melaniecurtis This excellent television drama was only shown once so this release is very welcome. Watching this again in 2007 made me realise what a rare thing it is. It's actually quite brave and I can't remember seeing anything like it before or since it was shown. It's very well scripted and acted and it's extraordinary in terms of television drama. The other posts here give a good sense of the content. I just wanted to respond to the message of 7 November 2006.While I agree with the author's points about the the depiction of Violet Trefusis, this drama is based mainly on Nigel Nicolson's book which includes Vita's own memoir and it draws from Glendinning's biography of Vita as well as Harold's, Vita's and Violet's letters. Vita and Harold are in fuller view than Violet. For instance, we see them in the context of their immediate families but Violet is not contextualised. As far as I know, the producers took a hard decision not to complicate the story by adding more characters but, on the other hand, they concentrate on the affair with Violet and much of the rest of Nicolson's book is dumped. I do agree that Violet could have been drawn better (she fought hard at great cost for Vita) and I do feel that the exclusion of Violet's powerful mother, Alice Keppel (an Edwardian superstar) was a mistake. Nevertheless, the drama does an excellent job of bringing the main protagonists to life.Of course there is some taking of dramatic licence but not to the detriment of the almost Gothic story. The story is true to the sources and much dialogue is taken from the letters. Yes, there are sex scenes but I wouldn't say too many. Both Vita's and Violet's records testify to the physical side of their relationship and, after all, this was one of the drivers for their attempts to get out of the UK.As a result of my own viewing of the DVD, I felt compelled to find out more about Violet because I found her the most intriguing character -because of the absence of information. The drama does not tell us what happened next, we only see Vita and Harold going safely home. Anyone who is interested in Violet can find books available on Amazon - her life story makes for a compelling read (see Diana Souhami's biography); there are excellent books too on Vita and Harold (and all were authors in their own rights). Only Denys's story has yet to be told in any detail.

TMMVDS First I have to say that I have read everything about this subject and I know it inside out, and I was excited about finally seeing it, too. But you have to read only the book this mini-series is based on to realize that it's not the true story of what really happened almost 90 years ago. It's loosely based on the facts, the rest is taken from the scriptwriter's imagination. And unfortunately these changes are anything but successful and mostly totally unnecessary.Where do I begin? Vita and Violet didn't use the names Mitya and Lushka until their affair started, and during it Violet also called Vita Dmitri and Julian. It was Violet who chased Vita with a dagger when they were teenagers. The 'seduction' scene when their affair started Violet was much more passive than represented here and certainly didn't kiss Vita first. I could go on and on, these examples were all included when the series was only just started. Besides all these alterations from the facts, the characterizations are also all wrong. At times Vita behaves like a mad woman. Especially the scene where she saw from the newspaper Violet's engagement announcement is just ridiculous. Vita kept her surges of emotion inside. It was Violet who was temperamental and let her feelings (good or bad) show. All Vita did when she read it was that she nearly fainted, that's all. Being a gentle nature, Harold avoided confrontations in real life, but here he is sometimes pretty stern and accusing. Harold and Vita always discussed their intimate things in letters, not verbally. And Violet... I know that this series purposely concentrated on Vita and Harold, but that doesn't mean that all the other characters have to be mere puppets on the sidelines. Here she is totally one-dimensional character, and the lines gave to her are mostly embarrassingly shallow. Actually she was intelligent, gifted, quite an extraordinary woman who has rarely given the credit she deserves. I have always thought her much more interesting person than Vita. In this series her unhappiness, loneliness and her problems with her mother are totally ignored. Viewer has also little clue of her background and family, what kind of relation (and marriage) with Denys Trefusis she had or how hard she battled over Vita. Vita was the only love of her life, her raison d'etre, and if Harold suffered during affair, so did Violet. After it her life was in ruins, and it took time that she could pull herself back together again. Statue could have acted the role of Denys, that much depth his character has. Lady Sackville-West is just a badly drawn caricature; an annoying chatterbox with exaggerating french accent. The series ends to the totally badly written scene in Amiens, and that was the end of this affair, according to scriptwriter. No, it continued a whole year after that, and it's ending was much more lingering and sad than what was presented here. But what one cares about the stupid ending if the whole series has been stupid from the start. I have to give some credit to actors, they tried to make best of those roles given to them though Janet McTeer as Vita is the only one who really shines through. One can't complain the settings either. All complaints go to director and most of all, scriptwriter. Instead of insightful character studies, there are too many sex scenes and bland conversation. Many of the scenes are too long, some are pointless and don't bring anything to the story line. On the other hand many details are shortened or omitted altogether. Especially there should have been more information about Vita's and Violet's youth, and how their friendship developed. This is one fascinating story which would have deserved a much better adaptation. Maybe someday someone will do it. At the moment one can make much more of this story by reading the actual book or Violet's letters to Vita, which are brilliant stuff.

ISnoozy I have only seen this once and it was an unforgettable experience. This TV series on Masterpiece Theater pulled out all the stops and was an emotionally draining but fantastic and daring in its depth and depiction of homosexuality and all its complications. I would love to see this again.

northcdn This was such a good mini-series that it surprises me that it's never been on again!Based on the biography by Nigel Nicolson, it tells the true story of the marriage of his parents, Harold Nicolson and the author Vita Sackville-West, who carried on a long-term passionate love affair with Violet Keppel Trefusis. It is an absolutely convincing portrayal of a marriage that, although between two people who found most of their sexual release in homosexual contacts, was a loving partnership that far surpassed many conventional marriages. Janet McTeer is, of course, amazing and the scene between her and Cathryn Harrison (who plays Violet) when their relationship dissolves due to Violet's impending marriage is heart-breaking.Well worth watching - a very interesting story of an unconventional relationship. Now if only they would show it again!