Vanity Fair

ITV are no slouches when it comes to the adaptation of classical novels, and I am delighted that Vanity Fair is proving to be a first class series. Thackeray's sharp wit and sometimes cynical view of human behaviour is portrayed with skill by a top class cast.

There is hardly a false step anywhere with Becky doing all she can to convince her tv audience and her companions in the Crawley household that she is the Queen of all she Surveys. She is ably assisted by a nimble cast, notably Martin Clunes as the roguish Pitt Crawley and Frances de la Tour as the irrepressible Miss Crawley. I don't know if a series as good as this needs the modern music and I am hoping ITV won't spring the BBC's favourite trick of changing the ending of the story.

Mary Gumsley

The author of Vanity Fair intended a novel without a hero, according to wikipedia. At first protagonist Becky Sharpe seems like a heroine - a smart, strong-willed woman aiming at success - but her flaws soon become apparent, and they are many. And most of the people she meets are either no better, or better but much dumber.

Becky is neither all bad nor all good, although her bad qualities are sometimes very, very bad. To me it seems Becky is doing her best in a society in which the only option for a woman - no matter how smart - to achieve upward mobility is through marriage, and Becky is a character who should be wheeling and dealing but instead spends her time on seduction and plotting. (I don't know if that's how she comes across in the book.)

Olivia Cooke is wonderful as Becky (she has a cheeky, sardonic quality reminiscent of Phoebe Waller-Bridge), and the rest of the cast is excellent.

Highly recommended.

Glitzy, cutting and in this day and age relevant.

The casting is superior as is the dialogue and costumes.

Whilst I adore the film, this dramatisation is giving more depth to the story. I for one cannot wait for the third part. Welcome addition to a boring Sunday night.

'Vanity Fair' is the story of Becky Sharp; a young woman determined to rise to the top of London society. To this end she flirts with the rich and powerful and is quick to move on to the next potential suiter if she thinks he will further her ambitions. Of course things don't always go according to plan but Becky is one of nature's survivors and is soon on her way up again. Her life is juxtaposed with that of her friend Amelia 'Emmy' Sedley; the daughter of a wealthy businessman whose life seems to be going in the opposite direction.

This satire on the social mores of the time it was written still feels delightfully fresh. The modern music during the opening and closings, and the electric lights on the merry-go-round the characters ride on during the introduction remind us that the World will always have its Becky Sharps wanting to get to the top. Becky could easily be an unsympathetic character but a combination of fine writing and great acting from Olivia Cooke make it hard for the viewer not to root for her. The rest of the cast is top-notch too; even the more comic characters feel real. As one would expect from a period drama everything looks great. Overall I'd certainly recommend this; even to people who don't consider themselves fans of adaptations of literary classics.

I have watched episode 1 & 2 on catch up and I LOVE it so far, I can only imagine it to get better, so waiting patiently for next episode

I have never seen the previous versions, nor would I want to, but I have read the book, but I appreciate, being a person who is open to diversity and to new and fresh interpretation.

The characters in the series are well done, and am so far thoroughly caught up in their lives.

I most definitely recommend it and also urge people to give it a chance!