Reading (town) at the time of Jane Austen

Did you know that Reading had a connection to Jane Austen? I had to change the title in case readers mistook "Reading" for the verb rather than the name of the town! In case you didn't know, the town of Reading is pronounced as "re-ding" rather than "reading". 

You may have read my blog about Abbey School from my first visit to Reading where I wrote about Jane's school experience here. From 1785-1786, for a short duration of 18 months, Jane Austen went to school in Reading, and her brief stint at school took place in the Abbey Gateway. 

The Abbey Gateway 

The Abbey Gateway is the former entrance into Reading Abbey, which was one of the largest, most significant monasteries in Europe in medieval times but now stands in ruins. 

Georgian buildings near the Abbey ruins. 

The Abbey ruins. 

The gateway was actually built in the medieval times to divide the monk's living quarters from the more public areas of the abbey, but the current building dates back to Tudor times. Jane is the most famous alumnus from this school, and I believe that Jane's experience of living so close to a gothic abbey sparked her imagination in her future writing, Northanger Abbey in particular. 

Gothic detail from the Gateway.

I visited the Abbey Gateway for a children's event with my children back in 2018, and it was so interesting to see the interiors of the Gateway where Jane's classroom was located. This year, marking Jane Austen 250, you can visit the classroom on certain days and see for yourself where Jane Austen went to school. 

Forbury Gardens with the Victorian Schoolhouse in the middle next to the Abbey ruins. Reading Gaol was behind the schoolhouse. 

The gateway is located opposite Forbury Gardens, which had been used as a "forbury" (i.e. borough in front) or an open land between the abbey and the town, and this open land was used for fairs for centuries, including when Jane Austen was here. The gardens now offer a gorgeous respite from the urban areas and a lovely place to stroll around. 

Between the abbey and the gardens, there is a Victorian building, Reading Gaol. This is where Oscar Wilde was famously imprisoned 1895-1897 for homosexual offences and where he wrote the poem, "Reading Gaol". 

St Laurence's Church. 

Jane would also have been familiar with St Laurence's Church, which was situated on the same road, past Forbury Gardens. This church was also built in the Norman times but has been rebuilt in the 15th and 19th Centuries. St Laurence's Church was one of the original three churches serving the Reading borough from the medieval times, but had a larger significance due to its close location to the abbey, which stimulated trade in the area. 

Reading marketplace. 

Reading marketplace in front of the church was established by the abbey monks and was used for markets for hundreds of years and, as you can see, is still used today. 

The Simeon monument. 

Jane Austen would have been familiar with this marketplace, but she wouldn't have seen the Simeon monument in the middle of the marketplace, which was built a couple of decades later, in 1804. This monument was funded by Edward Simeon, director of the Bank of England, and created by none other than Sir John Soane, who designed the stunning Bank of England building in London. 

George Hotel on the left. 

The stunning George Hotel on King's Street always catches my eye when I visit Reading. George Hotel was one of the busiest coaching inns between London and the West Country during Georgian times, and a few decades later Charles Dickens stayed here during his public reading tours. Reading in Reading, what a delightful thought indeed!

Are you aware of any other buildings in Reading that might have been there during Jane Austen's times? Do share in the comments if you know more!

Further reading in my blog: 

My first peek of the Abbey Gateway: https://austenised.blogspot.com/2010/08/peek-of-abbey-school.html

My visit to the Gateway and Jane Austen's classroom: https://austenised.blogspot.com/2018/06/inside-jane-austens-school.html

My visit to Reading Abbey: https://austenised.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-abbey-that-sparked-young-jane.html

To visit the Abbey Gateway, click here: https://www.visit-reading.com/whats-on/jane-austen-in-reading/visit-jane-austens-schoolroom

My Thoughts on the Long-awaited "Miss Austen"

Finally the long-awaited adaptation of Gill Hornby's "Miss Austen" is out! The new mini-series aired on BBC this week, and many Janeites have been glued to the screens, excited to see Jane and her sister Cassandra come to life in this biopic. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching this adaptation and thought I would share my thoughts on the series, whilst it is still fresh in my mind. 

 Young Cassandra Austen played by Synnove Carlsen. 

