Pride and Prejudice: Fiona Shaw will be playing Lady Catherine de Bourgh in the Jane Austen adaptation

Pride and Prejudice, one of the most celebrated novels by Jane Austen, is getting adapted into a six-part Netflix television series. While many adaptations of the 1813 novel, including the 2005 film starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen, have been produced in the past, the story is still popular due to its themes of love, family, money, power, pride, and prejudice, which are still relevant today.

The Pride and Prejudice show, directed by Euros Lyn, is currently under production. While initially only three cast members were announced by Netflix, more cast members have been announced recently. Among them is Fiona Shaw, who will be playing Lady Catherine de Bourgh in the upcoming Pride and Prejudice series.

Fiona Shaw is cast in Pride and Prejudice

The upcoming series is an adaptation of Jane Austen's novel of the same name, which was her second published novel but the third one she wrote. It was published in 1813 and is still a popular novel two centuries later.

The novel follows the Bennet family, who are facing a grave issue of inheritance. The problem lies in the fact that only a male relative of Mr. Bennet can inherit the Longbourn estate in Hertfordshire. Thus, due to him having five daughters and no sons, one of his daughters needs to get married to a suitable man to make sure the rest of the family is supported if or when Mr. Bennet dies.

The novel explores the love story of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet, the second eldest daughter of the Bennet family, as they initially cannot stand one another due to their respective 'pride' and 'prejudice,' but eventually fall in love helplessly.

The very first line of the novel sets the tone for the rest of the story:

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."

The upcoming Netflix series will be based on this story. Dolly Alderton has written the screenplay, while Euros Lyn directs and Lisa Osborne produces.

Recently, Netflix has announced that Irish actress Fiona Shaw, who is widely popular for playing Petunia Dursley in the Harry Potter films (2001-2010), Carolyn Martens in Killing Eve (2018-2022), and Marva Andor in Andor season one (2022), has been cast as Lady Catherine de Bourgh in the Pride and Prejudice series.

This isn't Fiona Shaw's first or last time playing a role in a Jane Austen adaptation. She has previously played Mrs. Croft in Persuasion (1995) and is also set to play Mrs. Jennings in the upcoming Sense and Sensibility film directed by Georgia Oakley.

In Pride and Prejudice, Fiona Shaw is playing a complex and, dare we say, not much-liked character. Lady Catherine is the maternal aunt of Mr. Darcy and was played by Judi Dench in the 2005 film. She is the daughter of an earl and married into a family of high status as well.

That made her think less of Elizabeth due to her not belonging to nobility, and she did not consider her to be a good match for her nephew, Mr. Darcy. Besides, she wanted Mr. Darcy to marry her daughter, Anne de Bourgh. In the novel and in the film, Lady Catherine has tried to foil the relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy, but without any success. It'll be interesting to see how Shaw plays the character.

The rest of the cast for Pride and Prejudice includes Emma Corrin as Elizabeth Bennet, Jack Lowden as Mr. Darcy, Olivia Colman as Mrs. Bennet, Rufus Sewell as Mr. Bennet, Freya Mavor as Jane Bennet, Jamie Demetriou as Mr. Collins, Daryl McCormack as Mr. Bingley, Rhea Norwood as Lydia Bennet, Siena Kelly as Caroline Bingley, Hopey Parish as Mary Bennet, Hollie Avery as Kitty Bennet, and Louis Partridge as Mr. Wickham.

The show is being executive produced by Dolly Alderton, Euros Lyn, Laura Lankester, Will Johnston, Emma Corrin, and Louise Mutter, who is representing the production company Lookout Point.

The show is currently being filmed in the UK. Netflix has yet to announce the release date. Stay tuned for more information.

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