Game the Thirtieth: Trivia Quiz {4}

These trivia questions all come from the wonderful fourth episode-- though why I am distinguishing it from the others with the word "wonderful," I really could not say, for they are all worthy of that appellation.

And why I am so formal in Club posts, I couldn't say either. 

1.  Which character's face is the first to be seen in this episode?

2.  How old was Georgiana Darcy when she was tricked into consented to elope with George Wickham?

3.  Complete the quote: "Have some ____, Lizzy; I am sure it will do you good."

4.  What was it that Lydia should have put on the roof of the carriage so Kitty would not squash it?

5.  What is the name of Mr. Darcy's fencing teacher?

6.  What is Elizabeth's parting remark to Wickham at the "farewell to the regiment" party?

7.  Who says the candid remark, "It's vile, isn't it, Lizzy?" and to what is this person referring?

8.  How far is Lambton from Pemberley?

9.  Why does Kitty feel that she has as much right to go to Brighton as Lydia (and more)?

10.  Complete the quote and tell who said it: "I think one would be willing to put up with a good deal to be ____." 

Have fun! Answers will be revealed on Saturday.

How I Met P&P95: The Elf

I was unaware of the existence of P&P 1995 and even of the existence of Pride & Prejudice, the book, until I was about 14.  My sister chose to study the book for a school project - first time she read it too - and later told me in detail all about the story she had come to love.  Shortly afterwards, some friends lent us several movies that they thought we might enjoy.  Among them, was P&P95.  Since I prefer to read the book before seeing the screenplay, I sat down and read Pride and Prejudice.  Although I was expecting a writing style similar to that of Charles Dickens - 1800s and all that - I was most pleasantly diverted.  The freshness, wit and appeal of Pride and Prejudice were a joy to read.

Although the picture of Darcy on the front cover of P&P95 was slightly disconcerting - "He's very hairy" was my sister's comment - I eagerly anticipated watching the TV series.  I have to say, it surpassed my wildest dreams.  The delight or realizing after the first episode that there were 4 more hours was a highlight.  The fact that the movie stuck so closely to the book was a thrill.  The novel experience of seeing actors who actually looked like they should, the stunning scenery, the beautiful music.... There is no doubt about it, when it comes to a period drama adaption, BBC does it best!

--The Elf

Would you like to contribute your own story or see what this series is all about? Please visit the main post here.

Game the Twenty-Ninth: Caption Contest {10}

You know the drill by now.  Exercise your witty witticisms upon this highly interesting piece of photography--

---and the rules are what they always are. We request clean and funny captions (you may submit more than one), and the winning caption will be posted on Saturday, &c., &c.

How I Met P&P95: Miss Jane Bennet

To explain the way that I met P&P95, I first have to explain how I met Jane Austen.  It all began when I was sitting next to a bookcase, wondering what to read next.  You see, I had read all of the books on its shelves.  Such is the life of a bookworm…

Anyway, I asked my mom if she had any reading suggestions.  She, to my eternal gratitude, suggested that I read Emma, by Jane Austen.  I vaguely remembered hearing something about Austen being a great writer and figured I’d give it a try.

At first, to be honest, I didn’t like Emma.  I found it (sorry for the sacrilege!  I’m a Janeite now!) dry and dull and boring and way too long.  When I finally finished it, I put it away with relief.  But a few weeks later, I found myself in the same predicament as ever.  I had nothing to read.  So, with nothing else to do and feeling certain of further boredom, I began Sense and Sensibility.  I found it more interesting than Emma and admired Elinor Dashwood greatly, but I still didn’t like it much.

However, I liked it enough to give Jane Austen another chance, and I began Pride and Prejudice.  That was the turning point for me.  The witty dialogue, the ironic comments from Mr. Bennet and the wonderful characters all combined to make me fall completely in love with Austen and become a Janeite.  In rapid succession, I read the rest of her novels (Mansfield Park, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion), reread Emma, P&P and S&S, and searched frantically for other sources to feed my Austen obsession.  It was around this time that I discovered Yet Another Period Drama Blog.  Some of the posts on it mentioned Austen adaptations.  I wondered whether any movie could really do Jane Austen justice and decided to find out.

My favorite of Austen’s works at that time was S&S, so I looked up a movie version of that at my local library.  I found the 1971 BBC version and watched it ASAP.  Yes, it wasn’t a very good quality movie.  Yes, some of the acting was bad and the costumes were a little strange.  I was hooked on Austen adaptations nonetheless.

I found the 2009 BBC adaptation of Emma next, and loved it even more.  Romola Garai and Jonny Lee Miller were perfect in their roles, and the costumes and sets were gorgeous.  So, I began searching for a P&P adaptation.  I discovered both the 1995 and the 2005 ones at the same time.  My parents were getting a little sick of 5-hour adaptations by this time, so I decided to get the 2005 one first.  I watched it and found it reasonably good.  It was nowhere near the 1995 one, of course, but I didn’t know that at the time.

