2.5 Enchanted April

For those who appreciate wisteria and sunshine... an advertisement
in a newspaper captures the attention of two constrained and
unhappy women from the London of the early 1920s: Lottie Wilkins
(Josie Lawrence) and Rose Arbuthnott (Miranda Richardson). Their
joint goal becomes this seemingly impossible holiday in Portofino,
Italy, and together with two guests, to share the financial burden,
Mrs Fisher (Joan Plowright) and Lady Caroline Dester (Polly Walker)
they make their dream a reality. Once there, all four women will
experience changes in their lives that none of them could have
foreseen during this truly enchanted April. Andy has always loved
this adaptation of the classic tale by Elizabeth Von Arnim while
Martin faces his perennial fear of another period costume drama.
However, once again, Martin discovers this piece to be a wonderful
surprise (one day he might actually start to trust Andy's
choices!). The pair discuss its themes of love and friendship,
magic, class, and choosing life, whether its the right length, and
if its more television or film. If you've not seen this 90 minutes
of uplifting character-led drama, which had its first TV showing in
1991, then we encourage you to track it down and discover the magic
of Portofino for yourself. We can both still smell the white
acacias even now.