The Crimson Petal and the White

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A compelling Victorian tale of revenge, The Crimson Petal and the White tells the story of Sugar, an alluring and intelligent young prostitute. Sugar longs for a better life and when she secures the patronage of successful businessman William Rackham, she begins to hatch a scheme that will free her from her life in the slums. However, as their worlds become more entwined, Sugar's plans set in motion a series of events that will change both their lives forever. It is an engrossing drama with a twist that viewers will want to watch again and again. The DVD release comprises all four episodes as broadcast, plus exclusively; deleted scenes and in-depth interviews with: David M Thompson, Producer (Billy Elliot, The Other Boleyn Girl) Marc Munden, Director (The Devil's Whore, Vanity Fair) Lol Crawley - Director of Photography (Four Lions) Grant Montgomery - Designer (Shameless, Casanova, Sharpe) Jackie Fowler - Make-up (Sex, Drugs and RocknRoll, Harry Brown, Ironclad) Annie Symons - Costumer (Worried About The Boy, Criminal Justice, Crusoe) Contains subtitles. From .co.uk ----------- A four-part BBC mini series based on the novel by Michel Faber, The Crimson Petal and the White is set in Victorian London. At the heart of it is Sugar, a young prostitute on the lookout for a better life. Her path crosses with that of William Rackham, a businessman with no small measure of success, and events soon begin to spiral out of control. Sugar might just have a way out. Inevitably, the screen adaptation diverges from the exact plot of the book, but the quality of the screenwriting here is genuinely excellent. Added to that, the production values stretch the budget far beyond the norm. It’s a captivating drama. Spread across four episodes, The Crimson Petal and the White feels like a labour of love for those involved, not least the terrific cast. Headlining here are Romola Garai, brilliant as Sugar, and The I.T. Crowd’s Chris O’Dowd. In supporting roles, you’ll easily spot Richard E. Grant and Gillian Anderson, too. Overall, it’s a fine piece of work. The story is interesting, the adaptation is strong, and the execution of it very good indeed. And best of all, it shines a light on a terrific piece of literature, that deserves a wider audience. Both the book and TV series are both worth a purchase. --Jon Foster P.when('A').execute(function(A) { A.on('a:expander:toggle_description:toggle:collapse', function(data) { window.scroll(0, data.expander.$expander[0].offsetTop-100); }); }); Review ------ It's vicious, dreamy, taut, poetic, beautiful...utterly riveting... --Grazia It's beautifully done, raising the bar for other costume dramas and resonating long after the end. --Radio Times Mesmerising...As with all the best stories, nothing that happens next is predictable…Chris O'Dowd is nothing short of a revelation. --The Times See more ( javascript:void(0) )