''My Lady Ludlow'' is a novel (over 77,000 words in the

Project Gutenberg Project Gutenberg (PG) is a Virtual volunteering, volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the ...

text) by

Elizabeth Gaskell Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (''née'' Stevenson; 29 September 1810 – 12 November 1865), often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer and short story writer. Her novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many st ...

. It originally appeared in the magazine ''

Household Words ''Household Words'' was an English weekly magazine edited by Charles Dickens in the 1850s. It took its name from the line in Shakespeare's ''Henry V'': "Familiar in his mouth as household words." History During the planning stages, titles origi ...

'' in 1858, and was republished in ''

Round the Sofa ''Round the Sofa'' is an 1859 2-volume collection consisting of a novel with a story preface and five short stories by Elizabeth Gaskell. The two volumes were published by Sampson Low, Son & Co. in London. The 1859 2-volume set is unillustrate ...

'' in 1859, with framing passages added at the start and end. The novel follows the daily lives of the widowed Countess of Ludlow of Hanbury and the spinster Miss Galindo, whose father was a Baronet, and their caring for other single women and girls. It is also concerned with Lady Ludlow's man of business, Mr. Horner, and a poacher's son named Harry Gregson whose education he provides for. The narrator of the story is Margaret Dawson, an elderly woman and distant relative of Lady Ludlow who was sent to live with the Countess as a teenager.

TV Adaptation

With '' Cranford'', ''

The Last Generation in England "The Last Generation in England" is a non-fiction article by Elizabeth Gaskell, published in the American '' Sartain's Union Magazine'' in July 1849, relating memories of a small country town in the generation prior to her own. As such, it is seen ...

'' and ''

Mr. Harrison's Confessions ''Mr. Harrison’s Confessions'' is an 1851 extended story by Elizabeth Gaskell about a doctor in a small English country town, benefitting from familiarity with the work of a general practitioner in her family. Episodes from the story and other ...

'', ''My Lady Ludlow'' was adapted for television in 2007 as '' Cranford'', with

Francesca Annis Francesca Annis (born 14 May 1945) is an English actress. She is known for television roles in '' Reckless'' (1998), ''Wives and Daughters'' (1999), ''Deceit'' (2000), and '' Cranford'' (2007). A six-time BAFTA TV Award nominee, she won the 1979 ...

as the eponymous character, Alex Etel as Harry Gregson and

Emma Fielding Emma Georgina Annalies Fielding (born 07 October 1964 in Catterick, North Riding of Yorkshire) is an English actress. Biography The daughter of a British Army officer, Colonel Johnny Fielding, and Sheila Fielding, she was raised Catholic and ...

as Laurentia Galindo. Mr. Horner's name was changed to Mr. Carter, and was played by

Philip Glenister Philip Haywood Glenister (born 10 February 1963) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in the BBC series ''Life on Mars'' (2006–2007) and its sequel '' Ashes to Ashes'' (2008–2010). He also played DCI William ...

. The character of Lord Septimus, the Countess' seventh child, is mentioned in the first series as he is in the novel. The book, however, was extended in the first episode of the second series ''

Return to Cranford ''Return to Cranford'' (known in the United Kingdom as the '' Cranford'' Christmas Special) is the two-part second season of a British television series directed by Simon Curtis. The teleplay by Heidi Thomas was based on material from two nove ...

'', featuring the death of Lady Ludlow from bone cancer, and Lord Septimus' return from Italy to claim his estate, where his ne'er-do-well personality is revealed. In the episode, Lord Septimus was portrayed by

Rory Kinnear Rory Michael Kinnear (born 17 February 1978) is an English actor and playwright who has worked with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre. In 2014, he won the Olivier Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of William S ...

, with Annis, Etel and Fielding reprising their roles.

External links

* * * Novels by Elizabeth Gaskell 1858 British novels British novels adapted into television shows Works originally published in Household Words {{1850s-novel-stub Victorian novels Novels about nobility