In association with

Tipping the Velvet : The Complete BBC Series [2002]
from Contender Entertainment Group
starring Rachael Stirling, Keeley Hawes, Anna Chancellor, Jodhi May, Hugh Bonneville
directed by Geoffrey Sax

Features:

• Anamorphic
• PAL
• Widescreen

Editorial Review:

Screenwriter Andrew Davies describes Tipping the Velvet, his adaptation of Sarah Waters's acclaimed novel of lesbian love, betrayal and redemption in Victorian England, as "Pride and Prejudice with dirty bits". This three-part BBC production chronicles with relish the story of Nan Astley (Rachael Stirling, the ravishing image of her mother, Diana Rigg), barely 18, and certain that life holds more for her than her oyster girl's existence. "You'll meet someone who'll have your head spinning and your legs turning to jelly", her sister promises. That someone surprisingly turns out to be "gay and bold" Kitty Butler (Keeley Hawes), a music-hall entertainer with whom Nan falls instantly, and swooningly, in love. Nan follows her to London, where, as a double act, they become the toast of London, until Kitty's "marriage of convenience" breaks up the act and Nan's heart. The outcast Nan, decked out in Victor/Victoria duds, becomes a streetwalker, and then "tart" to the aptly named Diana Leatherby (Anna Chancellor). This affair, too, comes to "a bad end" as a destitute Nan is deposited back on the streets, where she insinuates herself into the lives of Florence (Jodhi May), a social worker, and her socialist brother.

Is Nan "too spoiled and stained for love"? Will she risk her blossoming relationship with Florence when Kitty inevitably returns to rekindle their affair? Nan's couplings, while tastefully done, do carry what Waters calls "a queer erotic charge". They are graphic by BBC standards. But the sterling writing and performances will captivate even the most sensitive viewers, making this groundbreaking mini-series, to quote one character, "a delightful evening... a rare treat". --Donald Liebenson

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0

• i first watched it on TV
  When it aired in my country in the summer of 2002 and i loved it. it was one of the best mini series i have ever watched. i don't know if it was the subject, gay romance in 19 century England, but this is to this day still in my top 5 of most see mini series.
  the plot, the script, the character and the acting are amazing. you can tell it is BBC made due to it's quality.
  i highly recommend it and If you don't want to buy try and rent it from somewhere I promise it be worth it.
  

• Vapid and Shallow
  This is tv at its worst! A vapid story with shallow characters, I can only imagine that it was designed as titillation for the unsophisticated. And, by the way, isn't the story stolen from a Penthouse comic circa 1972? Shame on you BBC.

• A brilliant adaptation
  Sarah Waters is one of my favourite novelists and "Tipping the Velvet" was the first of her books I read. I love the book and I have to admit that I was both excited by the idea of the TV adaptation but also worried that it might be done in a sensationalist way.
  I was wrong. The adaptation was pretty good and I was glued to the TV when it was first shown. Rachael Stirling is brilliant as Nan and the rest of the cast are good too. Nan's affair with Florence is handled so well and with great sensitivity,... more info

• Bland Velvet
  It is difficult to have compassion with Nan, she seems to be portrayed as either very naive or very calculating; a clingy and creepy woman who skips from one lover to the next pinning all her hopes and dreams on her. So I wasn't really routing for her success.
  There seems to be a lot of padding out with previous footage of flashbacks. The music is hauntingly creepy and soppy all topped off with Nans droning monotone narration. It is also a little patronising as it is predictable and has this underlined... more info

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