The stories we tell about the past can tell us a lot about what matters in the present. Nowhere is this clearer than the realm of historical fiction, where a battleground has emerged between those who want verisimilitude and those who prefer revisionism. Costume dramas may once have been the cosy province of dusty prudes, but recent streaming hits Persuasion and Bridgerton have divided viewers over liberties taken in an attempt to appeal to a younger – and very online – crowd.
Darcy may be austere, but he also swam naked in lakes and (according to direction given to Colin Firth) had a raging erection during a key scene with Elizabeth.
