Follower of fashion

On By EstherIn Actors, TV & media

Not me, I’m not a follower of fashion, but Sir Percy Blakeney aka The Scarlet Pimpernel very much is.

This past week in the evenings I’ve been sourcing some Pimpernel clips from the DVD that I have had for many years now and I (quite quickly for me) made two fan videos with them. I put the first one on YouTube yesterday (a bit sappy, but viewable on my The Scarlet Pimpernel fan video page), the second one I finished this morning and is now up as well.

I came upon the song Dedicated Follower of Fashion by The Kinks again and it’s as if the song was written for Percy personally! The writers actually used the “they seek him here, they seek him there” line from the book The Scarlet Pimpernel. So, even if this song is about the 1960s fashion crowd, it is also a bit about Sir Percy. I’ve gotta say, I had a lot of fun making this one.

Although I also really like the 1930s Leslie Howard in the role…

… I have to say that Anthony Andrews is my fave Pimpernel, possibly helped by the fact that his beautiful fashion comes out so nicely in colour. No, I’m no follower of fashion, but I sure like looking at it on Sir Percy.

42 thoughts on “Follower of fashion”

      1. To me Esther Anthony is a guy blessed with a great physique and very animated face. I like his hands a lot
        Watching the you tube video on Love Boat ( my youth !!!!!) I think he’s having fun with the role albeit ill fated at the end 😥

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  2. Servetus

    There’s a scene toward the beginning of the latest “Emma” where they show Mr. Knightley in his bath and then dressing for a visit to the Woodhouses. The film is a very light satire of historical drama (inter alia) and so I think the scene is supposed to poke fun at all the historical drama films that show elaborate female dressing scenes, but I thought, “Hot damn! Finally someone shoots a scene like this for the women!”

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        1. I know you were looking forward to it (with potential reservations). I thought the light tone was really nice, which you don’t always see done well in Austen adaptations, and I liked the choice of Emma, the colours, the music — did you notice Maddy Prior was singing a lot of the songs?

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          1. Servetus

            In retrospect, I think I’d been dreading another Gwyneth Paltrow precious period piece too much. I did love the music (have we talked about Maddy Prior? I am a big fan of her and June Tabor’s recordings) and in fact went straight home and learned that Johnny Flynn, who wrote the closing song, also has a big music career. I also thought Anna Taylor-Joy was great (and also felt like there was a certain level of satire of Paltrow in her performance, probably completely unintentional). I had way more sympathy for Emma in this movie than I ever have had before. I felt like the rest of the casting was great, too, with the possible exception of Mia Goth. Just a great overall film and it probably went under in the whole wave of things that most people haven’t seen because of the virus situation.

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            1. Yes, we talked about Maddy Prior once – I used to listen to Steeleye Span. I paid to watch it at theatre prices at home because I couldn’t wait to see it — had to watch it twice to get my money’s worth, since the men in my house could not see themselves watching Austen, I too starting searching up Johnny Flynn afterwards. I agree that the Emma character was more sympathetic here as well – very well played. Theatres have opened up here, but I’m a little leery of going.

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              1. Servetus

                We have a cinema that’s open, too, but they haven’t shown anything I want to see and although I miss the cinema going experience, I don’t miss it enough to make it worthwhile to see the Harry Potter films again. I saw that “The Empire Strikes Back” was apparently the top grossing film in the US last week because that’s the kind of thing they’re showing now. I just can’t justify the risk in my mind.

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              3. Servetus

                IKR? I pay for Netflix and never have time to watch any of it. And I read another BOOK this week. Hopefully getting back into the groove.

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              5. Servetus

                I feel like between the political news, the virus, dad, and my job, my attention span is shot. I have a hard time mustering enough concentration to put together a meal at the moment! The book was only a mystery novel, but even so, it felt like a triumph to finish it.

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              6. I hear ya on the attention span, it’s been hit and miss for me too. While working, most of my attempted reading happened in the evenings and, besides the attention span, my eyes just can’t and I drift off to sleep.

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              7. Servetus

                What I miss about books (and I was reminded of this, this week) is how caught up I get in this alternate worlds. That doesn’t usually happen to me with movies. And of course, most of my visual media consumption is multi-tasking at the moment and that makes it even harder. Last night I turned off my computer and watched a whole episode of ST: TNG with no interruption — except commercials. It’s like they’re inviting me to get distracted.

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              10. My daughter and I did try the cinema a month ago (saw the movie The High Note) and seating was well-spaced plus it wasn’t busy. Wouldn’t have dared it in a big city cinema but in our town it was OK. Haven’t been since, though.

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              11. Servetus

                The thing is that (apart from the opera transmissions) most of the films I go to don’t have a big viewership anyway. Even before this it was not unusual for me to be one of a handful, or even the only person, in an auditorium. Our cinemas also have spacing, and apparently they disinfect the seats after every use, and the concessions are now done “contactless.” The problem for me is more the air, given what they’re starting to say about aerosolization of the virus. If people are eating, they’re in the building without masks for several hours.

                That said, if Richard Armitage were on screen, I would still be very tempted!

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        2. It’s so funny, I hear so many people say how much they loved it and I really, really didn’t. I have never liked Emma very muchto start with but still I didn’t expect to not enjoy it. It probably also had to do with Mr. Knightley, I really didn’t like him in this. I need to re-watch it, maybe it’ll improve for me on a second watch.
          There was a BBC TV series in 2009, that’s the only Emma I ever really did like (and I loved Jonny Lee Miller as Mr. Knightley in that).

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          1. Servetus

            I haven’t seen that one. I looked back at the cast of the 1996 Emma now and I don’t remember anyone apart from Paltrow from the film at all. I find it hard to like the character of Emma. What did you think of Clueless?

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              1. Servetus

                me, too. I think I saw that before I saw the Paltrow Emma. I remember my SO at the time, who had a mild crush on Paltrow, was really disappointed in the 1996 Emma. I wasn’t disappointed per se because I didn’t expect anything. But Clueless had been very entertaining.

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          2. Esther for what it’s worth I really disliked this Emma too. I love Miranda Hart (😉🤗) but she was hardly in it she Bill Nighy I adore he was the only bright spot in it. I’m not a fan of Paltrow at all but Emma circa 1996 was much better then this version
            I’ll have to look up Johnny Lee Miller version

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              1. See I had a crush on Jeremy Northam in Emma as Mr Knightley
                I loved his charm and that he’d rather stay home with his dogs!! That totally neon me over!!!
                Toni Collette was good and even Alan Cummings was funny

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              1. Oh you did really like it! You actually clued me in why I didn’t
                Like it especially Emma who I really didn’t like here
                Johnny Flynn was cute but not dashing
                I did like the costumes and the jewelry !

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  3. I love the video! Very well timed, especially the “They seek him here; they seek him there” in the middle. Good use of your vacation! I can’t believe you have a whole month off! Sounds like heaven.

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