Andrew Davies: How Made in Chelsea Inspired My Jane Austen Adaptation

according to television writer Andrew Davies.

The Reality TV Parallels in Austen Adaptations

Davies, whose memoir An Unsuitable Boy: A Life in Scripts is published this week, has a long history of modernizing British period dramas. He is responsible for the 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice featuring Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy emerging from a lake in a wet shirt, a scene that helped bridge Austen’s themes into Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones. According to Davies, his approach has consistently focused on bringing out the sex inherent in Austen’s work. He previously described his 2019 adaptation of Sanditon as “Love Island” in Austen’s world, while actress Rose Williams suggested that Austen would likely write something satirical about reality dating shows if she were alive today.

Scholarly Perspectives on Courtship and Gossip

Joe Bray, an Austen scholar and professor of English at the University of Sheffield, noted that Austen was a shrewd observer of fashionable manners and fads adopted by young people. According to Bray, the plots of most Austen novels are driven by sexual attraction, secret liaisons, and engagements, suggesting that characters like the Steele sisters in Sense and Sensibility would make perfect reality show contestants. Furthermore, Bray pointed out that Austen loved gossiping about neighbors and acquaintances in letters to her sister Cassandra, indicating she would at least be interested in contemporary reality programs.

An academic essay on Made in Chelsea previously described the program as a homage to Austen, arguing that its core subject is the courtship rituals of young people with money and property. John Mullan, a literature professor at University College London and a historical and dialogue consultant on Bridgerton, identified a parallel in how courtship is observed. According to Mullan, courtship in Austen’s fiction mostly takes place under the eyes of others, with young people who fancy each other very rarely left alone. However, Mullan noted a crucial difference involving propriety, restraint, and repression as key elements of Austen’s stories.

Modern Retellings and Transplants

The structural similarities between historical courtship and modern dating formats have inspired multiple contemporary retellings. In novelist Curtis Sittenfeld’s 2016 modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice titled Eligible, the Bennet family is transplanted to contemporary Cincinnati, and the character Chip Bingley is introduced as a former reality-TV star who appeared on The Bachelor. According to Sittenfeld, reality dating shows are formulaic in the same way courtship was rigid and proscriptive during Austen’s lifetime, effectively replacing the wealthy unmarried man arriving in a neighborhood with a public reality-TV bachelor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do critics compare Jane Austen’s novels to reality television?

According to writers and scholars like Andrew Davies and Joe Bray, Austen’s plots rely heavily on closed social worlds, courtship rituals, status anxiety, gossip, and public scrutiny of romantic pairings, mirroring the dynamics found in modern reality shows like Made in Chelsea and Love Island.

How have modern writers adapted Austen’s stories for contemporary audiences?

Writers have transplanted Austen’s plots into modern settings, such as Curtis Sittenfeld setting Eligible in contemporary Cincinnati with a reality-TV bachelor, and films like Clueless moving Emma to 1990s Los Angeles.

What did Andrew Davies say about adapting The Watsons?

While working on The Watsons, Davies watched Made in Chelsea and stated that the young men and women in Austen’s unfinished novel are very analogous to the cast members of the Channel 4 reality series.