It doesn't really tell an interested viewer anything they couldn't have found out from interviews and behind the scenes footage.

This is really what it says it is: a companion to the series.

That's more interesting to me than the first half, but a good bit of this stuff is already on behind the scenes features on the DVDs anyway, so wasn't new to me. The second half is more about the making of the series, in terms of logistic and practicalities of filming. There is some extra information in there, I suspect from the scripts and Gaskell herself - scenes that were cut and scenes from her stories, but no real deep focus on the themes. The first half of this retells and elaborates on the stories of the characters. I bought this for further insight into those things, but it isn't really a very in depth look at the production and themes of the series. I was really interested in how it was made, and particularly interested in the relationships between the women in the town. I've always really enjoyed the Gaskell adaptations the BBC made, and when the Cranford series came out, they were a phenomenon. With gorgeous photographs throughout from the series and the set, and intimate interviews with the cast and crew, this book is the must-have companion to a beloved miniseries, an exclusive entry to Cranford life, sure to be revisited for years to come. In The Cranford Companion, cocreators Sue Birtwistle and Susie Conklin give us an unprecedented insider look at the making of the instant-classic series - from the adaptation of the script, to the scouting of locations across the English countryside, to the breathtaking costumes. Its enthusiastic reception led to the extension of the series with Return to Cranford, based on Gaskell's short stories. Starring Dame Judi Dench and Dame Eileen Atkins, with a host of other remarkable talents, and based on three classic novels by Elizabeth Gaskell - Cranford, Mr Harrison's Confessions, and My Lady Ludlow - the series follows the residents of a fictional, nineteenth-century town in Cheshire, England.

When Cranford aired on PBS's Masterpiece Classics in 2008, it garnered critical praise from all corners, earned a devoted audience, and secured Emmy nominations in nearly every category, from writing and acting to costumes and hairstyling.

The cranford series books