Brideshead Revisited Collector's Edition DVD All 11 Episodes ITV

4.74.7 out of 5 stars

21 product ratings

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14 reviews

by jeffh100703 Apr, 2018

Great Series

Ever since I saw this series for the first time I have been hooked. Charles Ryder treads water in a river of dreary tiresome depressing people, there’s a lot of it about. The series starts in the army with his commanding officer, moves back in time to his Oxford days with his first friends which were the kind of thing he met in the sixth form. This is stated in lugubrious tones of resignation as if there was no alternative. They are a ghastly lot and then he meets Sebastian Flyte and discovers there is life after dreariness. They initially spend intensely happy magical days together until the darker side of Sebastian surfaces. We are the products of hard knocks and the trick is to rise above it which Sebastian succeeds in doing but is soon engulfed when his family appear on the scene. His hard knocks come from his family especially his mother. The mother is brilliantly played by Claire Bloom. She is a corrosive woman using the most powerful form of control, charm. Throw in that she is a conservative Catholic and we have a toxic mix. She attempts to woo Charles into her brand of religion using her most powerful weapon, charm. Sebastian and his family never quite go away as they weave their way into his life. I have a mentioned Claire Bloom but Andrews and Irons are great. In particular Gielgud is breathtaking. You are left in no doubt that no other actor could play these parts any better.Read full review

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by 2012lwatson6403 Jun, 2018

Very pleased with my purchase

I vaguely recall this being shown on TV when I was a teenager - didn't watch it at the time, but a friend recently recommended it, and I have to say, I'm glad they did! Watching it, I felt transported back in time. It isn't action packed drama - it is more about feelings and relationships, but I became very interested in all the characters, and found it relaxing but fascinating viewing. There are some very poignant / emotional scenes. It is also filmed in beautiful settings, which gave me a sense of escapism! There is a bit of narrative throughout the episodes, which helped me to understand the story and the characters more clearly.

As regards the quality of the actual product - the sound and picture were both excellent. Read full review

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by joeneunzig05 May, 2017

Nostalgia OD

Watching this series after some thirty years from the original viewing is almost an over-indulgence in nostalgia. 'Brideshead Revisted' is itself a work of nostalgia, looking back from the grim reality of WWII Britain to the halcyon days of Oxford in the twenties. These early episodes are much the best with Sebastian (Anthony Andrews) and Anthony Blanche (Nicholas Grace) in fine form. Later episodes, while good, tend to drag proceedings somewhat, especially the scenes where Julia (Diana Quick) wrestles with the complexities of her Catholic faith. The parting scene between her and Charles Ryder (Jeremy Irons) didn't therefore seem particularly convincing: one should be able to respond to it without being a Catholic. Evelyn Waugh was of course a Catholic, but his Catholicism seems to have been a private religion, one which only admits celebrants who are English aristocrats. Still the irreversible passing of this beautiful culture and its replacement by the world of Hoopers can be mourned by anyone of a conservative temperament.Read full review

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by 195058p09 Dec, 2020