#anne lister from gentleman jack i guess?

[handsome-girl-competition]

Ik this poll is long over but I thought you would appreciate handsome girl recs! Not sure if this came up in the poll bit it didn't show up in search so.

I added this webtoon to my subscriptions ages ago but only just got to it... Nevermore is about a dashing rogue who ends up in a sort of halfway place between the land of the living and the land of the dead. When she arrives sans-memory, she meets a beautiful, elegant woman with whom she has an instant connection. Lots of games with life or death stakes ensue! Both Lenore and her love interest are very smart (in different ways).

Anyway Lenore is so brave and heroic, while also being impulsive and reckless (but also extremely lucky so it works). her outfit looks like 19th century riding clothes and gothic romantic. And she is so handsome. I love her hair.

(Also if you know any other handsome women who are specifically like period drama gentlemen but women let me know. I love that vibe).

oh she looks good... i gotta read this

[thethirdromana]

Let’s talk about sex, baby

A few of the notes on my post suggesting that Van Helsing might suspect Lucy of having been pregnant referred to how prudish and repressed Victorians are. So I thought I’d look into just how likely it is that Lucy might have had sex before marriage.

I’m not an expert in this by any means, just someone with access to Google, so I’d welcome any corrections.

Premarital sex in Victorian times

TL;DR: they did it.

The 1890s have retrospectively been dubbed the “Naughty Nineties” [1] because of lax sexual morals, but in fact Mina and Lucy’s generation were less likely to have sex outside of marriage than their parents or grandparents.

The easiest way to check this is through the best evidence that people are having sex – babies. (Doesn’t help much with gay sex, admittedly).

In the 1840s, 7% of births were outside wedlock, and around a third of women were pregnant when they got married. But by the 1890s, illegitimate births had declined to just 4%. [2] That’s a similar level to the 1930s, when 23% of women were pregnant when they got married. [3] So it might be fair to assume that the 1890s was about the same.

What I find interesting about this is that the number of illegitimate births is so much lower than the number of women pregnant at the altar (and the number of women having illegitimate children is probably lower still, assuming the same women might have multiple children out of wedlock).

To me that seems to suggest that most men, learning they had got a woman pregnant, would marry her – and a lot of premarital sex, perhaps most, happened between couples who intended to marry anyway.

But there would also be plenty of sex happening that didn’t result in conception. Birth rates fell significantly during Victorian times [4] in part because people knew about and used different means of birth control. [5] Maybe even a majority of couples in 1890s England had sex before they got married.

The upper and middle classes

Things were different depending on which class of Victorian society you were in. ‘Refined’ women of the upper and middle classes were much more restricted than working class women [6] and it’s likely that the vast majority of those premarital pregnancies were among the working class. Around 70% of British people were working class, 25% middle class and the remainder upper class. [7]

Mina and Jonathan are middle class, but Lucy is marrying into the upper class. As a result she’s chaperoned by her mother most of the time (while Mina is free to travel to Budapest by herself), though there have been instances in the novel already where she’s been left unchaperoned. And of course being chaperoned around men didn’t stop women from having sex with other women, as the diaries of Anne Lister, an upper-class lesbian in the early 19th century, recorded [8] – that’s the story told in Gentleman Jack. 

So Lucy being pregnant is unlikely – but not at all impossible.

Prostitution

Women were expected to be virgins on their wedding night; men, regardless of class, weren’t. The difference was that it was normal for men to use prostitutes. [9] It’s not clear how many prostitutes there were – it looks like the widely-quoted figure of 80,000 is an exaggeration [10] but the London police claimed to know of 8,600 [11] which is probably a reasonable minimum.

That’s 0.4% of the population of London at the time; about 4x as many sex workers per head of population as there are in the UK today. [12] So I'd guess at least 1 in 100 women in London were involved in sex work in the 1890s.

Bram Stoker

… is known to have had a sexless or nearly sexless marriage and it’s widely theorised that’s because he was gay – he certainly wrote some pretty romantic things about Walt Whitman. [13] I don’t really have much to say about this but I felt like I ought to include it.  

Link to sources

[iredreamer]

Dear Irene, watching Series 2 has not been a good experience for me not only because of the show but bc of the fandom as well. The amount of times I saw people publicly fantasize about physical and emotional violence toward Anne deeply disturbed me, at the same time I feel that the fandom lacks any understanding for Anne's position in society as a women and a lesbian. You are one of the very few blogs who remained levelheaded and fair toward her. Thank you so much for that. It saved me.

