Moray Watson

"The Darling Buds of May" paints an idyllic picture of 1950's rural England as seen through the lives of the Larkins, a farm family living in Kent. The show revolves around Pa Larkin (David Jason), a man of a kind and mischievous nature with a penchant for getting into scrapes and talking his way out of them with equal equanimity; and his daughters (including Catherine Zeta-Jones, in the role that launched her career), as they deal with growing up and discovering the joys and sorrows of young love.

The arrival of a young, well-off, eligible man named Mr. Bingley sends the Bennet household-with five girls of a marrying age-into a tizzy. But it's the introduction of Mr. Bingley's friend, Mr. Darcy, that sets in motion the fate of Elizabeth Bennet, resolved only after a labyrinth of social and personal complexities. This superb BBC adaptation from 1980 zips along, thanks to lively performances, fluid direction, and a keen grasp of the wit of Austen's dialogue and her satirical characters, who range from clever and kind to utterly odious. Due to its faithfulness and deep appreciation of the material, this five-episode miniseries stands up against any other film or television adaptation, though Rintoul may not sets hearts aflutter the way Colin Firth did in the also excellent 1995 miniseries.