''The Pursuit of Love'' is a British three-part television

romantic drama Romance films involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typically their ...

written and directed by

Emily Mortimer Emily Kathleen Anne Mortimer (born 6 October 1971) is a British and American actress and filmmaker. She began acting in stage productions and has since appeared in several film and television roles. In 2003, she won an Independent Spirit Award ...

. It is based on the 1945 novel of the same name by

Nancy Mitford Nancy Freeman-Mitford (28 November 1904 – 30 June 1973) was an English novelist, biographer, and journalist. The eldest of the Mitford family#Mitford sisters, Mitford sisters, she was regarded as one of the "bright young things" on the ...

, which had previously been adapted as ''Love in a Cold Climate'' (1980) and ''Love in a Cold Climate'' (2001). It premiered on 9 May 2021 on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

Premise

Two cousins navigate their lives and friendship, as they seek different things in life.

Cast and characters

Emily Beecham Emily Beecham (born 12 May 1984) is an English actress. She is best known for her role in the Coen Brothers film ''Hail, Caesar!'', the AMC series '' Into the Badlands'' and the title role in the 2017 film ''Daphne''. She starred in the 2019 fil ...

as Fanny Logan *

Lily James Lily Chloe Ninette Thomson (born 5 April 1989), known professionally as Lily James, is an English actress. She studied acting at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and began her career in the British television series '' Just Wi ...

The Honourable ''The Honourable'' (Commonwealth English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific Style ...

Linda Radlett, Fanny's cousin *

Dominic West Dominic Gerard Francis Eagleton West (born 15 October 1969) is an English actor, director, producer, and musician. He is best known for playing Jimmy McNulty in HBO's ''The Wire'' (2002–2008), Noah Solloway in Showtime's '' The Affair'' (20 ...

as Matthew Radlett, Lord Alconleigh, Linda's father *

Dolly Wells Dorothy Perpetua Wells (born Gatacre; 5 December 1971)Burke's Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, vol. III, 2003, pg 3046 is an English actress. She co-wrote and starred in the Sky Living series '' Doll & Em'' (2014–2015) with Emily Mortimer, ...

as Sadie Radlett, Lady Alconleigh, Linda's mother * Beattie Edmondson as The Honourable Louisa Radlett, Linda's older sister *

Annabel Mullion Annabel Mullion (born 1969) is a British actress. She was educated at St Mary's School, Ascot and studied English and Drama at the University of East Anglia. She then completed the 3 year acting course at Central School of Speech and Drama, grad ...

as Aunt Emily, Fanny's ''de facto'' mother *

as The Bolter, Fanny's real mother and Emily and Sadie's younger sister * John Heffernan as Davey, Aunt Emily's fiancée * Andrew Scott as Lord Merlin * Freddie Fox as Tony Kroesig *

Shazad Latif Shazad Latif (born Iqbal Amin; 8 July 1988) is a British actor, who starred as Tariq Masood in the BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, E ...

as Alfred Wyncham/Wincham *

James Frecheville James Aitken Frecheville (;) is an Australian actor. Following his film debut in the crime drama film '' Animal Kingdom'' (2010), Frecheville subsequently appeared in films such as ''Adoration'' (2013), '' The Drop'' (2014), '' I.T.'' (2016), '' ...

as Christian Talbot * Assaad Bouab as Fabrice de Sauveterre * Georgina Morgan as young Fanny * Swift & Scarlet as Lord Merlin's whippets

Episodes

Production

It was announced in December 2019 that the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

had commissioned the series, an adaptation of the 1945

novel.

was announced as writer and director of the series, with

starring. Filming on the series had initially begun in the spring of 2020, but had to be postponed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. It would resume in July in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

and

Bath, Somerset Bath (Received Pronunciation, RP: , ) is a city in Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman Baths (Bath), Roman-built baths. At the 2021 census, the population was 94,092. Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, Bristol, River A ...

, with the cast additions of Andrew Scott,

, Beattie Edmondson, Assaad Bouab,

and Freddie Fox, and

Amazon Studios Amazon MGM Studios is an American film and television production and distribution company owned by Amazon, and headquartered at the Culver Studios complex in Culver City, California. Launched on November 16, 2010, it took its current name on O ...

joining the project as a co-producer.

Reception

The series received positive reviews from critics in the UK press. In the ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...

'', Eleanor Bley Griffiths wrote " .. do know that each episode was a joy and a pleasure to watch – and when it comes to Sunday night TV, you can't ask for more than that." For ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'', Anita Singh praised the show overall but criticised the casting of James: "It is enjoyable, and the first episode is quite the best. But its leading lady is all wrong, despite looking the part" while Ed Cumming in ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' was more complimentary about her: "Free to pout and strut and grumble like a teenager, James relaxes more into her role than she did on her last outing, as a lovestruck archaeologist in The Dig." Lucy Mangan in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' gave the first episode the maximum five stars, stating "The insistent intertwining of the pain with the laughter, instead of flattening the tale into a Wodehouse-with-women yarn, makes this adaptation feel like a classic in its own right. It is a treat for all. Mitfordians – please, do give it a chance." ''

The Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

'' also gave a generally positive review to the show.

