The House of Eliott

The House Of Eliott, set in Britian in the 1920s, follows the drama of the two Eliott sisters in their journey from being poor relations with no position or future in society to being amongst the most celebrated fashion designers in London.

There is much motivating drama as the sisters are held back by the cruel legacy of their father and their condescending relatives. Through their determination and by meeting creative and Bohemian members of society they begin to express their creative talents and break free of the constrictive life they were intended to live.

The 1920s period setting is dressed up well and is played out as a time of change in attitude to clothing and the way women could express themselves. Of course the cruel English class system, as always, provides a good background to the drama, where the aristocracy are still ruling and putting others in their place. But the signs of the change in society, post World War I, are evident. The characters are bound by their reputation and many reputations are all ready established, newly made and destroyed during the series.

Stella Gonet plays Beatrice, the elder Eliott sister who suffered greatly under her fathers stern hand and who determinedly finds her lost freedom. Louise Lombard, plays Evagaline, younger by twelve years to Beatrice, who begins naively venturing into the world after her sheltered childhood and blossoms into a sophisticated, individual and unconventional women in society. Both actresses are well cast and develop their characters well as the series progresses.

Aden Gillet as Jack Maddox, the society photographer and eventual love interest in the show is another regular character. Barbara Jefford is a favourite as their snobby, stern but somehow sympathetic character of Aunt Lydia - constantly reminding the "girls" that reputation is everything. The sub-plots(particularly in series 1) are also very well developed. As well as Aunt Lydia, their is the charity worker Penelope Maddox and her attempts help the poor and bring justice and the some of the stories of the employees in the fashion house.Other characters develop as the series progresses and some are more effective than others.

Developed by the creators of Upstairs Downstairs(well known actresses Jean Marsh and Eileen Atkins) The House Of Elliot has good writing mostly good direction and acting and the journey of the Eliott sisters is a rewarding one to watch and re-watch.

The House of Eliott is a gem of a series largely due to the wonderful characters, great acting and writing, fabulous settings and exquisite costumes. The characters of Evangeline and Beatrice are really wonderful foils for one another. Supporting characters such as Jack, Tilly, Madge and company are also highly entertaining. It is very hard to not become quickly addicted to the House of Eliott. Even though it is set largely among the beautiful people of the 1920s, the House of Eliott manages to show how the other half lives, particularly when dealing with the Miners' Strike and the consequences for so many families. Now that it is out on DVD all the wonderful characters live again.

Designers on this show - costumes, sets, locations, cars, antiques, etc, must have felt like they'd died and gone to heaven. It was such a beautiful age. But thankfully House of Eliott, which developed a small but passionate fan base in the early 1990s, was also blessed with great storylines and had genuine heart. It was interesting to watch the intelligent two sisters, who were so different in personality, develop a fashion business from scratch, and when they did succeed, they enjoyed their success very much. Cue lots of lovely 1920s parties. Yes, it could be frivolous at times but it was always entertaining. And the cinematography was so lush that you felt like you were there in the room with the characters. Overall it was great escapism.

The House of Elliot is currently being shown each weekday evening on ITV3. I never saw it first time around in the early '90's - for some reason, it just did not appeal to me despite its original popularity. I'm glad I didn't see it actually because I would have been denied the great pleasure of seeing it for the first time now! All I can say is what a great programme it is. The likable characters soon have you completely involved in their trials and tribulations.If anyone is looking for great art, this is not it - however, it is an engaging, undemanding and enjoyable way to pass an hour's viewing. The period settings, costumes and attention to detail are fantastic - the show must have cost a fortune to make. Particularly impressive was the episode set in Paris, which was obviously filmed on location - all I can think was that the outside scenes must have been filmed at some unearthly hour in the morning when the city was quiet - however it was done it was an amazing feat! Well done to all concerned with this gem of a series.

I know people don't like negative reviews, but I bought the full series at quite a price and I am becoming sorry I did so.

This show has many attractive elements. I thoroughly enjoyed watching season 1.

The writing in Season 2 is dreadful. It is as if the original idea proposed by Jean Marsh and Eileen Atkins was all used up by the end of season 1. Every plot point is telegraphed; there are no surprises. The melodrama is cheesy without being delightfully so - the music is godawful. Many of the stories are disconnected from each other. One feels that the writers slammed their ideas together at high speed without reference to how real people would react were they part of these stories. Such a waste of such fine actors, such beautiful design and such a lovely concept. It is almost as though the writers don't believe in the characters and don't like them. I'm not sure I'm going to make it through to the end.