You might remember my earlier post where I shared my trip to Kintbury after reading "Miss Austen" by Hornby.  It was lovely to walk around the quaint village where Cassandra Austen stayed with the Fowle family at their home, Kintbury Rectory, where Hornby now lives and where she was inspired to write the novel. 

As I mentioned, the novel explores Cassandra's connection to Kintbury but also her possible motives for destroying a bulk of Jane's letters - a huge loss to us Austen historians. 

Mature Cassandra in front of Chawton Cottage played by Keeley Hawes.

I've recently been quite disappointed by the quality of many of the Austen adaptations, which haven't followed the period style either in manners, fashions or historical detail. The recent Netflix version of Persuasion certainly divided opinions, and I  haven't able to watch it again after the first time, as I found it too cringey. Becoming Jane, the Austen biopic with Anne Hathaway, was another one that took too many liberties to my liking. Therefore I was delighted to see this story being produced in a more realistic style more true to historical detail (albeit a work of fiction!). 

Jane and Cassandra 

It's wonderful to see Cassandra come into life in this biopic and to see the depth of her character and the closeness of the sisters' relationship more than in previous films. 

Mature Cassandra (Keeley Hawes)

Keeley Hawes, who I am partial to, portrays the mature Cassandra Austen beautifully with so much emotion. 

Jane (Patsy Ferran)

Similarly, the casting of Jane Austen as Patsy Ferran (above) is spot on - this is how I imagine Jane - petite and brown-eyed, feisty, playful and witty. 

Patsy captures Jane's lively personality beautifully and the gradual decline in her mood and health as the story progresses (yet again, the historical detail!). 

Moving depiction of Jane's depression in Bath. 

The casting of most of the other characters is excellent. Mary Austen comes to life brilliantly as the irritable, undiplomatic Mary Austen (Liv Hill/Jessica Hynes), and the Austen brothers are excellent choices as well. 

Hubert Burton as Henry Austen 

I enjoyed watching the part where Jane is proposed by the socially awkward Harris Bigg-Wither, whose offer of marriage Jane accepted but turned down overnight - his personality is wonderfully portrayed here. 

Tom Glenister as the painfully shy Harris Bigg-Wither. 

I was somewhat disappointed by Phyllis Logan's rendition of Mrs Austen, however, who seems more like Mrs Hughes than Mrs Austen - the historical Mrs Austen comes across as rather a big personality (as matriarch of the family) and as someone with dramatic, hypochondriac tendencies. 

Mrs Austen (Phyllis Logan) and Mr Austen (Kevin McNally). 

Tom Fowle (Calam Lynch), Cassandra's fiancee, reminds me of Willoughby (played by Greg Wise)!

Tom Fowle (Calam Lynch)

What disturbed me slightly about this story is the choice to portray Henry Hobday (Max Irons) as Cassandra's love interest in Sidmouth. 

Max Irons as Henry Hobday

I have always imagined Sidmouth to have been the place where Jane allegedly met the love of her life, and this storyline is entirely fictional and results in further grief for Cassandra Austen. 

Miss Austen is essentially a story about grief, which really comes through in this adaptation. 

Cassandra by Jane's deathbed. 

The series is beautifully shot and there are many cinematographically stunning shots in carefully designed sets and locations. The candlelight hue in most of the indoor scenes seems realistic, as rooms would have been darker in Jane Austen's times. 

The story highlights the lack of choices that unmarried women faced in the early 19th Century and how they were at the mercy of their husbands and brothers - and this is the story of Jane Austen, too. As an Austenite, I loved seeing this story come to life, but I am unsure of how a non-connoisseur would receive this series - would it captivate them or would they get bored? Knowing the background and recognising all the characters certainly helps. Do let me know what you think in the comments. 

I had the pleasure of watching a speech by Gill Hornby at the Regency Picnic in Chawton in 2023, where Gill talked about her upcoming novel about Jane's Niece, Fanny Knatchbull. I look forward to reading her next novel. 

Gill Hornby in at the Regency Picnic in Chawton (2023). 

Do have a look at my photos from Kintbury here: 

Austenised: Following "Miss Austen's" Footsteps Through Historic Kintbury