We've asked the series producer, Caroline Ross Pirie lots of questions about how the programme was put together and what happened behind the scenes. Find out her answers...
What did you look for when choosing participants?
Were the participants scripted at all, or was it all ad-lib? How did they know how to behave?
What happened when the cameras weren't on the participants?
Was there anything interesting that we didn't get to see?
Did you think that the participants genuinely became more Regency in their behaviour as the project was underway?
How did you ensure historical veracity?
How long did the cameras film the participants each day?
What was the most difficult thing about filming the programme?
What are you most proud of about the programme?
How much contact did participants have with the outside world?
Are there any plans for a follow up program covering the characters adjustment back to the 21st century?
Did the participants enjoy their time in the house?
What did you look for when choosing participants?
The modern day equivalents of the people who feature in Jane Austen's popular novels - Pride and Prejudice, Northanger Abbey, Emma, Persuasion and Mansfield Park.
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Were the participants scripted at all, or was it all ad-lib? How did they know how to behave?
The participants were never scripted. They volunteered to experience life for 9 weeks at a Regency Country House Party and we recorded their responses to that experience as faithfully as we could. They all had to learn a different way of behaving and to this end each was given a Pocket Book, the Regency equivalent of a filofax, in which we detailed the kind of behaviour that was expected of them. It was up to each individual to decide the extent to which they would conform to Regency protocol and etiquette.
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What happened when the cameras weren't on the participants?
When the cameras weren't on the participants they generally carried on behaving just as they did when the cameras were on them. However there were times when each of the participants chose to be alone, either because they were not well or they needed privacy for reasons of their own.
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Was there anything interesting that we didn't get to see?
There were many interesting things which didn't make it to the final cuts of each of the programmes. For every 120 minutes of filmed material only one minute made it to the screen.
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Did you think that the participants genuinely became more Regency in their behaviour as the project was underway?
The Regency House environment had a profound effect on everyone who entered it so it would have been a strange person indeed who wasn't influenced to become more Regency over a period of nine weeks. But all the contributors were people of intelligence and integrity and they never ceased to question and interrogate the experience from a 21st century perspective.
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How did you ensure historical veracity?
We took advice from a large panel of historical consultants on everything from Regency sanitary arrangements to popular card games.
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How long did the cameras film the participants each day?
There was at least one 2 man camera crew (one cameraman one soundman) in the house for a minimum of 10 hours each day. Sometimes 2 crews were scheduled back to back. The house itself was equipped with three diary camera rooms for participants to use and the hermit had a camera for his own personal use - housed in a beehive near the hermitage. There was also a single roving footman with a domestic video camera in the house at all times.
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What was the most difficult thing about filming the programming?
There was no electricity in the Regency so lighting was always a problem. There were discreetly placed film lights on in the house at all times, but these were turned off when our party went to bed. When events kicked off after hours, footman cam had to struggle with wobbly candelabra and scalding wax in order to capture any nocturnal events on tape.
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What was the best thing about filming the programming?
Seeing how imaginatively our contributors responded to the challenge of playing the Regency mating game - and the flair with which they adapted to being Regency gentlefolk.
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What are you most proud of about the programme?
Their humour and the insights they give us as to what it was really like to live in the Regency - warts and all.
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How much contact did participants have with the outside world?
None - apart from their daily contact with production staff who were also -more or less - living the project. However, letter writing was a big thing in the Regency and most of the contributors kept up a regular correspondence with friends and family back in the 21st century - by post. Only in dire emergencies were they allowed out to call home.
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Are there any plans for a follow up program covering the characters adjustment back to the 21st century?
No
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Did the participants enjoy their time in the house?
Yes and no. On the whole Regency living was much more fun for men than women. Living with a chaperone has some advantages - but it also has its drawbacks - especially for women brought up to enjoy the freedom and independence women enjoy today.
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