace.org.

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Responding to the Bridgerton season 4, with the theme of a gentleman marrying a servant, Julia Golding and Kate Macfarlane take a look at the issue of marriage between classes. Starting with a review of Bridgerton, they go on to look at the factual background on which it is loosely based. Why is Pamela so important? And what about Shamela? Which working class character gets the best press in all of Jane's novels? See if you agree with the team!

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There's trend for involving Jane Austen in murder. What would she make of that? In this episode we are joined by Vanessa Kelly, author of Murder at Donwell Abbey, the second book in a series that imagines Emma after her marriage as a sleuth in her local community. We discuss law and order in Jane's world and Vanessa tells us  how her book came about and her plans for the characters. Julia Golding shares her own murderous thoughts for The Austen Intrigue, her novel also out for the 250th anniversary of Jane's birth, which deals with a real murder in the Austen circle. Fascinating stuff! 

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An unusual episode - a visit to the Holburne Museum, Bath, where Katy Macfarlane and Julia Golding visit the Illustrating Austen exhibition. Find out where you've seen the museum before!

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Paula Byrne, author of Six Weeks by the Sea, and adviser on Sanditon TV series, talks to us (Julia Golding and Katy Macfarlane) about her new book. Prepare to be informed and entertained as we discuss abolition, leeches, and seaside adventures - as well as much more. You can find Paula on Instagram @paulajaynebyrne and you can buy her book from all good book stores.

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Waking up to news of the casting of Netflix Pride and Prejudice? We've done a breakdown on our podcast What would Jane Do? of the new cast and what we might expect. We think it could be a great addition if they take the opportunity to explore fresh areas, particularly on the Bingleys. Listen to find out more.

Let us know what do you think of the line-up?

#WWJD #prideandprejudicenetflix 

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Have you ever wondered why Jane Austen isn't counted among the Romantics of her era when she is now known now as the most romantic of writers? Julia and Katy take a deep dive into what Romantism was (poets such as Wordsworth and Byron) and discuss how Jane connected or criticised the literary movement of her era. In short, this episode is everything you need to know about Romanticism and were too afraid to ask!

We end with our latest news about Jane Austen events and Julia's new book The Wordsworth Key which you can find here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Wordsworth-Key-page-turning-historical-adventure-ebook/dp/B0DSZ94PDW/ or at your local bookseller.

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Pistols at dawn? What would (and did) Jane Austen do about the practice of settling disputes with duels? Julia Golding and Kate Macfarlane romp through the history and laws of duelling, examine the famous cases in the period, including duels fought by women, and then turn to Jane's novels to find out what she thought on this subject. After a brief look at modern equivalents, we go on to give our review of the BBC TV series Miss Austen and the news about the balls to celebrate Jane Austen's 250th birthday this year (2025).