Mr. Darcy, or should we say Colin Firth, appears to have a royal fan. The Duchess of Cornwall made a cheeky comment about the Oscar-winning actor on Wednesday while visiting Pride & Prejudice author Jane Austen’s former home in Chawton, Hampshire.
At the Hampshire cottage, which is an accredited museum, Camilla was shown the iconic white shirt that Colin, who played Mr. Darcy in the BBC adaptation of Jane’s classic 1813 novel, wore in the TV series.
“But he’s not in it, that’s a bit sad,” Camilla joked, according to HELLO!. Lizzie Dunford, director of Jane Austen’s House, replied: “I know, that’s sad, and it’s not quite as damp as it was.” However, the Duchess, 74, had a suggestion. “You could give it a good spray,” she said.
Just last week, Camilla shared that the protagonist of Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth Bennet, is a “heroine” of hers. During a Q&A at the new Meta offices in King’s Cross, Queen Elizabeth’s daughter-in-law said that Elizabeth was one of five literary characters she’d invited to a dinner party.
“I’d have the Count of Monte Cristo. And then I’d have two rather devious characters to spice up the whole thing. I’d have Mrs. Danvers, dressed in black, and then I’d have Count Fosco from The Woman in White. I think they’d cause quite a lot of trouble. I just wanted somebody a bit different,” Camilla said.
“Then I’d have another heroine of mine, Elizabeth Bennett. Just a good strong woman to keep the show on the road, so to speak. And then I’d have Uncle Matthew from the Pursuit of Love, probably with his entrenching tool to keep everybody under control,” the Duchess continued. “There are a lot more people I’d like to have, but I think that would be a very good mixture.”