THE Cranford COMPANION.

UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.[Complete number line 10-1.] FINE+/FINE+. No owner inscrptn, and no price-clip (£20.00) to dw/dj.Bright,crisp, clean,matt,colour photographic illustrated dw/dj,with grey+b/w lettering; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.Some very minor,almost imperceptible grazing - boards beneath unaffected - to rear panel of dw/dj panel.Top+fore-edges bright and clean; contents bright,tight, clean - pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners, appears unread - apart from my own collation.Bright,crisp,clean,sharp -cornered,publisher's original plain dark blue cloth boards with bright, crisp,blocked silver gilt letters to spine/backstrip,silver headband and immaculate double-page colour pictorial artwork,by Posy Simmond, illustrated endpapers.UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,9-219pp [paginated] includes 6 chapters/sections with profuse b/w+colour illus and photographs interspersed throughout the text and the book,named cast photograph,named crew list; plus [unpaginated] half-title page with scenic,colour photographic frntis to verso,title page with dedication to verso,contents list/table and double-page colour illustrated map of Cranford,by Posy Simmonds,named set locations, author's potted biographies,acknowledgemments and a final word.
It is the early 1840's,and Cranford,a picturesque Cheshire market town of some two thousand souls,is on the verge of great change.
While it is not a complete backwater - being on the coaching route from Chester to London - Cranford is a tranquil place.None of the town's most respectable inhabitants speak of money because that subject savours of trade and,though some might be poor,they feel compelled to keep up the appearance of gentility - they call it 'Elegant Economy'. Within these polite circles,an old-fashioned code of etiquette prevails,benignly enforced by the Amazons,the ladies of a certain age who are Cranford's unofficial moral guardians.Foremost among these pillars of the community are Miss Deborah and Miss Matty Jenkyns,Miss Octavia Pole and Mrs Forrester.
But whether the townsfolk like it or not, change is on the way,and it threatens the old order.The district's most aristocratic family, represented by Lady Ludlow at Hanbury Court,is already in decline.
Meanwhile,talented men and women from the lower classes are advancing due to the education that had previously been denied them.
Scientific ideas are driving the progress - a rigour underpins new medical practices,such as those of the forward-thinking Dr Harrison; while the recent invention of the steam engine is causing the globe to shrink drastically.Close to home,the imminent arrival of the railway - which will link Cranford to the dirty industrial metropolis of Manchester only fifteen miles away,and thence to the wider world - threatens to divide the community,and to alter its character for ever.
'The Cranford Companion' is an invitation into this charming town,an opportunity to make the full acquaintance of its inhabitants,and a unique chance to witness the creativity and the camaraderie that characterised the making of the BAFTA- and Emmy-award-winning series.
Co-creators Sue Birtwistle and Susie Conklin,who had previously collaborated on the BBC's acclaimed adaptations of 'Pride and Prejudice' and 'Wives and Daughters', document the challenges and delights of bringing Elizabeth Gaskell's much-loved Cranford stories to the screen.Perhaps the finest ensemble cast ever seen on British television was assembled - among them Judi Dench,Eileen Atkins, Francesca Annis,Michael Gambon,Philip Glenister,Julia McKenzie, Jonathan Pryce and Imelda Staunton - as well as a production team comprised of some of television's most talented creatives.
The limitations of filming on a tight budget and to a strict deadline meant that the spirit of 'Elegant Economy',so much a part of daily life in the fictional Cranford,had to be embraced in the production too. Quite apart from the logistical challenges posed by locations, costumes,machinery and rain,there were numerous sleights-of-hand to be pulled off: among them a train crash,deep snow in high summer, a candlelit operation,a magic show and a cow in pyjamas.The secrets of all these episodes,and more,are revealed within.With hundreds of photographs taken on- and off-set,illustrations by artist Posy Simmonds,contributions by the social historian Jenny Uglow,the script writer Heidi Thomas and dozens of key members of the cast and crew,'The Cranford Companion' is an unmissable treat,whether or not you have seen this enchanting series.
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