As the credits rolled on the finale of The Other Bennet Sister on the BBC last month, I knew I had just finished watching one of my favourite TV shows.
The ten-episode period drama, based on Janice Hadlow’s novel, is a Pride and Prejudice spin-off following the oft-overlooked Bennet sister, Mary, played by Call the Midwife’s Ella Bruccoleri.
Mary has resigned herself to a life as a spinster under the thumb of her harsh mother, Mrs Bennet, played by Gavin & Stacey icon, Ruth Jones.
But, as she discovers the world outside the confines of society’s stifling rules, she, and the viewer, are taken on a heartwarming journey of self-discovery that just might lead to the man of her dreams.
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As a long-time Pride and Prejudice lover, I’ll be the first to admit my initial doubts about going into such a radical retelling which goes off Austen’s beaten track pretty quickly and tears off in a new direction. Yet, I was almost immediately charmed.
So it was no surprise to me at all when I saw that it had landed an impressive 7.3million viewers, making it the biggest BBC drama to launch since May 2025.
Yet, I can’t help but feel, despite its whopping viewership, and certainly deserving of more, this absolutely delightful show is undervalued.
After a bout of anachronistic, modern-feeling period dramas (a la Bridgerton and The Buccaneers), this faithfully old-timey adaptation felt like a breath of fresh air.
It combines all the much-loved yearning of Austen’s 19th-century works with the modern sensibilities, with themes around female empowerment and diverse casting.
It may not have the same sex appeal as a show like Bridgerton, which is famed for its steamy scenes, so perhaps it has not garnered the same buzz. But for lovers of the Darcy handflex, there’s plenty of period-appropriate forearm and ankle action!
By the final episode, my heart was aflutter, and I was giggling with the biggest grin on my face. In a TV landscape where (mostly) light-hearted period shows are not often the belle of the ball, this felt very much like appointment viewing.
However, unlike similar recent hits such as sitcom spin-off Amandaland, which got 6.4million views, or Small Prophets, which catapulted to stratospheric heights with 7.9million, The Other Bennet Sister is yet to garner the recognition it deserves.
Since finishing the series, I have fallen down a TikTok rabbit hole of Mary Bennet-Tom Hayward edits and, among friends who have watched it, have heard streams of praise as we rave about it together.
But it doesn’t seem to have infiltrated the zeitgeist in the way it frankly should have by now. There’s no real groundswell of public discussion, or media clamour for a second season.
Ella’s turn as Mary Bennet is simply inspired, completely capturing the spirit of the novel and the character – and bringing so many additional layers to it beyond that. Present in essentially every single frame of the show, her command of the screen is second-to-none.
As such, it’s no understatement to call it a powerhouse performance that should be tipped for awards like Baftas, which put Ella on the map for future lead roles. I would certainly tune in to whatever else she stars in.
Not to mention the series also boasts a stellar cast involving Ruth Jones, Richard E. Grant, Varada Sethu, Indira Varma and Dónal Finn.
Dónal’s turn as the romantic lead Mr Tom Hayward, meanwhile, has firmly cemented him as one of my favourite period drama protagonists in a long while, joining Matthew MacFadyen’s Mr Darcy and Dan Stevens’ Matthew in Downton Abbey.
His portrayal of the shy, poetry-loving lawyer, was both heartwarming and charming.
Elsewhere, Indira’s turns as the ever-lovely Mrs Gardiner was note-perfect, and she has become an instant comfort character of mine.
Although I believe this show was the perfect limited season, I can’t help but selfishly want to revisit the world it explored. Perhaps in the shape of an anthology series focusing on a different overlooked character each season (Mr Collins, Caroline Bingley, Charlotte Lucas – the possibilities are endless!).
Who knows what will happen, all I can say for certain is that the viewing figures speak for themselves and deserve more championing and acclaim – whether in the shapes of awards, flowers for the stars and creators, and increased funding for this genre.
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