Hello friend. I'm sorry to read that you didn't have a great experence with series 2, or the fandom. I usually enter tumblr to post and don't really read the Gentleman Jack tag, but I came across quite a lot of people that seem to have had your same experience – I guess I just want to share with you that you are not alone in this.

Because I don't really go looking for GJ content I never came across people publicly fantasize about physical and emotional violence toward Anne, thankfully. I'm sorry that you did. I read a lot of very simplistic takes on Anne, yes, and came across a lot of wanting-to-be funny posts about her that were quite derogatory in nature. I'm not a fan of all that and I don't like to engage with that type of content, so I try to stay away from it.

I'm happy to read that my blog is a sort of safe place for you. I'll always try to share good vibes and I'll always be kind to Anne Lister, what she did and achived as a woman and a lesbian in a 19th century society is remarkble and that will never change, despite what random peeps on the internet say.

A heartfelt advice: try to not give too much credit to what random strangers write on the internet. Find few people who write good reviews, who know how to write well argued criticism and who really analyse the content they discuss, and stick with them – and stop following them if they start making content that upsets you in any way, it's not worth it.

[scobbe]

I loved how the third episode of this season of Gentleman Jack opened with her reading/writing what I assume was an actual journal entry of Anne Lister’s, and she mentioned prayers in the morning and at 12:15, as well as I’m guessing going to Mass around 2. I’m assuming the morning prayer was Morning Prayer, and just looked at my Prayer Book and thought, “She had a Prayer Book, too - Anne Lister had a Prayer Book just like me.”

A little different from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church, I’m sure, but I also have a copy of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer from The Church of England, which would have been in use then (and is still in use today) and the prayers are the same, word for word with our Rite I. I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately, the thread of connection throughout history via these words, this theology, which is precious when you’re someone who has felt disconnected for a long time. But Anne Lister, reciting the same words I read with our priest every morning? That’s special.

[the-gay-prometheus]

Can we get a 2, 3, 11, 26 and 45 for Jack, the queen, the absolute madlad(lass)?

,,,How did I know *wheeze*

2 and 3. Relationship with her mother/father

>Jack had a great relationship with her mother and father! I guess we kinda need to dig into some backstory... so... might as well answer both 2 and 3 together and also tell her entire childhood story because why the hell not.

You can jot down that her place of origin was West Yorkshire, specifically in Shibden under tenancy of Shibden hall. Those of you who are aware of a certain person named Anne Lister will likely recognize this place, and yes I absolutely got the name Jack from "Gentleman Jack." Unfortunately Anne Lister wasn't even born until long after this Jack would have left, so the two never would have chanced to meet.

Her mother, Camellia Smith-Wyndham, and her father, Benjamin Wyndham, were tenants of Shibden farmland, specifically shepherds that raised sheep for wool. Jack was born as Sylvia Wyndham, and was an only child. She never really grew up with gender roles, her parents shared most of the work anyways, and pretty dresses weren't exactly great for helping tend to livestock, so she was always pretty masculine and neither of her parents minded so long as she helped them to get work done. Unfortunately, when Jack was about 10 years old, her father up and left. Yep. Just up and left with absolutely no warning - which seemed odd, because despite being often exhausted from work and worried about keeping the tenancy, he was a genuinely good dad who she was very close to! He was the one that inspired her love of stories and fascinations with mythical creatures, and also her interest in sailing since his own father was a sailor before retiring and acquiring a tenancy at Shibden. The truth was Benjamin had been unhappy - he didn't really love Camellia - not romantically anyways, but the two of them had been arranged in marriage and that just was the way it was. So despite loving his daughter very much, the moment he happened upon the opportunity to join a whaling crew while out in town one day, he up and left and never came back. Camellia and Jack were then forced to continue the work there on their own. While her father was the one to fill her head with stories and aspirations, her mother was always there to keep her grounded while still encouraging her to always be bold and speak up for herself. As soon as it was discovered that they were without a man in the family, though, they were kicked out of the tenancy and replaced. And thus, they moved to Scarborough. While Camellia worked on, well, finding work, Jack spent most of her time by the docks with the fishermen, who were amused by the way she acted and dressed and gladly accepted her company if not just to laugh at her. It was actually here that she gained the name Jack, as that's what the fishermen started to call her since she "might as well have been a man anyhow."

