"The Other Bennet Sister" Stars

Added: 2026-05-12

[00:00:03][music] >> It was a massive hit on the BBC and brings the world of Jane Austen to a new audience. Based on the best-selling book The Other Bennet Sister, brings Mary Bennet, the often overlooked middle sibling from Pride and Prejudice, into the spotlight.

[00:00:21]Mary is wearing spectacles. Very good. I hope you find them most useful. I do, Father. But she is a woman. Potatoes, Mary.

[00:00:30]Here she couldn't see them.

[00:00:33]It is a [music] sad fact of life that if a young woman is unlucky enough to come into the world without expectations, she had better do all she can to ensure that she is beautiful.

[00:00:44]Or so my mother taught us.

[00:00:47]A daffodil might look plain next to a lily, but on its own there is much to be admired. Now I am tall and yellow. Get out and see the world outside of your family.

[00:01:00]We welcome the stars of The Other Bennet Sister, Ella Bruccoleri, Laurie, Donald Flynn, and Lori Davidson. Good morning to the three of you. This is such a fabulous show. You must all be so proud.

[00:01:12]Ella, let me start with you. This is incredible.

[00:01:16]Thank you, Helen. That's really lovely.

[00:01:18]I'm I've I'm very happy right now. I think it the way it was received in the UK has surpassed my expectations. So Yeah, anything I've ever been involved in. So it's lovely feeling. And you say it's not a romance. How would you describe it?

[00:01:33]I think it's disguised as a romance.

[00:01:35]>> Right.

[00:01:35]>> a lot of romantic energy and yearning in it. But I think it essentially is a love story between Mary and herself.

[00:01:44]Um it's her going on a journey, kind of figuring out who she is, and um making steps towards uh self-acceptance. And it's not linear for her. Um but she's got a lot of um potential potential suitors along the way. So yeah.

[00:02:01]>> them right next to you, which is awesome. Yeah, she starts out feeling unlovable and then really changes over time.

[00:02:09]Yes, I think she's she's it's it's a lot of it is quite cruel. She's She grows up believing that she's innately unlovable because um she's seen that she sees herself through the prism of her family's opinion of her. And her value kind of equates to her marriage ability through her mother's eyes. So she sees herself as oh, I'm not marriage material, therefore I must be unlovable.

[00:02:29]Right. Um and then as soon as she kind of removes herself from the that situation and goes to live in London and surrounds herself with new people, she the very things that she's told are her flaws become her charms. And the things that people are most attracted to within her. So yeah.

[00:02:45]>> [clears throat] >> I love it. Donald, talk to me about your character, Tom Heywood, and and what he's hoping to find in um in Mary.

[00:02:56]Well, I I think you know, we spoke earlier about I think one of the great qualities of the connections in this show is that they start from a place of friendship, which I think is it it is a really beautiful thing for both Ryder and for Heywood. And they meet Mary when she comes to London and I think they, you know, are so taken with her like um uniqueness and her ability to like express herself um and the way that she sees the world um and I you know, when we meet Mr. Heywood, he's also um in a understanding um as they would have called it at the time with uh Miss Baxter.

[00:03:42]>> [laughter] >> So I think any kind of affairs of the heart are made all the more complicated by that. Um but I think that speaks to how uh surprising it of a connection it is and how important it is for uh for Heywood as a character because I don't think he anticipates you know, um Mary like having such an incredible and and positive effect on him. And then I think it makes him question his his path in life and uh for the better. I love it. Um Laurie, Laurie, your character is so charming. I mean, how do you not love him from the second we see you on screen? Oh my goodness. But tell me about your character uh at William and and his place in uh Mary's world.

[00:04:31]Yeah, so so Ryder is is a is a free spirit and we find him um he he's he's sort of got a history of floating about between different careers and and love interests. And and then when he meets Mary, these this sort of he's someone who seems completely impervious to his charms. And he's completely disarmed by that. But rather than uh shy away from that, he's and that put him off. He's completely curious to know more about her and and it's what he finds so appealing because no one's um uh >> rejected him before.

[00:05:09]>> [laughter] >> No, but she he he I think it's I think that's what he's he's been yearning for is someone to to cut through the the the BS, basically. And and uh and Mary's is you know, because of she you know, we we she's she's very straightforward in in a way that's almost abrupt. That that they're they're in a a world where no one really says what they actually think. And Mary does and he's like, "Oh my god, this is the first person who's actually being incredibly honest." And it and it's so appealing. And and in that time uh he can't believe it and he just he his curiosity Yeah, how could you not be drawn to her?

[00:05:50]>> Yeah, they're so drawn to each other.

[00:05:54]Yeah, it's really it's a really fun connection. And and you like like like uh Don't >> [laughter] >> The guy's called [clears throat] Donald.

[00:06:01]Sorry, what one more time?

[00:06:04]I was going to say what I was going to say.

[00:06:06]>> [laughter] >> I cannot believe Sorry. We've got the giggles.

[00:06:12]Sorry, Helen. You know what? I did read that you guys giggle a lot on the set when you're not in in character and I absolutely love that. Folks are going to love this show. It really is it is absolutely wonderful. We want to tell everyone The Other Bennet Sister premieres on Wednesday on BritBox. Thank you all so much. Thank you.

[00:06:30]>> You are so talented, all three of you.

[00:06:32]So talented.

[00:06:33]>> [laughter] >> All right, we'll be right back with more AM Northwest. Don't go away.