Latest news with #MatthewMacfadyen
ABC News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Spooks: Series 1 Episode 1
Skip to main content Go back to home page Home Live TV Shows Movies ABC News ABC Kids Categories Mystery Thriller Cult Favourite Spooks takes us into the thrilling world of M.I.5 - known to insiders simply as 'Five' - the clandestine security service, and the people who make up the elite team. Matthew Macfadyen, Keeley Hawes, Peter Firth, Jenny Agutter, Lisa Faulkner, Esther Hall, Heather Cave, Hugh Simon, Greame Mearns
The Independent
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Why Gen Z and millennial women are ditching the dating apps and opting for Mr Darcy
Some single women have Bridget Jones. Others have Jane Austen. Increasingly, after spending a lot of time in big knickers, my female friends and I are falling into the latter faction. Just last week, one of them sent me a meme from Pride and Prejudice – the 2005 film (obviously) starring Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Bennet and Matthew Macfadyen as Mr Darcy. 'You have bewitched me body and soul,' says Macfadyen, who, in the role of Darcy, has transformed from a misanthropic f*** boy into a full-blown lovestruck heartthrob. 'And I love, I love, I love you,' he continues. 'And wish from this day forth never to be parted from you.' Over the top of the reel, a quote read: 'It's always 'wyd' and never 'yhbmbasaililily'.' To those unfamiliar with textspeak, the former can be translated to, 'what you doing?' and the latter is an acronym for the aforementioned Darcy quote that myself and literally every other single woman I know would love to hear. If for nothing else than to diversify a lexical canon that is mostly comprised of phrases such as: 'wuu2', 'wanna hang out 2nyt?', and 'I'm not looking for anything serious.' Clearly, I'm not alone. The reel in question has been liked more than 137,000 times. 'GIVE ME THIS MAN NOW,' reads one of the hundreds of comments. 'Bring back yearning,' begs another. On top of that, Spotify recently reported a 75 per cent week-on-week spike in listens to the Pride and Prejudice audiobook since Netflix announced its incoming adaptation written by Dolly Alderton and starring Emma Corrin, Jack Lowden and Olivia Colman. Streams of the BBC adaptations soundtrack have also soared by 120 per cent, The Times reports, noting that Strictly Jane Austen Tours has also seen a 50 per cent boost in bookings in the last six months, with a noticeable surge in Gen Z and millennial clients. Frankly, I'm not remotely surprised. With modern-day dating rituals sucking the life out of all of us, one half-hearted swipe at a time, it makes sense that single people are craving a return to a simpler time, one without smartphones, dating apps and invitations to 'Netflix and Chill'. Austen's Regency era sounds so much more inviting. Without the mind-numbing madness of technology, romance was free to blossom more organically with rituals such as courtship, where couples would go on walks together to get to know each other before agreeing to be involved. Sometimes, the women would be accompanied by chaperones to ensure they were respected throughout the exchange. I daren't think about the litany of disastrous dates I could've been spared had a benevolent chaperone been by my side. Obviously there are some archaisms best left in the past (single women were practically second-class citizens) and many of the ones we know about (think Bridgerton-style balls) would've been reserved for the upper echelons of British society. But even marginally less old-fashioned traditions, such as writing love letters, walking someone home, and generally just taking a little more time and care over the whole dating process, would be a welcome change to our current romantic reality. Or at the very least, an antidote to some of its deeply modern brutalities: yes, ghosting is still a thing. Don't get me wrong, my friends and I are still 'on the apps', as we say. But we're trying hard to wean ourselves off and look for love in the wild instead. Although to be completely honest, it's not something I'm desperate to find right away. Because I know that I could open my phone and, within a matter of minutes, probably find someone quite quickly. Not a long-term partner, necessarily, but a fling. The kind who I could spend one night with only to never hear from again until, out of nowhere, they send a 1am text: 'wyd?' It might take a little longer but I think it would be worth it to wait a while longer in the hope of eventually receiving a more comprehensive message. One that says, oh I don't know, let's go with: 'yhbmbasaililily'.
The National
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Jack Lowden vows to break barriers with ginger Mr Darcy role
The Slow Horses star spoke to Laura Kuenssberg with Martin Freeman on Sunday ahead of the opening of a West End play the pair are starring in. The 34-year-old actor took time during the interview to discuss his new role in Netflix's upcoming six-part series based on the classic Jane Austen novel. "I quite like the idea of being a ginger Darcy," he said. "I think that is really breaking down barriers – one of the great last barriers to be broken down." READ MORE: Scottish actor hits out at Scottish Borders nursery closure plans The actor, who is married to Irish actor Saoirse Ronan, discussed the other actors who have taken on the iconic role. "I quite like the idea of me coming along and doing something else with it," he told Kuenssberg. "Or just copying one of them because some of the guys who played it are amongst the best. Matthew Macfadyen, to me, is one of the best actors on the planet. So if I just try copy him – maybe that's alright?" Matthew Macfadyen played Mr Darcy in the 2005 adaptation (Image: Copyright: � 2005 Universal Studios. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.) Freeman interrupted: "But ginger?" Lowden responded: "But ginger, yep, change it up." Freeman and Lowden will appear in David Ireland's The Fifth Step at the Soho Place Theatre, London, from May 12. The play was also shown at Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum and Glasgow's Pavilion last year. You can read our review here.
