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Southampton Music staff to feature in BBC 2 documentary on Jane Austen

Published: 11 January 2013
Southampton musicians being filmed

University of Southampton Music staff are working on a TV documentary for BBC 2 to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen’s novel Pride and Prejudice.

The filmmakers are aiming to reconstruct a Regency evening entertainment complete with a ball, and the Southampton team is researching and performing the music. The producers, Optomen Television, have filmed segments of the process in the Special Collections of the university's Hartley Library and at Turner Sims. Professor Jeanice Brooks and Dr Wiebke Thormählen chose music from Austen's family music books, and put together the band, featuring Southampton Music staff Thormählen (violin), Professor Adrian Chandler (violin), Katy Bircher (flute), and Joe Crouch (cello), along with Pete McCarthy (double bass). Professor William Drabkin constructed musical arrangements for the band from the keyboard sources in the Austen books. PhD student Samantha Carrasco (piano) and undergraduate singer Emma Bryant will also participate in the culminating event, which will be filmed at Chawton House later this month.

'Having a Ball' is scheduled to air in March 2013.

The project has received the following national press and coverage:

BBC News, BBC Entertainment, Radio times, Independent, Guardian and Examiner

It has also featured on a series ofline blog sites:

Betty ConfidentialHer.ie, Refinery 29, Novelicious and Philipine Star     

Southampton staff and students on set at Chawton House
On set at Chawton House
Southampton staff and students in costume at Chawton House
On set at Chawton House
Prof Jeanice Brooks in costume for filming at Chawton House
Prof Jeanice Brooks on set
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