As I’ve mentioned before, I had discovered Yet Another Period Drama Blog several weeks before I watched the 2005 P&P.  I naturally heard Amy praise P&P95 a lot, and so I was eager to watch it.  I checked it out of the library and waited impatiently until Friday, when I could watch it.

As soon as the opening music played, I fell in love with the movie.  I was already in a fair way to do that, but the horses galloping across the field…and Jennifer Ehle looking like *my* Lizzy…I couldn’t help it.

I watched three episodes of it that night, but then I had to go to bed.  I had to wait for over a week before I could watch the rest of it, which just made me like it even more.  At the ending, my heart went all Wicked Witch of the West on me, and all of a sudden I was more of a Janeite than ever.

And that is how I met P&P95.

***
This story was submitted by Miss Jane Bennet of Classic Ramblings.
We plan to post one every Friday. Yes, this is Saturday--Amy's visit has thrown everything a little out of whack but it should return to normal soon!
To find out more about this blog series, go here.

Giveaway - WINNERS!!

Aaaaand here we are, TOGETHER, to present you the winners of our first giveaway! :)

The winner of the Digital File of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet Design ...

...is Jane! 

Our winner of the lovely prints by Masha Laurence...

    

...is Lydia!

And last but not least (dear, how unoriginal of me...), our winner of the Pride and Prejudice sampler from Bingley's Teas is...

...Kathleen Wentworth!

Now, if you winning ladies would contact us (shelvesinthecloset95[at]gmail[dot]com) with your mailing addresses, we shall forward them to the contributors and then they will be on their way! :) Thank you all so much for participating and making this event a success-- we ended up with 119 entries, all told.  :)

For Your Random Information...

We would just like to note that if you wish to send in a story about How You Met P&P95, we would appreciate it if you send the story to us in an email instead of leaving it in a comment.  Also, since we intend to make each story a post in and of itself (as part of the series each Friday) it would be loverly if you could make your story at least 300 words.

Thanks so much and don't forget to enter the giveaway!

~the Misses Dashwood

Announcing: The P&P95Forever Club's First Giveaway!

Tomorrow, an extremely amazing thing is going to happen.

The authors of this blog, Amy and Melody, are going to see each other in real life for the very first time.

Yes, yes, 'tis true. (And if you wish to know more, read one of these posts.)  In celebration of this, we are hosting a giveaway.

Well, not just because of that, of course--we have been contemplating a giveaway for some time--but we thought this would be a splendid time to actually do it.  The two of us can't have ALL the fun, right?

And we are super excited about what we have to offer you, thanks to the contribution of several generous Jane Austen-loving ladies!  Yes, I think let's talk about the goodies first.

One

Digital File of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet Design from AliceFlynn

This lovely print is a digital file (yes, thank you, Mary...) that can be used for your own personal crafts... it can go on things like cards and t-shirts, or even just to print out and frame. The perk about this prize is that it allows our outside-of-the-U.S. readers to be able to enter. 

Two

    

Mr. Darcy and Lizzy Get Lost print *AND* Elizabeth and Georgiana at the Piano by Masha Laurence 

How beautiful are these?! And they are delightfully faithful to our own dear 1995 adaptation! They would belong on the wall of any P&P95 fan's sitting room. 

Three

So, so excited about this one... have you ever heard of the Bingley's Teas company, where you can find all sorts of delightful Jane Austen-themed teas? Weeeell...

Pride and Prejudice Anniversary Notions Sampler by Bingley's Teas

In this box of tea you get a sample of the teas themed for "Miss Elizabeth," "Mr. Darcy," "Sweet Jane," and a "Longbourn Wedding Tea." Isn't that dreamy??? The sampler was designed particularly for P&P's 200th anniversary, and now it graces our little giveaway.

And now, all you have to do is enter! ;)  Let's try to make this easy for you, anyways...

How to earn entries:

~Follow this blog publicly. *2 entries*

~Join/become a member of The P&P95Forever Club (see how here). *2 entries*

~If you are a member, post an "I am a member..." button on your blog or website. *1 entry* (These are sent to you when you join.)

~Post about this giveaway on your blog. (If you do not have a blog, let us know what you DO have and we will try to accommodate you.) *2 entries*

~Participate in the "How I Met P&P95" blog series by submitting your story. *1 entry* 

~Go to Alice Flynn's Etsy shop and have a look around. Come back here and tell us an item that particularly caught your eye. *1 entry*

~Ditto with Masha Laurence's Etsy shop... *1 entry* 

~And do the same thing with the Bingley's Teas website. *1 entry*

How to enter: Simply leave a comment, or comments, letting us know which of the above you accomplish. Do include your email (or blog address, if you are sure you will see a comment if we leave one) so we can let you know if you win, in addition to it being announced on this blog. Feel free to leave an email address in a separate comment and tell us if you'd prefer it not to be published.