Soundtrack

The series' soundtrack contains many British and US acts and French singers. The first episode prominently includes T. Rex's song "

Dandy in the Underworld ''Dandy in the Underworld'' is the twelfth and final studio album by England, English Rock (music), rock band T.Rex (band), T. Rex. It was released on 11 March 1977 by record label EMI Records, EMI. It reached number 26 in the UK charts, the ba ...

" in the ballroom sequence which introduces the character of Lord Merlin, played by Andrew Scott. #

Bryan Ferry Bryan Ferry (born 26 September 1945) is an English singer and songwriter. He became known as the frontman of the band Roxy Music and also launched a solo career. His voice has been described as an "elegant, seductive croon". He also established ...

– "The In Crowd" #

Le Tigre Le Tigre (, ; French for "The Tiger") is an American art punk and riot grrrl band formed by Kathleen Hanna (of Bikini Kill), Johanna Fateman and Sadie Benning in 1998 in New York City. Benning left in 2000 and was replaced by JD Samson. ...

– "Deceptacon" # New Order – "

Ceremony A ceremony (, ) is a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. The word may be of Etruscan language, Etruscan origin, via the Latin . Religious and civil ...

" # T. Rex – "

" #

Cat Power Charlyn Marie "Chan" Marshall ( ; born January 21, 1972), better known by her stage name Cat Power, is an American singer-songwriter. Cat Power was originally the name of her first band, but has become her stage name as a solo artist. Born in ...

– "Sea of Love" #

Sleater-Kinney Sleater-Kinney ( ) is an American rock band that formed in Olympia, Washington, in 1994. The band's lineup features Corin Tucker (vocals and guitar) and Carrie Brownstein (guitar and vocals), following the departure of longtime member Janet We ...

– "Modern Girl" #

Marianne Faithfull Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (29 December 1946 – 30 January 2025) was an English singer and actress who achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her UK top 10 single " As Tears Go By". She became one of the leading female art ...

– "Give My Love to London" #

Joan Armatrading Joan Anita Barbara Armatrading (, born 9 December 1950) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. Her first major commercial success came with her third and fourth albums, '' Joan Armatrading'' (1976) and '' Show Some Emotion'' (1977), a ...

– "Woncha Come On Home" #

Karen Dalton Karen J. Dalton (born Jean Karen Cariker; July 19, 1937 – March 19, 1993) was an American country blues singer, guitarist, and banjo player. She was associated with the early 1960s Greenwich Village folk music scene, particularly with F ...

– "Are you Leaving for the Country" #

The Meters The Meters (later The Funky Meters) are an American funk band formed in 1965 in New Orleans by Zigaboo Modeliste (drums), George Porter Jr. (bass), Leo Nocentelli (guitar) and Art Neville (keyboards). The band performed and recorded their o ...

– "Cissy Strut" #

Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...

– "Be My Husband" #

John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, dr ...

– " Paris 1919" #

Maria Arnal Maria Arnal Dimas (born 8 February 1987) is a Spanish artist, singer and composer based in Barcelona. Her music has received great recognition from Spanish critics. She combines his facet of electronic pop and polyphonic traditional music with pr ...

– "A La Vida" #

Blossom Dearie Margrethe Blossom Dearie (April 28, 1924 – February 7, 2009) was an American jazz singer and pianist. She had a recognizably light and girlish voice. Profile at AllMusic/ref> Dearie performed regular engagements in London and New York City ov ...

– "Plus Je t'embrasse" #

Juliette Greco Juliette is a feminine personal name of French origin. It is a diminutive of Julie. People * Juliette Adam (1836–1936), née Lamber, French author and feminist * Juliette Atkinson (1873–1944), American tennis player * Juliette Walker Barnw ...

– "

Déshabillez-moi "Déshabillez-moi" (English: "Undress Me") is a 1967 song first recorded by French singer Juliette Gréco, by Patti Layne in 1987, then by Mylène Farmer in a studio version in 1988 and in a live version during her 2006 concerts at Bercy (Pari ...

" #

Yves Montand Ivo Livi (; 13 October 1921 – 9 November 1991), better known as Yves Montand (), was an Italian-born French actor and singer. He is said to be one of France's greatest 20th-century artists. Early life Montand was born Ivo Livi in Stignano, a ...

– "Rue St Vincent" # Marino Marini – "Guaglione" #

The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

– " Blue, Red and Grey"

Notes

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pursuit of Love (Tv Series), The 2021 British television series debuts 2021 British television series endings 2020s British drama television series 2020s British romance television series 2020s British television miniseries 2020s romantic drama television series BBC television dramas British romantic drama television series British English-language television shows Television series about cousins Television series by Amazon MGM Studios Television series set in the 1940s Television shows based on British novels Television shows shot in Bristol Spanish Civil War films