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Pride & Prejudice' Helmer Joe Wright Talks Film's Internet Legacy — And How Emma Thompson Improvised Charlotte Lucas' Meme-Worthy Speech
On the heels of the 20th anniversary of Oscar-nominated Pride & Prejudice, helmer Joe Wright reflected on his Austenian adaptation's second life in the internet era, calling it 'strange' and 'kind of extraordinary,' as well as ultimately 'very nice, very gratifying.' Particularly, the filmmaker revealed that among the most-discussed and much-memed speeches in the period drama — delivered by Claudie Blakley's Charlotte Lucas — was improvised by writer Emma Thompson. Speaking with Mashable, he said, 'Deborah Moggach wrote the screenplay and did an amazing, amazing job. And then we asked Emma Thompson to help with a little bit of the dialogue. And I went round to her house, very nervous, with my little briefcase and we walked up onto Hampstead Heath onto a hill. And she said, 'Sit down, take out your notebook and take notes.' So as she improvised scenes, I wrote them down. And that was one of the things she improvised on that hill on Hampstead Heath.' More from Deadline Emma Corrin, Jack Lowden & Olivia Colman Set For Leading Roles In Netflix's 'Pride & Prejudice' Limited Series Emma Thompson & Judy Greer Action Thriller 'The Dead Of Winter' Acquired By Vertical Matthew Macfadyen To Headline 'Legacy Of Spies' TV Series Based On John Le Carré's George Smiley Novels From The Ink Factory & Fifth Season The scene — which has since been used as allegorical fodder for the current dating landscape — features Blakley's iconic and passionately spoken lines: 'I'm 27 years old. I've no money and no prospects. I'm already a burden to my parents. And I'm frightened.' It's been iced onto birthday cakes, has taken over meme pages on social media and been emblazoned on custom shirts. Differing from Jane Austen's original prose (though conveying similar sentiments), Wright recalls 'almost crying' at Thompson's 'miraculously' thought-out ideas that he 'scribbled down.' (Thompson was previously in another Austenian film adaptation, Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility, for which she won Best Adapted Screenplay at the Academy Awards.) Wright also discussed another viral moment from the film, the hand flex from Matthew Macfadyen's Mr. Darcy — something he had shotlisted and was 'very specific' about including in the pic. (Immortalized in the movie, it can now also be yours with official Focus Features merchandise featuring the image screen-printed on tees.) 'The beginnings of that were very humble,' he recalled. 'And it was a day where, we were running out of time and the weather was crappy and I knew I wanted to convey this sense in which our bodies are cleverer than our brains, and the electricity that moves between them, and him kind of trying to shake it off, I remember talking to Matthew about that. But all you're trying to do is tell the story as psychologically honestly as possible.' Starring Keira Knightley, the Pride & Prejudice rerelease is now in theaters. Best of Deadline 'Ransom Canyon' Book Vs. Show Differences: From Quinn & Staten's Love Story To Yancy Grey's Plot Everything We Know About Netflix's 'Ransom Canyon' So Far 'Ransom Canyon' Soundtrack: All The Songs You'll Hear In The New Netflix Western Romance Series
BBC News
08-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Wiltshire in pictures: Sunshine, dormice and Shrove Tuesday
The sun came out in Wiltshire this week and the county has welcomed rare wildlife and also pancakes and spring Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and Wiltshire Council have come together to start turning a farm into a nature reserve. It is hoped Roundbarrow Farm near Firsdown in Wiltshire should attract "chalk-loving blooms, bees, butterflies and birds". Flipping fun: Shrove Tuesday led to some racing in the centre of Salisbury. Raising money for the local foodbank, people competed to win the Golden Frying Pan in the pancake race. More pancakes: Salisbury Cathedral's trainee choristers also practiced flipping pancakes inside the cloisters of the medieval building. Encouraging future stars: businesses and organisations from around the county raised £80,400 to help local sports stars at the Wiltshire Business and Sports Gala Dinner. Austen influence: Stourhead House near Warminster reopens this weekend and has a new exhibition which includes the costume worn by Matthew Macfadyen in the 2005 film Pride and Prejudice and a replica dress worn by Kiera Knightley from the same film. Sparks of spring: Flowers are poking through as winter fades. Crocuses at Swindon's Old Town Gardens are among the colourful displays. Foodbank fundraiser: The sale of craft items made by care home residents, donated gifts and having a garden party has raised nearly £1,500 for Salisbury's foodbank. Residents and team members at Braemar Lodge in the city chose it as their main charity for the past year. Wildlife spotting: Excitement at Longleat Safari Park this week was caused by the estate's own wildlife rather than the safari animals. A rare hazel dormouse was caught on camera finding food. More than words: An exhibition at Wiltshire Council's headquarters in Trowbridge of more than 100 artworks showed some of the feelings of domestic abuse survivors. Put together with the help of several organisations working in the county using art therapy, it include paintings, drawings and poems.
