‘It’s a big hairy epic’: a brilliant remake of one of the biggest TV dramas of all time | television

SSomewhere in the moors of West Yorkshire is what the team behind Woman of Substance has dubbed a ‘sex cave’. Here the heroine, Emma Hart, loses her virginity in the new film adaptation of Barbara Taylor Bradford. “It’s hidden and beautiful,” says show host Katherine Jeckways. “The lighting there almost looks like artificial intelligence, but it’s real. Strangely enough, it’s about a mile from my mother-in-law’s house. And I haven’t told her yet that it’s a sex cave!”

This is just one of many unusual locations for sex scenes featured on the show. “Oh my God, I know,” laughs Jessica Reynolds, who plays young Emma. “It’s not just the cave, there’s also a little love hut. The cave is the most picturesque location, with the sunlight coming through these arching rocks. I wonder if they used it in Wuthering Heights as well? If they didn’t, they should have.”

Thanks to Emerald Fennel’s reimagining of the Emily Brontë classic, breasts rising on the rolling Yorkshire hills are now very hot. Women of substance are duly characterized by a lot of old-fashioned fucking. “The show is not afraid of sex,” Reynolds says. “Neither does Emma. We had the most amazing intimacy coordinator and designed it for me and Ewan [Horrocks, who plays her aristocratic lover Edwin Fairley] It became very comfortable, and we were able to conjure up true romance. It’s exciting, but it also feels real for teenagers falling in love.

What will her friends and family think? “They’ve seen it all before,” shrugs the 27-year-old from County Down in Northern Ireland. “They saw Kneecap [the film in which she played rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh’s girlfriend, Georgia]So they have nothing to worry about. I find the sex scenes to be the least unnerving part of the job. As a woman, you grew up in a world where you were used to being looked at that way. The emotional scenes are even scarier. Compared to those sex scenes it’s an easy day. But menstrual clothing poses logistical challenges. “I can feel the weight of the patriarchy on me through the corset alone,” Reynolds laughs.

Brenda Blethyn, who plays older Emma, ​​was content to delegate the dirty stuff. “It’s very saucy, isn’t it?” laughs Blethen, who recently celebrated her 80th birthday. “I’m glad I left that for my younger self. And I think the audience will like it too!”

Taylor Bradford’s 1979 novel was a smash hit, selling 32 million copies. “I was very young, but everyone’s mothers were reading it,” Jaquis says. “I remember seeing it on every glass-topped bookshelf and coffee table.” “One of my best friends read it when we were teenagers,” adds co-writer Rowan Bardsley. “She was hiding him under her pillow because he was a bit lively.”

The eight new installments are not the first time A Woman of Substance has been adapted for television. The 1985 Emmy-nominated miniseries, starring Jenny Seagrove, Deborah Kerr and a fresh-faced Liam Neeson, received Channel 4’s highest ratings ever – 13.8 million viewers. More than 40 years later, it was re-produced by the same broadcaster.

The revival was announced shortly after Taylor Bradford died at the age of 91 in November 2024, but was given her blessing by the author. “I was very involved in the early discussions,” Jaquis says. “She was thrilled to have the film back on Channel 4 and was keen to continue filming it in Yorkshire. We heard her voice in our heads all the time, guiding us.”

This irresistible saga follows Emma’s rags-to-riches journey, from penniless teenage maid in 1911 to the richest woman in the world, as she gazes from a luxurious penthouse apartment in 1970s New York. “Emma Hart is a force of nature, and so is Barbara,” says Jacques. “I only met her via Zoom, because of the lockdown. She was in her amazing apartment overlooking Central Park and absolutely magical. It was 7am, but she was in full makeup, with perfect hair and jewellery. Behind her were these painted pictures of her dogs. They were everything you could hope for. Honoring her was a huge responsibility.”

The story also resonated with Blethyn, echoing her own background: “My mother was born in 1904 and became a maid in a large house. My father was the driver and that’s how they met. I loved hearing their stories, but they worked hard. My mother applied to become a lady’s maid. Unfortunately, she did not become the richest woman in the world like Emma Hart…”

After Emma is repeatedly wronged by the locals, her intense sense of injustice becomes a superpower. “Revenge is delicious,” Bardsley says. “Everyone has someone in their past that you think: I’ll show them. Emma gradually learns that the Fairley family has taken advantage of every member of her family. She fulfills the ultimate revenge fantasy by becoming the richest woman in the world.”