Unfortunately, her mother soon died of disease - I won't say what disease - and Jack was left to her own devices. She decided at that point that, considering she already dressed like a man and vaguely looked like a man and sounded like a young man, she might as well just be one if it meant finding work in her area of interest. Well - problem was that practically everyone in Scarborough knew she was actually a woman, but a few of the fishermen who took pity on her for her troubles decided she could get a job in repairing their sails since... "well women are good at sewing, right?" Turns out, she was actually damn good at it, and not only that, but she really enjoyed the work! She became fascinated by how something so simple as a big ol' piece of cloth could make such a difference in sailing, and it pretty much became her hyperfixation. Point is, she got so damn good at it that some of the fishermen recommended she travel down to London and come up with a full alias for herself so she could work as a sailmaker for much bigger ships.

And that's what she did! She became Jack Corbyn, and moved to London where she eventually became a sailmaker for the Royal Naval Dockyards, making and repairing sails for Navy ships. She worked there for a few years until she ended up getting kicked out (luckily only kicked out and not worse) after somebody who had discovered she was a woman made the mistake of threatening her and she may or may not have accidentally or maybe not so accidentally gotten him killed. She ended up moving down to work at the Chatham Dockyard, but everyone hated her there thanks to her very abrasive personality and she hated everyone there too! And uh. Well eventually finds her way to a certain sailor we all know and love.

And that's her whole life story! Bet you weren't expecting that.

11. Most afraid she's ever been

> Oh - oh you thought this would be about her scar? Hah. She likes to make everyone think the scar came from something scary but... actually it came from an accident involving a tree, a sword, and an ornery ram named Brian. Nothing scary, more embarrassing than anything.

The most afraid she's actually ever been was after the guy died at the Royal Naval Dockyards. She was absolutely sure that A. he had told others and others now knew which would then ruin her life and B. that she would be executed for it probably. Luckily that wasn't the case.

26. Behavior around children

>Uncomfortable as all hell around very small children, though very small children tend to like her because she treats them just about the same way she treats anyone else. Absolutely adores hanging around teens because they always seem to be the most interested in her stories while also being much easier to talk to without fear than younger kids (who she is slightly worried she might accidentally traumatize without thinking). In general though, kids of any age tend to absolutely worship her if they're either gullible enough or mischievous enough.

45. Belief in what happens after death

>Jack believes realistically that... nothing happens after death. You just die and your body is reclaimed by the earth and that's it. She's not necessarily afraid of it but she also isn't too keen on dying any time soon. That being said what she wants to believe is the story her father once told her about how when people die, their soul passes into a crow's egg if they lived their life to make no impact on others, a magpie's egg if they had a negative impact on others, and a raven's egg if they had a positive impact, and they are thus reborn over and over again as that kind of bird. It's that story that she actually took inspiration for her last name from "Corbyn" meaning raven 😌

[lizbethborden]

i know we’re not taking it seriously but that person who made the post about “girlbossifying a tory landlord” re: anne lister is a feminine, i guess, sapphic? wlw? she doesn’t specify in her twitter bio who wrote a GLOWING review of bly manor’s “tender love story” “gothic lesbian romance for the ages” from “horror maestro” mike flanagan and is also one of those s///aiorse ronan as little women people, so i’m feeling like this is less a critique of how we approach historical politics, especially given that gentleman jack DOES linger on anne lister’s politics in a critical way, and more a knee-jerk contrarian reaction from one of the many woque folx who just REALLY hate masculine women, and only want lesbian representation from slender, feminine, wide-eyed ingenues lmao.

[spare-no-feelings]

My Dissection of The Hilltop Scene™

I’ve been meaning to write this for ages, and here it is!

As is the case with many, Gentleman Jack changed my life. Weirdly enough, I had heard about Anne Lister a priori (I even watched The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister the movie), but the show really brought it home for me, with so many emotions involved that I can’t even.

Like for so many of us, The Hilltop Scene™ was what absolutely tore me apart, in a good way.

Two things to know about me before I begin: one, I typically don’t remember shit from the first time I watch a show or a movie; and two, I never did get the whole hype about Victorian romance novels, love stories a la Jane Austen or the Bronte sisters, all those girls (including my mother) swooning over a Mr Darcy and wanting a kiss in the foreground of a sunset.

