MovieChat Forums > Flambards (1979) Discussion > Flambards Divided and a case for Mark

Flambards Divided and a case for Mark

posted 15 years ago by duckpancakes
16 replies | jump to latest

I have read a lot of comments by people who have said they don't want to read Flambards Divided because they want the story to end where this series does and they want to imagine Dick and Christina living happily ever after.

Well, I loved the last book. I thought it was a really good way of ending the story, with a bit of a twist. I always liked Mark more than Will or Dick because he is more human and I feel that he really is caring and loves Christina but has always been forced to hide it because of his father.

About Will and Mark's differences I often think the reason they turned out like did is because Will had more freedom as a child. There would have been a lot more pressure on Mark as the oldest which meant that from a very young age he would be forced by his father into becoming what he did- an unfeeling horse-man. But under this is his love for Christina and I felt sorry for him that she was so unfeeling about this.

Anyone else who liked Mark out there? For me he beats Dick and Will (especially in this mini-series where I think Will is rather unfeeling and is a worse character than in the books).

Remember that the mini-series is based on the book, not the other way round. Flambards Divided makes the story realistic and I believe it finishes the story in the way it should. Everything comes full circle.

[–] furienna 15 years ago

I'm sorry, but I think Mark is a complete jerk! Will and Dick are fine, but Mark just irks me. He got Violet pregnant and just smiled when his father threw her out to live the rest of her life as a fallen woman. He hardly even cared, when his father did all those terrible things, that he did over the years.

Yes, it's true! IMDB has reached Sweden!

[–] duckpancakes 15 years ago

True. He's not particularly a person I'd like to know but he's a good character. I can feel sympathy for him and he seems less bland than the others. He's a jerk but an interesting character.

[–] Weezzie 15 years ago

I liked Mark! I thought he was very witty and funny and attractive, and the story livened up quite a bit during his scenes. I felt sorry for him during the middle and latter parts of the series because it seemed he was trying to be more of a human being but people weren't really giving him a chance.

[–] stevem-26 15 years ago

Would someone sketch the plot of Flambards Divided?
It sounds like Dick and Christina don't stay together.
Thanks.

[–] duckpancakes 15 years ago

I read Flambards Divided quite a while ago so I can only remember the very basic outline of the plot.

SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER!

Mark has married Dorothy and Christina's back at Flambards with Dick. But Christina and Dick soon realise that they have different opinions and wants for life. Dick becomes unfriendly and spends his whole time out working while Christina's at the house. Dick doesn't like being "upper-class" now and sort of blames Christina. Also he wants her to be more of a good house-wife whereas Christina likes to take control and get stuck in with the farm. Meanwhile Mark and Dorothy aren't getting on too well either. Dick then had an affair with Clara, a servant at the house, who Dick feels more comfortable spending time with because her family aren't rich. Christina doesn't really mind becasue she knows the relationship has fallen apart and knows Dick will be happier with Clara. Mark and Christina fall in love (if they weren't already) and I think Mark and Dorothy divorce.
It ends with Christina riding back to Flambards happy becasue she thinks her future looks good and she and Mark have agreed to marry once the marriage laws have changed (so she can marry her dead husband's brother).

It was written a long time after the others and caused a lot of outrage because it changed the ending of the trilogy and some people were upset for political reasons apparently (I don't know what these reasons were but I would guess it would be to do with the class issues).
However I thought it was a better ending than at the end of the trilogy. Christina and Dick never seemed to work for me- he was too traditional and she was too head-strong. Dick could never have been master of Flambards. Also there was a nice tie-up of the story- the original reason Christina was sent to Flambards was so she could marry Mark and inherit Flambards. I thought it was very symbolic how, after all the trouble and fights and grief, they actually, against the odds, did marry after all. Christina says "there will never be anyone like Will" but she and Mark went back a long way and it was always obvious Mark loved Christina.
Also Mark and Dick were changed in the last book, but in a way that showed their true selves. Maybe Dick wasn't the lovely perfect husband for Christina after all- and maybe he never was? Dick's class pride gets in the way of his relationship with Christina whereas Mark finally shows how he is truely devoted to her. Mark decides to fight Dick one last time even though he has been beaten twice by him before but he does it for Christina when he discovers Dick cheating on her.

I just thought it was a shame the TV series was done before Flambards Divided was written. Perhaps they'll do a remake someday which does include it.

[–] Julie-30 15 years ago

A couple of things. First, if you have spoilers, you can use the spoiler tags. [ spoiler ] type your spoiler text here [ /spoiler ] only with no spaces between the brackets and the words spoiler and /spoiler. It will look like this: type your spoiler text here

Second, the book Flambards Divided was written AFTER the TV series was made, so there's no way it could have been part of the series. The series was first aired in the UK in February of 1979 (meaning that it was filmed in 1978), and the book Flambards Divided wasn't published until 1981. And, since I absolutely detested Flambards Divided, I'm very happy that it was never filmed.

[–] 15 years ago

[deleted]

[–] rdavies23 12 years ago

I haven't read the books.

In the television series, I think that Will came across as petulant and self-centred despite his liberal politics. I sensed no chemistry between him and Christina; I thought at the outset that they were going to be lifelong friends, and was surprised when their story developed differently.