A drinkable bodice-ripped cue, full of lust and loss, warring siblings and family feuds. As Jakeways says: “It’s the kind of epic melodrama you don’t see on terrestrial TV anymore. It’ll make you laugh, cry, and hit the air.” “It feels like old-fashioned television. Triumph over adversity. It’s like a banquet to enjoy. A big epic with big hair,” Blethyn adds.

The show provides a much-needed dose of escapism. As Reynolds says: “Modern audiences love the past because today’s world is so treacherous.” Bardsley echoes this: “In the age we live in, you want something that draws you in, takes you on a journey and makes you forget what’s going on. Right now, wouldn’t you love to wear something and say ‘ah’?”

Jakeways’ acid test for her texts was whether they made her cry. “Catherine was crying by 11 a.m. every day,” Bardsley laughs. “It’s my version of the Paul Hollywood handshake,” shrugs the unrepentant Jackways. “Stamp of approval. If I don’t burst into tears by coffee time, it usually means something isn’t working.”

The result is Rivals meets Poldark, with a dash of Downton and Dynasty. “Those were all influences, but they were very much their own,” Jacques says. “It’s the story of a woman’s whole life, where she’s had many loves and lots of great sex. But it’s also about her determination to break out of the constraints of her upbringing. “The real love of Emma’s life is her work. We’ve talked about succession a lot, in terms of kids fighting over work. It’s like Logan Roy’s origin story, but gender flipped.

“Its uniqueness is that it’s told across two timelines. You get the majestic Yorkshire moors and the sweeping romance of young Emma. The huge bonus is that you also get the glamor of 1970s New York, and the camping and fun of late-era power-suited Emma. I find it really moving, seeing both sides of her life. Emma spans the 20th century, a period of incredible change, especially for women. She starts out with a horse and carriage, but ends up on a Concorde plane.”

It has been called “the original story of female empowerment” because Emma defies expectations. “She’s a feminist icon,” Jacques says. “A working-class woman breaking glass ceilings and moving beyond her roots. Rowan and I went to public schools. The social mobility element was really important to us.” Bardsley nodded: “Emma is routinely underestimated and ignored. She has to work 10 times harder to get to the next rung of the ladder. Most women can relate to that. Not only is this about a woman with relentless ambition, but our show is produced by women too. That’s still rare in TV drama.”

Casting was key. Reynolds shines in her first leading role, while Blethyn, an Oscar nominee, is usually great. “They really resemble each other,” Bardsley says. “Jess has a photo of her grandmother who looks a lot like Brenda. Brenda has a photo of her younger grandmother, who looks a lot like Jess. They’re even exactly the same height — which is an unusual height.” Both actors are 5 feet 1 inch tall, which was a boon for continuity.

When the two incarnations finally appeared face to face, it was a spine-tingling sensation. “They were never set at the same time,” says Jakeways. “But one day they met in the misty moors, both of them wearing costumes, and you couldn’t have written that. Their eyes met and the whole crew got goosebumps. I obviously cried. It felt like they were seeing ghosts, glimpses of each other’s past and future. They embraced and it was magical.”

“Facing the alleged future version of myself was a real moment,” Reynolds says. “Brenda has the energy and sass I wish I had when I was her age.” Blethyn returned the compliment, saying, “I’ve never seen anyone play a young man before. It’s a strange feeling, but I’m so proud of Jessica. Her performance is a breath of fresh air.”

Having played DCI Vera Stanhope on ITV for 14 years, Blethen has enjoyed her designer wardrobe. “It was lovely, to have the best of everything – and a nice change from Vera in her rags and rags. This dirty old machine of hers would have done the job alone. Vera was a part made in heaven. I never dreamed in my mid-sixties that I would be offered the role of such a sexy detective. Now, I’m playing the richest woman in the world, which is another welcome surprise.”

Remaking such a brutal hit is a risk. As Jakeways says: “On this day, it’s the highest-rated drama on Channel 4, so obviously there’s a bit of pressure there. But it’s legitimate to delve into it again and say: look how much has changed – and how much hasn’t changed.”

“The book and the original version of it were huge,” Blethyn says. “People were on buses or in cafes talking about it. It’s a different TV landscape now. There were only four channels back then, so we couldn’t get those viewing figures. I just hope it lives up to its predecessor. I want to be sitting on a train and hear someone say: ‘Here, did you see Woman of Substance last night?’ Wasn’t it good?

“Imagine if it was a huge hit and we ended up giving fans tours of the sex cave,” Jacques laughs. Bardsley says that would be appropriate: “This is what she would have wanted. Emma Hart is going to monetize this entire sex cave.”