Product Description

Mrs. Trotter, born Louisa Leyton, has already proven that she can take whatever life dishes out and remain in a class all her own. Having made her reputation as the best cook in London and proprietress of the city’s most elegant and discreet hotel, Louisa now faces even bigger challenges. When World War I breaks out, she opens the Bentinck’s doors to soldiers but never cashes their checks. Driven almost to ruin and facing unbearable loss, she survives to usher in the giddy post-war age.

Based on the true story of Rosa Lewis, a culinary genius and owner of London’s venerable Cavendish Hotel, this acclaimed BBC series dramatizes the life of an indomitable woman in stories full of humor and heart. Created by John Hawkesworth (Upstairs, Downstairs) and starring Gemma Jones (Bridget Jones’s Diary, Sense and Sensibility) as Louisa, and Christopher Cazenove (A Knight’s Tale, TV’s Dynasty) as Charlie, the dashing love of her life.

As seen on Masterpiece Theatre.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #33746 in DVD
• Brand: JONES,GEMMA
• Released on: 2006-08-15
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 5
• Dimensions: 1.05 pounds
• Running time: 829 minutes

Amazon.com
For devotees left hungry for more at the conclusion of The Duchess of Duke Street, Gemma Jones re-creates her signature role as the indomitable Louisa Trotter, the former scullery maid who left her mark on turn-of-the-century England as "the finest cook in London" and the reigning mistress of Hotel Bentinck, in the second set of this series. As her own mother remarks, Louisa "has done very well. She's moved up in the world." The Bentinck is no Fawlty Towers. Louisa, based on the real-life Rosa Lewis, the proprietor of the fashionable Cavendish Hotel, presides over her domain with a stiff-backed iron rule. She is, as one of her staff remarks, "a tough customer ... a woman with spirit." Throughout these 16 episodes, packaged in six volumes, both she and her employees will be severely tested. Louisa's troublemaking brother inspires mutiny among the devoted staff, and Louisa is besieged by mysterious love letters. Darkening the horizon is the deepening shadow of World War I. This long-sought sequel to one of Masterpiece Theatre's finest hours boasts the same impeccable production values and peerless ensemble acting. Make your reservation. --Donald Liebenson

Deseret News
The writing, directing, editing and performances are all first-rate. Like the best British programs, this one is addicting from the get-go, and both seasons are excellent.

Film Monthly
The Duchess of Duke Street evokes comparisons to the grand melodramas of Charles Dickens or Jane Austen with a hearty dash of Upstairs Downstairs.

Customer Reviews

One to revisit
Excellent chance to watch again a programme that truley shows the 2 tier system of victorian england.It is remarkable the indifference shown to those consisdered to be in the poorer classes and how they were manipluted,but with Louisa Trotter there was a difference,she plays the game to her on benefit,but never dening her past.Inter woven in these video's is a remarkable love story that if it were to happen to day,the ending would have been very different.Louisa Trotter is an example of what makes a hotel/cafe/restaurant a sucess,it is not just the product,but the charactor behind it that makes the difference. I have watched this several times and the attention to detail is excellent,even down to the cooking style that is true Victorian. Enjoy,perfect for a rainy afternoon.

One of the better series from Masterpiece Theater
The Duchess of Duke Street is loosly based on a real character, a woman who started out as a basic scullery maid, the lowest position in "service", and worked her way up to being a celebrated cook.She eventually bought her own hotel in London which was famous for its food and naughty reputation.The acting is top rate and so are the stories. It is an excellent illustration of class and society in general into the 1930s. It is also a touching reminder of what a horrific war WWI was and how it literally changed British society on every level. Highly recommended for winter evenings and rainy afternoons with a brandy or a glass of Mrs. Trotter's favorite champagne.

Magnificent...
If anything, this second series is even better than the first. You have to own the whole series to get the full effect: each time I watch, I notice something different.

Series II brings home the horrors of the World War and the often tragic, often humorous byproducts of the class system. While the lower classes were used and abused, the upper classes too faced restrictions...

The closing scene is near-perfect...

The only downside to the series is that it's unmatched. Upstairs Downstairs (at least the first season) doesn't move as quickly and the characters seem cardboard in comparison, at least to me. Only Brideshead Revisited comes close and that's a far gloomier story.