I assume that Mark is the witty, physical, confident man whom women are supposed to swoon over, only to be be mistreated. For me, the casting let this character down; the actor was wooden, and played the role like a camp pantomime villain. Again, there was no spark between him and Christina. I'd like to have seen Nigel Havers, Simon Williams or Anthony Andrews in this role, so that the other dimensions of the character could have been explored. And yes, to answer the original question, I probably would have been on Team Mark if he had been played by a more suitable (in my view) actor.

[–] green064-235-696917 10 years ago

Actually, the Deceased Brother's Widow Marriage act was passed in 1921, so they only had a couple of years to wait.

[–] cadeuceus-1 15 years ago

06 May 09

Yes, I agree with you re Mark Russell. Admittedly narcissistic and seemingly unfeeling during the first episodes, he effects a notable change on his father's death and at his mustering into the Welsh Yeomanry in WWI. There is more than a little indication that he and Christina actually do care for the same things, although he is more attuned to that fact at the time than she. As you have given the fourth novel such a favourable review, I shall take it in and learn how everything finishes out. Yes, the thirteenth episode of the original series certainly gave the impression that there was still "unfinished business" left in the plot and storyline.

cadeuceus1

[–] scarletto_hare 15 years ago

I actually never liked Mark, but after reading Flambards Divided he sort of evolved. I started to like him. I mean I will always love Will he was my favourite and I never like Dick which i was proven right from Flambards Divided.

"The only Abnormality is the incapacity to love"

[–] Julie-30 15 years ago

I read Flambards Divided and didn't like it at all. It was written so many years after the first 3 books that the characters just don't ring true anymore. I never really thought that Dick and Christina would be perfect for each other, but I also don't think Mark deserved her. He's just such a prat.

[–] BikerBabePink 15 years ago

I thought Flambards Divided was quite realistic and true to the characters. Christina's relationship with Dick was based on more of a childhood crush, and their life experiences actually ended up making them more different. Mark, a product of his own life experiences, was a total scoundrel at first (gotta admit I like the bad boys!), but his experiences, especially during the war, softened him and made him grow up somewhat. He and Christina had a lot more in common than any of the other main characters, even early on. So it all made sense to me.

BikerBabePink

[–] martacamus 14 years ago

Thank you, thank you, thank you all for your wonderful opinions re: Flambards Divided. I FINALLY read it after ignoring it for about five years and after having devoured all the books in 1986 after having seen the entire series on PBS. Now, I have it on DVD and didn't WANT to read FD because I didn't want to spoil the ending.

When I read the part (you all know what I'm talking about) ... I absolutely CRIED!!! I'm 42 and was walking my dog in the park across the street and I actually started crying! I don't know if it was the demise of childhood fantasies (me playing the part of Christina and always having a thing for blondes), Dorothy and Mark's failure (they seemed so perfect for each other at the end) or the realization that Christina and Mark DO really DO work better together.

The general concensus is that Flambards Divided works and the one who said it all comes "full circle" is totally correct. I've even had it in my mind to write another sequel from the POV of Isobel or Tizzy. I feel sorry for them. First Mark's his Dad, then his Uncle and (presumably) ends up his Dad again. Geesh!!!

Love it or hate it ... it was the writer's baby. Conceived in love and brought forth to the world for enjoyment of all. Long Live Flambards and yes, please do a THOROUGH remake of the series. How about let's start a discussion of who would play what parts???

[–] lanaisverytall 14 years ago

I totally agree that Mark is the better choice. Dick is no fun, Mark has spunk and is charming and witty, even if he's kind of a jerk a lot of the series.

And oh my gosh! Will is completely unlikeable in the miniseries! I'm sooooo glad someone else feels that way as well! He seems barely interested in Christina once they run off from Flambards, he doesn't pay her or her desires any attention, it's all about his job, planes and the air field. He often acts like she's just annoying him by being around. Also, there is absolutely no chemistry between them at any point. They just seem like friends, and Will is just sort of lecturing Christina on how social class distinctions are bad all the time. I don't know how they expected the miniseries watchers to want them to stay together at all. In fact I found the whole middle portion of the series a complete bore because of the whole Will and Christina storyline.

Anyway, I'm all for Christina and Mark!

Did anyone read K.M. Peyton's book "Snowfall?" I literally get chills just thinking about it, it's so good. It's a bit similar, same time period, love triangle, strong-willed heroine, but instead of horses it's mountain climbing. It's awesome and I can not recommend it enough if you enjoyed the Flambard books.

[–] longhairedtoad 11 years ago

I always hated Dick, so having the relationship between Christina and Dick end was alright with me. He always too unbending in his manner to ever accept being husband to a rich woman whom he always thought was above him in status. I always felt he was more of a snob than Mark in his disdain for the rich and hierarchy of social classes.

Mark had a true emotional evolution in the book. From staring out as being narcissistic, brutish, he does evolve through his life experiences to be a more well rounded and likeable character. I hated him at first, his behavior during Violet's pregnancy reveal was disgusting, but grew to like him when he began to shed his arrogance. For instance, he recognized how much his father cruelly treated William during their childhood. This was especially noted during his father's funeral when he stands up for William. The war and the deaths of family members forced him to grow up.

William is my favorite of the three. I think many people judge him too harshly as being authoritative, especially around Christine. He does start as being the rebel type, turning his back against what his family has stood for, for several generations but I believe he does begin to change too. Unfortunately you don't get more of this transformation because he dies young. Mark was given a chance to evolve and grow, William did not.

"No one should write a book God wouldn't want to read."