Kathryn Flett
Sunday May 13, 2007
The Observer
From the first drizzle-soused English exterior to the last gasp of the big fat portentous strings, I was weak with lust for both BBC2’s Daphne and Geraldine Somerville’s performance. As a biopic focusing on du Maurier’s life post-Rebecca and up to the arrival of My Cousin Rachel, it not only made me want to re-read both books immediately but had me longing, with a pash, to wear Dior’s New Look, smear some matte red Max Factor on my lips, grasp a martini glass and a cigarette and seek out an opportunity to make brittle small-talk with Noel round a piano while wearing a bright gay smile. Indeed, I wish there were more – more? any! – opportunities in life to come out with:
‘I orrrften get letters, you know, full of gush, from fans.’
Or:
‘You looked lovelier every day. It just defeated me.’
And, extra-specially:
‘Ever since the Mademoiselle at finishing school, I’ve known I had “Venetian” tendencies.’
Amy Jenkins’s script was, even if drawn from the source of du Maurier’s own letters, pastiche-y in all the right ways, oozing the repressed sexuality and pretzel logic of upper-class post-war British mores – perfectly at ease within a production that looked just as good as it sounded.
Finally caught a good glimpse of this riveting drama whilst waiting for my hair to turn blonder at my mother’s. I say mother’s because after drooling over the slash red lipstick and the endless cigarette holders not to mention perfectly modulated vowel sounds, it had to be mother’s over mum’s darling!
Daphne’s encounter with Gertrude Lawrence( her father’s ex-mistress…chew on that Freud!) was life saving. After the rejection of Ellen Doubleday( all playful intelligence and monumentally distracting bosom) the vitality and LIFE of ‘Gertie’ breathed new everything into Daphne. She was suddenly ‘known’ and that resurrected her. Parts reminded me curiously of Julia Roberts going shopping in Pretty Woman . Made you want to leap into the car with colour drenched Gertie and head off for fun in the sun.!
fabulous!
Going to start to draw ouuut ma vowels!
Does anyone still say ‘pash’? It’s an awfully nice word!