Well, now I know that it’s because they’re all hetero-oriented. Furthermore, The Hilltop Scene™ officially tricked my shitty memory because I clearly remember the first time I saw it and how it immediately left a permanent mark on my heart and soul (along with the “But you came so close” scene). After it was done, I had to pause the episode and literally scream into the void (much like Anne herself just before Ann walked up) because of the swirl of feels that came over me.

From the get-go I was Team Lister, which is perhaps why The Hilltop Scene™ resonates with me. Anne is so freakin’ brave and unapologetic and I can only strive to be more like her, but it is her vulnerability and the inability to control her roller coaster of emotions that really spoke to me in this particular instance - certainly helped by the fact that Suranne Jones’s acting was impeccable, as was Sophie Rundle’s, of course.

Because we know that this scene did not historically happen, at least not as such, in my opinion it gives even more credit to the brilliant writing, the photography, the direction, and of course the aforementioned acting. I’m unaware of how many takes they had to shoot (probably not many, since they were filming during sunset), but this definitely feels like a scene you would see in a theater, one where everything just falls into place because the actors are feeling it and because absolutely nothing is missing. To think that the final product was even better than what the script anticipated as well is just one more bonus - a drop of honey on top of a cherry on top of a red velvet cake, maybe?

This little observation of mine will tend to get into almost every little detail of The Hilltop Scene™, as if each and every one of them was put there deliberately and for a reason (who’s to say it wasn’t?). I like to think they were all a choice anyway, because so much of this show shines through the subtleties, the little things, the unspoken promises they make to each other through gazes and body language, creating images that will stay with me forever.

The Hilltop Scene™ opens with Ann Walker - wearing the gondola pin - arriving atop and seeing Anne Lister there. Her heart is almost visibly beating out her chest; her face is one of relief, of a happiness that makes her tear up immediately, as if they haven’t seen each other for years but at the same time no time has passed since they last met.

She calls out to Anne. Anne turns out and she probably thinks she is imagining things - after fifteen days on a ship through winter seas, I would probably think so too. She’s breathless as she utters “good lord” with her husky voice that gets me every time.

Ann tells her “I thought you were in Copenhagen” in a way that feels both curious (that she’s back) and accusing (as if Ann wishes to remind Anne that she left her, and went as far as Denmark). She slightly nervously holds on to the hems of her dress.

“I am. I was..” Anne is likely still a bit confused from her journey, seeing as she had to leave so hastily. She is taken; her “Aren’t you in Scotland?” question sounds much more accusing than Ann’s, as if she also wants to confirm that Ann really is standing there and is not just an apparition, a figment of her imagination, as she was for much of the time during her travels.

To this, Ann starts blabbing, probably out of being nervous around Anne after all this time. She starts telling Anne that she didn’t know about the letter Anne had sent her because no one told her and she starts marching towards Anne, to which Anne flinches and steps back. I cannot stress enough how much this moment was important for me: she is also not physically ready to have Ann close to her. She is still so hurt and broken that her body formed a defensive reaction to protect her from more heartache. To see Anne retreat like this, knowing her otherwise quite confident and forward personality, was really interesting to me, something that had already happened in the “But you came so close” scene in a more emotional, less physical way.

This gets Ann to stop, also instinctively. She goes to explain that her sister couldn’t write back because Anne’s letter disappeared, and then moves on to talk about how she thinks her sister’s marriage is not a good one, all the while Anne is a little surprised at how many words are coming out of Ann right now, as if it is hard for her to catch up with it all. She wants to say something in response to Ann, but she can’t because Ann just keeps going, talking about her brother-in-law and how he is probably not a good man. A notable moment here is Anne taking her top hat off, pulling her ponytail hair back and wiping her nose - don’t know what it is, but that was so goddamn sexy.

Ann finally ends her rant, realizing that she’s been talking so much, and she gets a little embarrassed for it in a really cute way. It is now Anne’s turn to speak - she tries to keep the conversation formal, which I guess is another form of self-defense, by saying “Well. I suppose that’s the trouble with being very rich. You never can be sure of people’s motives.” She says it in a petty way, one that makes it sound like it’s a curse, and that Anne is glad that she is not rich herself (something she so longed for), or that she dodged that bullet by not ending up with Ann. This also references Anne helping Ann shrug off her gold-digging cousins and also her asking to borrow money from her herself - as if those things never happened.

