They were one of the most notorious families to ever live in Britain – and yet many people remain unfamiliar with the story of the Mitford sisters.
Now, they’re being brought to life in the new U&Drama series Outrageous, adapted from Mary Lovell’s acclaimed biography, The Mitford Girls.
Written by Sarah Williams and directed by Joss Agnew and Ellie Heydon, the series tells the captivating true story of six sisters: Nancy, Pamela, Diana, Unity, Jessica and Deborah.
Bessie Carter stars as Nancy Mitford, the eldest daughter of parents Muv (Anna Chancellor) and Farve (James Purefoy), alongside Isobel Jesper Jones as Pamela, Joanna Vanderham as Diana, Shannon Watson as Unity, Zoe Brough as Jessica and Orla Hill as Deborah.
On-screen sisters
Bridgerton star Bessie Carter plays Nancy Mitford, the eldest daughter of the seven Mitford children who became a renowned novelist.
Drawing on her experiences of 1930s British high society, Nancy’s work became celebrated for its witty and satirical depictions of the English upper class. She famously penned the novels The Pursuit of Love (1945) and its sequel, Love in a Cold Climate (1949).
Though an only child herself, Bessie shared exclusively with HELLO! the unique experience of gaining five on-screen sisters during the show’s production.
“They’re all iconic,” she said of her fellow castmates. “They’re all so cool – so many of the Gen Zs. And I’m this, like, haggard, old millennial.”
Millennial or not, Bessie had no trouble building a strong sisterhood on set. The secret? Tesco picnics.
“One day, we had a gap in filming and I said: ‘Do you want to go on a school trip to Tesco?’ So we all went in our wigs, asked one of the drivers to take us all to Tescos and we got a picnic. And then we sat and ate our picnic outside.”
A true story stranger than fiction
While Nancy serves as the series’ narrator, Joanna Vanderham takes on the complex role of Diana, the third-eldest sister, who became known as “the most hated woman in England” after marrying British Fascist leader Sir Oswald Mosley.
© KEVIN BAKER, UKTV / BritBox / BBC Studios“What really attracted me to [the role], without knowing anything about the history, was the fact that it was about six women who all do this mad stuff,” Joanna said. “And because it’s based on a true story, it’s genuinely stranger than fiction. So I couldn’t wait to delve into it and portray a woman who is described as the most hated woman in Britain – when normally, I play the nice people. It was a real challenge for me.”
From the most hated sister to the most private, Isobel Jesper Jones found creative freedom in portraying Pamela, the “dark horse” of the family.
© Sally Mais, UKTV / BritBox / BBC Studios“I must admit I hadn’t heard of the Mitfords, let alone Pamela, so it was quite nice to be able to take a bit of artistic license with her,” said Isobel.
While Pamela went on to live a quiet life away from the media, her sister Unity made headlines as an admirer of Adolf Hitler, even forging a close relationship with the dictator. When Britain declared war on Germany, Unity attempted to take her life, and later died from her sustained injuries.
Speaking about her portrayal of such a controversial figure, Shannon Watson said: “I came into it without trying to put too much judgement on who she becomes and I read a lot of biographies about how she was very wild when she was a kid.
“Because she’s so confident within herself, there was a freedom to play something like that. I’m very inhibited as a person, so getting to contrast that was quite freeing,” she continued.
© KEVIN BAKEROn the other side of the political spectrum from her sisters Diana and Unity, Jessica Mitford ran away to join the communist cause, even taking part in the Spanish Civil War, before becoming a civil rights activist and journalist in America.
Reflecting on what it meant to bring the Mitford story to the screen, Zoe Brough, who plays Jessica, said: “These women became the front of politics and disagreed with the societal rules and agendas they had for us – and we just kind of put our middle fingers up to that really.”
© UKTV / BritBox / BBC StudiosAs for the youngest sister, Deborah – who became the Duchess of Devonshire – actress Orla Hill shared her enthusiasm for possibly continuing the Mitfords’ story.
“Everyone would love to see a second series,” she said. “It’s also a funny thing when it’s a historical drama because we all know what happens next.
“For me, Deborah’s life is only just starting out in series one – she’s 14 to 16, then she gets to come out in society and she’s partying with the Kennedys, and then she goes on to become a duchess. So for me, there would be some good clothes involved in a second series!”
All six episodes of Outrageous are available to watch on U and U&DRAMA from 19 June.
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