Why ALL Austen fans should embrace Sanditon!

Hear us out about this spiced up Period Piece

Would you rather | hot take debate

‘We weren't universally liked by the Austenites’ said Justin Young, one of the writers of the TV series Sanditon during a recent Q&A. The #SanditonSisterhood, a group of ardent and devoted #Sanditon fans, think it’s time to remedy that! It’s time to turn the tide for our beloved seaside resort and give it a much deserved second chance in Austen’s homeland.

We believe Sanditon to carry the potential of becoming an all time favourite period drama for decades to come - if the story can be finished. With Austen’s first and only character of colour, we think it has the rare chance to be even more relevant in light of recent events, if given the opportunity.

The most written sentence in comments about Sanditon must have been ‘Jane would be turning in her grave’. But would she? Let’s dive into the facts and fiction department.

Still from Sanditon Ep 5 + Simon Ridgway for Red Planet Pictures / Via simonridgway.com

Free spirited and flirty vs updo of disillusionment

1. The hairy hair!

Still from Sanditon Ep 8

Always a dependable first in the complaints department

A Regency woman would wear her hair up. You know that. We know that. The Sanditon Team knew that.

Is hair worn up an appealing look? Not per se. Can you tell a story with hair? Definitely! Is an Austen heroine with hair worn down catering to current aesthetics? Most likely! Is it wrong to make people look good? Erm, nope. Is wearing a wig always a good idea? NO (think Downton’s Mr Pamuk)!

Hair down for Charlotte also describes her character as a young and unconventional, perhaps naive, country girl venturing from home for the first time. Her hair tells her story and that of her coming of age adventure by the sea. We also see this through her three balls with hair up. First ball, out of place and fresh faced. Second ball, an outlier along with Sidney in the middle of high society. Third ball, finally finding her place in Sanditon.

Do you still have the same hairdo like you did some 30 years ago? Probably not. So, things do change. Filming techniques change and the way images are perceived change.

Conforming to 21st century ideas of female attractiveness? Yes, and boy, does our Charlotte look gorgeous!

2. Second in line: Fresh buns on the beach!

Still from Sanditon Ep 1

Apparently some people think naked bums had not yet been invented in Regency times.

Sorry to disappoint, they were. More so, the nude bathing was not only on trend during Jane’s lifetime, but also what the doctors advised. Dr Robert White wrote on ‘The Use and Abuse of Seawater’ in 1775 - a book and counsel abided by in many a noble bathing resort, not only on the English coast. How simply shocking! So, it would appear there’s nothing left to do but appreciate the historically validated fact that the Sanditon men strut stark naked on the beach, while it was freezing cold when filmed.

Thomas Rowlandson / Via metmuseum.org, Whittimore / Via sueberryhistorian.co.uk

3. Scandalous sex!

Still from Sanditon Ep 1

Fetch the smelling salts! On top of the naked bums, we must break it to you: people did have sex! Even centuries ago. Even in Jane Austen’s life and times. Can you really describe a scene where no flesh is shown other than a flushed face, as a porn scene? Erm, no. Can your imagination run wild? It seems so. Taking a walk in the woods will never sound the same. And you will never see a snake floor in the same light.

Throughout the series there are references to the painter Fuseli. The walls at the Denham’s dwelling show motives of his design. The obscene drawing Miss Lambe draws from her imagination, in Episode 3, was a copy after Fuseli. He was a very influential artist at that time and well known to Austen via her 1796 visit to the Shakespeare Gallery. To quote Regency expert Paula Byrne: ‘Austen was no prude!’

4. Infectious incestuous!

Still from Sanditon Ep 1

Do you dislike stories that contain incest? Well, put Mansfield Park aside with the incestuous marriage of cousins Fanny and Edmund.

Also, in Sense and Sensibility, Edward ‘looks upon [Elinor] and the other Miss Dashwoods quite as his own sisters’. Oh dear [spoiler], they marry!

Emma and Mr. Knightley share no literal tie of kinship, but they act like siblings, have a fraternal bond and he is Emma’s brother in law. Oh dear, and they marry!

If you survived those three Austen books, you can safely watch Sanditon. While the Denham siblings suggest an incenstuous relationship, they share no blood, so all is safe and well.

5. Mismatched music!

Still from Sanditon Ep 1

Is that some weird, Irish folk music I detected? Yeah, you could be right about folk, and Irish (or Scottish) influences. But you can blame the ‘weird’ on assumptions about what you think should fit in with the Regency era. People are led to believe what is true to the time by what has been used in previous Austen adaptations.

Instead of falling back into safe & predictable, the Sanditon soundtrack is as fresh as a seabreeze. It tries something new. Just like Jane did in her last writing. She wrote Sanditon years later than most of her novels. She steered away from her usual personages and settings. The music composed for the series also reflects that. Nevertheless it stays true to the Regency period but has a fresher, rousing and sweeping appeal to it with an amazing energy. How simply fitting!

If Beethoven can write 179(!) arrangements of traditional folk songs in Jane’s time, surely composer Ruth Barrett can use a few in the Sanditon score. Austen herself had a large collection of folk music, she no doubt would be a fan of the catchy, rough and rocking soundtrack.

Ruth Barrett @ruthdbarrett

A cracking tune you will hear at the Sanditon Ball...Itv3 it’s on right now 🥳💃🏻#SanditonITV #SanditonSquad

09:23 PM - 26 Jul 2020

6. Shaky sets!

MasterpiecePBS / Via www-tc.pbs.org

Denham Place has not and will never be seen on film for any other story than Sanditon. Created from scratch by set designer Grant Montgomery, it is exactly what he had in mind. Splashed from (over the) top to bottom with Austen and Gothic references. Most existing houses might be from the right period but are redone or changed a lot later, are inhabited or fall under strict guidelines for heritage preservation. Or, have been used countless times. Search Wrotham Park on IMDb Filming location and 73(!!) titles pop up! The latest Emma and Netflix’ Queen Elizabeth II share the same rooms!

Not the Denham’s dwellings though, of which the interiors are completely unique.

Emma / Via media.architecturaldigest.com, Via insideinside.org, Via i.imgur.com

Overused filming location The Van Dyke room, a selection: Emma, P&P, Barry Lindon, The Crown.

Don’t be a pearl clutcher!

Step over the threshold and immerse yourself in it’s rocky romance, bathe in this feast for the eyes, the beating hearts, pinched nerves and storm inducing butterflies - and nevermind the hollow sound of shutting (set) doors.

When were you last able to watch a Jane Austen story with the thrill of not knowing the exact answers to: Who IS who and how will it end?

Watch Sanditon with fresh eyes, Sundays on ITV3 or catch up on the ITV hub. Episode 2 airs August 2nd.