Overview: British aristocrat and writer Vita Sackville-West and diplomat Harold Nicolson married in 1913, and their love endured and deepened over the course of their 50 years together. Each, however, was knowingly and repeatedly unfaithful to the other, Vita most famously with fellow writer Virginia Woolf. But only one affair threatened their union: Vita’s tempestuous liaison with her childhood friend Violet Keppel. This BBC drama is the story of that affair based on the extraordinary literary biography by Nigel Nicolson, Vita and Harold’s son.

DVD Verdict: Luckily, I was there to tape it, but if you didn't see this when it came on PBS in 1992, you missed it for 14 years. I've been letting many a bisexual female friend borrow my copy, so I'm glad this is finally on DVD! As popular as the topic of female bisexuality is now, I'm really surprised the producers didn't make this decision sooner. There have been many films where one spouse comes out as gay ("Brokeback Mountain," "Making Love," and "Lianna" are examples). However, this was a rare description of a "lavender marriage" where both spouses are gay. This film may be revolutionary to see for couples that fit that description. This work was quite pioneering for its time. Cinema fans who love seeing women's narratives in Europe during the first half of the 20th Century will love this. Works such as "Tipping the Velvet", "Henry and June", and "Paris Was a Woman" came after this movie and may have copied elements of it. Just like "Brokeback Mountain," this film has a tragic conclusion (I haven't given up the plot, you'll have to see it to know what I mean). Since it portrays facts that really happened, I can't fault it much for the ending. Still, be prepared for a downer! Though Sackville-West had a romantic relationship with Virginia Woolf, it does not come up in this work. This is a Full Screen Presentation (4:3) and comes with the Special Features of:

Via Sackville-West Bio
Cast Filmographies