Is The Pursuit of Love a true story?

16 May 2021, 14:31

Is The Pursuit of Love true and what book is it based on? Here's what we know about the new BBC drama...

If you love Bridgerton, the BBC has the perfect new period drama for you.

The Pursuit of Love follows the story of Linda Radlett as she goes on the hunt for her future husband.

Joined by her best friend and cousin Fanny Logan (Emily Beecham), Linda (Lily James) leaves behind her life in Oxfordshire in a bid to find true love.

But is The Pursuit of Love based on a true story? Here’s what we know...

Is The Pursuit of Love a true story?

No, The Pursuit of Love is not based on a true story and is fictional.

The Pursuit of Love - Trailer

The series is an adaptation of Nancy Mitford's novel of the same name which was published back in 1945.

Nancy also wrote two sequels called Love in a Cold Climate (1949) and Don't Tell Alfred (1960).

The trilogy is thought to be loosely based on events in author Nancy Mitford’s life before she married soldier Peter Rodd.

The history behind the book is very much real, as it is set during the interwar period between November 1918 and September 1939.

In the story, Linda travels to France to work with Spanish refugees in Perpignan during the Spanish Civil War, while the novel also addresses the London Blitz.

Speaking to the BBC, screenwriter, director and star of The Pursuit of Love, Emily Mortimer revealed she found the novel to be ‘still relevant’.

She said: "The experience of reading the novel is just as exciting in this day and age, and the book still feels quite shocking and radical.

"It’s quite bracing and liberating to read which is amazing as it was written in 1945. It is full of love and romance but it has an edge.

"To me, it felt cool and it feels like there is a place for this now. This isn’t just a dusty book from the 1940s, it feels relevant."

She added: "It’s still quite shocking and brave to read. There’s a searing honesty to the way Nancy Mitford writes and a lack of earnestness.

"It continues to feel like it’s got a bit of a punk rock soul. Anyone with that soul will enjoy it!"