Doctor Thorne (TV Series 2016) is an adaption of the third of Anthony Trollope's Barchester Chronicles. In England, the series was shown in three episodes. In the U. S., on DVD, it was shown as four episodes. Julian Fellowes, who wrote the screenplay, provided commentary on each episode, to expand each episode to an hour in length. The series was directed by Niall MacCormick.
Tom Hollander stars as Doctor Thorne, a country doctor who lives in Barchester with his niece, Mary. Mary is played to perfection by the enchanting Stefanie Martini. Harry Richardson portrays Frank Gresham, who is the Romeo to Mary's Juliet. All three are highly skilled actors, and it was a pleasure to watch them at work.
However, for me, acting honors go to Rebecca Front as Frank's mother, Lady Arabella Gresham. Squire Gresham, Frank's father, has squandered the family fortune. For Lady Arabella, the only avenue open for the Greshams is for Frank to "marry money." Mary Thorne isn't poor, but she certainly isn't rich. She simply won't do for Frank, and Lady Arabella fights like a mother tiger to "protect" her son. (Of course, she's really protecting herself and the family, but that's a subtle distinction that doesn't slow her down.)
Although this isn't a BBC production, it looks like one. It was produced by ITV, a British commercial TV channel. Obviously, ITV knows that viewers expect high production values in a film adapted from a Trollope novel.
This series was made for the small screen, so obviously it works well on DVD. The IMDb rating for the series is 7.2. Pretty good, but not good enough. I rated it 9. My suggestion is to find it and see it. You won't be disappointed.