In a twisting turn, Ann says that she and her sister talked about her, to which Ann’s look changes: there is a glimmer of hope, because why would they possibly be talking about her when their whole deal was off? You can see that the light in her tired eyes is firing up again, only to be stifled again when Ann says “She said… she thought that sometimes, often, a good friendship is better than a marriage.” This is where Anne’s face goes dark and she looks down to the ground, probably thinking “Not THIS shit again?!” I think many wlw went through this many a time with a straight crush they had, and well, what can I say, Anne Lister gets it better than anyone.

Ann sees Anne’s low spirit and worried, she asks: “Are you alright?” In previous instances, whenever someone would ask Anne this question, she would famously answer: “I’m always alright.” But with Ann, she can’t help but be completely honest, and she looks like the question hit her right in the spot and that she can’t hold it in anymore. Following a tired, crying “Mmm”, she tells Ann that the pit collapsed, that it flooded, but that it can be fixed with more money. She’s annoyed at herself: “I took a gamble! I shouldn’t have.”

“But we’re not alive, are we? If we’re not taking the odd risk… now and again…” She looks at Ann as if to remind them both of how well Ann knows her, as if to say: “You know how this goes… I can’t stand still and I have to make life interesting even if it makes me poor.” Anne also knows that she took a gamble with Ann herself, attempting to form a relationship that had to be secret and had to rely on so many different factors that it’s no wonder it was doomed. But what got me is the way she said it and the way she looked at Ann while saying it; as if the gamble she took with Ann was worth it, even though it ultimately failed.

To Ann, on the other hand, this gives that courage Anne asked of her a few episodes prior - she is about to take a gamble herself. She steps forward while replying: “No… no, we’re not.” She looks at Anne with a kind of confidence that was never there before, which Anne immediately feels and responds to, this time without another choice. She can’t talk about other stuff anymore: she admits that she should have written to Ann again. “But when I didn’t hear back, I…” That’s when she spots the gondola pin.

They are standing close to each other now and the tension gets palpable. Anne is overtaken with emotion: the see-saw of losing and getting hope back on the top of this hill carries on as she looks at Ann to once again examine her intentions and to simply get lost in her eyes. Ann looks back the same way, her gaze letting Anne know that she is there, ready for whatever happens next.

“God I’ve missed you,” Anne says while her voice goes thin and shaky. There’s no more pretending, no more holding this avalanche of emotions back. Ann looks so relieved while taking a deep breath. She takes Anne’s hand and asks: “Have you?” with a tone of voice that could probably not be replicated so easily; it’s asking Anne to reassure Ann once more, to tell her that all might just not be lost, that her hopes that Anne misses her and wants her still have been valid and true all along.

Anne, once again, feels like she should probably not go any further than that, not knowing for sure what Ann’s feelings are right now - the scars of having been burnt on that same fire are still very sore. She’s holding Ann’s hand, takes it up and starts kissing it nevertheless, taken by the fact they are close again, that she can touch her again. She turns her hand over and sees the scar on her wrist. Ann pulls it away, but Anne takes it back: it really is a wrist cut. “There was just one morning I just thought I couldn’t stand it anymore.” Ann’s honesty is daunting, one that she is only able to have for Anne as she is the only one who could possibly understand her pain.

Anne is worried, she’s feeling guilty for not being there for Ann, she would have come straight back if she had known that (just like she was planning to before changing her mind last minute). Ann feels guilty too, perhaps thinking that Anne would think her too weak for this as well, because of the danger she put her own self in. She looks down in shame and sorrow.

Anne is holding her face, but then… she takes a step back, determined to make a confession she can no longer keep quiet. There’s the long sign, there is the head tilt, the taking the gamble, yet again.

“Do you know… I don’t think one hour passed where I didn’t think of you.” Truer words have never been said for Anne.

Ann is shocked - she did not see this coming. She worked hard to convince herself to expect the great Anne Lister to be thinking about her at all, especially not after all this time, and to tell herself not to think of Anne either. This so evidently fills her tender, tired heart with joy.

“I tried not to,” Anne continues, “But every time I closed my eyes… there you were!” Suranne’s delivery of this line is some of the finest acting I have ever seen: Anne is filled to the brim with sadness, honesty, torment and finally love, with just a liiiiittle bit of comedy spicing it up to take the edge off. Ann, on the verge of tears, nods and looks down, saying nothing, probably contemplating and taking it all in - it had, after all, been the same for her too.

But for Anne, this appears as hesitation. She gives Ann enough time to say something back, but when Ann doesn’t, it is time for her to put her guard up, once again. When Anne realizes that Ann probably won’t respond, and most certainly not with something she’s been so desperately wanting to hear from her for months, she pulls herself together and goes back to talking about general stuff - but this time with a little more affection.