If you like, let us know which of the items above you would particularly like to win, and we shall try to get you that one if it works out. If two winners wanted the same item, we'll flip a coin or something as to who gets what. Also be sure to let us know if you live outside of the U.S. As mentioned above, the digital P&P file is what you will be entering for, as the other two are limited to U.S. residents only.

Entries will be accepted through July 13th at 12:00 AM Pacific time. We will be drawing the winners together, in real life (!!!!!!!) on the 14th, and will post the winners on the 15th!

Have at it, folks! 

What's Wrong With This Picture - Answers

So. Everything in this picture collage:

was from P&P95 EXCEPT the following.

1B

Sense and Sensibility (2008) (Not many of you got this one! ;) )

1D

Sense and Sensibility (1995)

2A

Emma (2009)

2C

Miss Austen Regrets 

3B

Emma (1996, A&E)

4A

Northanger Abbey (2007)

4D

Sense and Sensibility (1995)

Our winners are Miss Laurie and Caroline L. with 21 points each! :) Other play scores are...

~Abilaine, 20

~Miss Dashwood, 20

~Anne-girl, 19

~Livia Rachelle, 19

~Banrion An Gheimhridh, 18

~Jane, 17

~Katrina, 17

~Lys Aranel, 17

~E. Kate, 18

~Eloise Kate, 16

(Not sure if the two above were the same person?)

~The Elf, 13

Thanks everyone! And something very special should be going on this Monday... :)

How I Met P&P95: Miss Dashwood

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife."  So said the first paragraph on the first page of my paperback copy of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.

"Snicker-snort."  So said I.  Er, snicker-snorted I.  Highly unladylike, I know.  But you must remember that this exchange took place when I was but the tender age of fourteen, and not half as grown-up and sophisticated as I am now.  (snicker-snort)

In other words, I was hooked.  Hilariously hooked.  From the very first page--nay, the first sentence.  The hilarity of the narrative, the fascinating characters, the funny and suspenseful situations... I had to pace myself to make the book last and not gobble it all down too quickly.  I carried it around the house and read bits and pieces out loud to the family, cracking up over Mr. Collins and Mr. Bennet.  Who'd-a-thunk early-nineteenth-century literature could be so funny?

I'd picked up Pride and Prejudice at my mom's suggestion.  I think she was tired of hearing me complain about the lack of good books to read (having just finished eighth grade, I was feeling too old for the Juvenile Fiction section at the library but uninterested in the vampires and werewolves roaming the shelves in Young Adult), so at last she said, "Why don't you try Jane Austen?" and the very next day she took me and the gift card left over from my birthday to our nearest Borders.  Whereupon I purchased this volume and took it home to devour. 

Like I said.  Hooked.

Then, and only then, did I watch the 1995 miniseries with my mom.  I'm a stickler for reading the book first and THEN seeing the movie, and once I'd finished the novel I was chomping at the bit to see the film.  We checked it out from the library (one DVD at a time) and I. Was. Enthralled.

Perhaps it was the superb acting, perhaps it was the hilarious wit, perhaps it was the lovely Regency costumes, perhaps it was the way the script stuck so closely to the book (an instant win in my mind) but I think it was a combination of all of those plus the fact that this was my current favorite book, come to life, that made this movie my favorite of all time.  (For those curious, Sense and Sensibility is my favorite Jane Austen book, but P&P ranks very high after it.)  And once I'd seen it, my love for Jane Austen took flight.

And now... here I am, co-running a blog all about that movie.  Who would have thought it?

I was going to say "who'd-a-thunk it," but I am TRYING to be grown-up and sophisticated.

Game the Twenty-Eighth: What's Wrong With This Picture?

As you will see below, I have made a collage of pictures. Some of them are from P&P95, some of them are not. Your job is to point out which pictures don't belong (that is, which ones aren't from P&P95).  I'm not sure it would be fair to give you points for guessing which Jane Austen film they ARE from because not all of you will know... but then, it would be sad for those of you who do know. Sooo... I will give you 2 points for each correctly-pointed-out picture NOT from P&P, and one point if you guess what it IS from. :) I won't tell you how many points this can get you because then you'd be able to figure out how many non-P&P pictures there are.

In case you can't tell, the way it identify the pictures is by using a 1A, 4C, etc. format. 

Have fun! Answers & winners will be posted on Saturday as usual.