This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n There are also roles in the cast for Baby Reindeer’s Jessica Gunning, Peep Show’s Paterson Joseph, and stage and screen legend Imelda Staunton, while Greg Wise \u2013 who starred as key character John Willoughby in the 1995 film \u2013 is back in a new role.<\/p>\n The drama is billed as a “riotous, rebellious period drama about female friendship, sexuality and liberation”, with Thompson saying she was “thrilled” to bring an “extraordinary drama” to life.<\/p>\n She added: “Their vision for the youngest Dashwood sister takes us from Austen\u2019s world into the more hidden parts of women\u2019s lives, parts that were not written about at the time, at least not openly.<\/p>\n “I think Austen would have been fascinated and delighted with the language and with the story, and gladdened by the desire to take one of her characters and give her a future and a big, unexpected voice.”<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Humphries said: “My first thought, when Audible asked for a take on Margaret Dashwood, was: Jane and Cassandra Austen never married. What if Margaret didn\u2019t want to either? The only way to honour Jane Austen was to do what she did: take the love story and push it somewhere new.<\/p>\n “This one\u2019s about liberation, class, queerness, and all the things that on Jane\u2019s 250th birthday we are still fighting to say out loud. Audible have assembled a true dream cast. I cannot wait for the world to hear them.”<\/p>\n This is the second major adaptation of Jane Austen to be announced by Audible in recent weeks, following news that a new version of Pride and Prejudice was set to be produced with an all-star cast led by Marisa Abela, Harris Dickinson and Glenn Close.<\/p>\n Emma Thompson.\u00a0Samir Hussein\/WireImage<\/p>\n It was also recently announced that a new film version of Sense and Sensibility<\/a> was in the works, with Daisy-Edgar Jones and The Sandman star Esm\u00e9 Creed-Miles<\/a> taking on the lead roles of Elinor and Marianne, played by Thompson and Kate Winslet in the previous big-screen adaptation.<\/p>\n The cast for the new version<\/a> also includes Outlander<\/a> star Caitr\u00edona Balfe as Elinor and Marianne’s mother Mrs Dashwood, Joan<\/a>‘s Frank Dillane as Marianne\u2019s initial love interest John Willoughby, and Killing Eve’s Fiona Shaw<\/a> as Mrs Jennings.<\/p>\n The official synopsis for Becoming Meg Dashwood reads: “Marriage is not for Margaret Dashwood. Where others see duty, Margaret sees entrapment and rage.<\/p>\n “But when an invitation from family friend Mrs Jennings hurls her into the chaotic heart of Covent Garden and Soho, Margaret discovers an intoxicating world beyond afternoon tea and polite society.<\/p>\n “Here she meets three women who live unapologetically: Nelly, an impulsive actress; Hester, a witch who works in the textile factory; and Inge, a sex worker who loves money and knows exactly how to get it.<\/p>\n “Here, Margaret\u2019s rage is celebrated, along with her musical talents, and in their fierce company she is reborn as Meg: artist, and woman of hidden fires.<\/p>\n “All four women dare to imagine a life dictated by pleasure, politics, and possibility. But such a life demands sacrifice. Especially when Meg\u2019s feelings for Nelly – tender, electric, terrifying – begin to deepen. How does one fall in love, when that love has no name?”<\/p>\n Check out more of our Audio<\/a> coverage or visit our TV Guide<\/a> and Streaming Guide<\/a> to find out what’s on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It’s understandable, then, that the star would continue to hold a special place in her heart for Austen’s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":37224,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[49,48,75,337],"class_list":["post-37223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-entertainment","tag-movies"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37223"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37223\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Emma](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-1465673362-2-e80372d.jpg\" "\\"GettyImages-1465673362-2\\"")
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