Former 'Call The Midwife' Star to Play 'The Other Bennet Sister'

It is a truth universally acknowledged (by those who are self-aware, at any rate) that every person is the hero of their own story. It's one reason the rise of the antihero in storytelling over the past few decades has resonated so strongly with audiences: the uncomfortable tension of having someone who is, at heart, a terrible person as the supposed protagonist to root for, who absolutely sees themselves as the good guy, and may even have valid emotional reasons for how they behave, even when their actions are absolutely rotten. 

That tension is at the heart of the 2020 best-seller by Janice Hadlow, The Other Bennet Sister, which takes Elizabeth Bennet's most antagonistic sister in Pride & Prejudice, Mary, and puts her and her snobbish, self-righteous priggery front and center, retelling Jane Austen's story of the Bennet sisters from her point of view instead. After all, who among us is willing to admit that, if it were 1813, we'd probably be much more like Mary than Lizzie? 

One actor apparently is proud to declare that she's always been a Mary: Ella Bruccoleri, who PBS fans will know best from her turn as Sister Francis in Call the Midwife from Season 8 to Season 11. Bruccoleri will lead the cast as Mary Bennet in the ten-episode series, adapted from Hadlow's novel, as part of the ongoing celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen's birth.

Here's the series/character synopsis:

Mary Bennet is the seemingly unremarkable and overlooked middle sister in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. The series takes as its premise that – when it comes to the Bennet sisters – while we dream of being Lizzy, in reality, most of us are more like Mary…

The series follows Mary as she steps out of her sisters’ shadows in search of her identity and purpose, finding herself in the middle of an epic love story. Her journey will see her leave her family home in Meryton for the soirees of Regency London and the peaks and vales of the Lake District, all in search of independence, self-love, and reinvention.

Unsurprisingly, considering the short turnaround between the announcement that BritBox was boarding as co-producer and this cast, Bruccoleri is the only casting currently confirmed. However, with filming planned to start in the coming weeks, we expect the rest of the Bennets (and supporting characters) to be announced sooner rather than later. 

That being said, the dedicated press release meant Bruccoleri got to include a heartfelt personal statement on her landing the lead role in such a highly anticipated project. “As someone who has always related more to Mary than Lizzy – something that was confirmed even more by reading Janice Hadlow’s brilliant novel – I feel incredibly lucky to be spending these next few months exploring her world in depth, as envisioned by these incredible women," she said. "Sarah Quintrell’s scripts are packed full of beautiful idiosyncratic detail, empathy, humour and such warmth... revealing that beneath Mary's awkwardness and formality, lies a woman longing for purpose and connection.”

Screenwriter Sarah Quintrell (His Dark Materials) wrote nine of the series' ten episodes, with Maddie Dai (We Were Dangerous) penning the other one. Quintrell also executive produces along with the novel’s author, Hadlow (who also happens to be a former BBC controller). The rest of the producing team includes Rebecca Ferguson for the BBC and Kate Crowther, Becca Kinder, & Jane Tranter for Bad Wolf. 

The Other Bennet Sister is expected to start production in the coming weeks and be released on the BBC in late 2025, followed by a debut on BritBox. Until then, all six episodes of the 1995 version of Pride & Prejudice are streaming on PBS Passport for members.