“I met the Queen of Denmark!” Anne is not one to shy away from telling everyone about her achievements, certainly not ones including Royalty itself. The way she tells Ann about her experiences in Copenhagen - the excitement in her voice, the vivacity of her body movements, her holding of Ann’s hand that was not interrupted yet - reminds them both and us as viewers of just how close they are, how intimate their relationship still is, how themselves they get to be in each other’s presence.

Now it’s Anne’s turn to babble on - she tells Ann all about the Queen’s birthday ball the way she would tell her family, leaving no detail behind. Ann looks at her in awe and so in love: she laughs and giggles and she can see it all in front of her so vividly, as if she was there with her. “But all night I kept thinking: if you’d have seen me! You’d laugh!” Anne is grinning now because it’s true - Ann has been in her thoughts the whole time and now she gets to finally tell her about it, because she’s right there in front of her, they are finally reunited, the distance does not separate them anymore and the pain is gone, even if just for a moment.

“I had to wear white! Head to toe in white satin,” Anne tells her, again as if saying: “Me! Can you imagine?” And indeed, Ann cannot, as she laughs at it as if it was the most unnatural thing she’s ever heard. “But I made a bit of an impact,” Anne says, “One way or another.” It’s what she does, she makes an impression on people, as Ann knows very well. Ann looks at her hypnotized by her story, her arms, her voice, her eccentric yet endearing persona.

Anne’s speech too is now drawing to a close. “Friendly people, the Danes,” she concludes. “I think I shall go back there.” She realizes she probably will leave again soon, and alone, once more, like so many times before. “One day,” she says.

Ann, in her own right, realizes now is the time to show that courage she’s been mustering since leaving Scotland. She looks down for a second, looks back up and says: “Perhaps I could come with you.”

Anne has been here before; how many times she had wished for Ann to tell her exactly this, but at the same time knows the outcome of it all very well. Her look is telling Ann: “Please don’t do this, because we’ve done this already, remember?” Her grief is washing over her, as she cannot take false hope anymore.

Ann understands Anne’s reaction but is not pushed away by it. She carefully draws herself closer; we have never seen her be this bold, this convinced before. “You know… If you asked me to marry you again...” The camera is documenting Anne’s emotional journey: she too is taken by surprise by the way Ann carries herself, by the things she is saying. “I wouldn’t say no.” Could it really be?

This time it is Ann proposing to Anne.

Until this moment it was always Anne talking about marriage, and Ann being her wife. Here we see Ann taking initiative, we see her bring it up using Anne’s own proposal, fearlessly and sure of herself and the decision she made. Though this convinces Anne, it is only for a second: she can’t shake off the feeling that she will be let down yet again. She simply cannot trust Ann on this, even if she is so wonderfully, finally brave. “Hm… but would you say yes?” She looks deeply into Ann’s eyes, expecting to find hesitation.

But Ann is so far from hesitant. With a determination she has so longed for, with a conviction she so searched for, she says: “Yes.”

“Would you? And stick to it? And mean it?” Anne wants to make sure Ann understands her well.

“Yes.” Ann has never been more sure of anything in her life.

Anne gets closer to Ann, encouraged. “Take the sacrament with me? In church? And mean that too?” She needs to make the deal clear.

Ann loves the way Anne is thorough and persistent. She smiles and goes to place her hand on Anne’s face. The music gets louder with a revealing, hopeful tone. It all probably feels like a dream to Anne, as Ann becomes the girl she always hoped she would become: one that would take Anne for who she is, and there would be just the two of them on the planet. Ann wipes the tears from her cheek: “I love you, Anne.” She is the one sealing the deal now. Anne cannot believe her ears but is thrilled at the same time. Ann reassures her: “I’m in love with you. I always have been.” Ann is finally at peace with what she’s been feeling all along, and is ready to own her happiness, and to make the woman she can’t, and doesn’t want to, live without, happy as well.

Anne is speechless. The long, exhausting journey and the ache she’s been feeling have all come to an end, and she will at last be able to live her truth with someone she loves. “Don’t hurt me,” she says to Ann while taking comfort in her hand. It’s an unexpected statement from one Anne Lister - even Ann Walker thinks so - the woman always in charge of her feelings, always with a brave face on. Her walls are finally down. “I’m not as strong as you think.” She can be honest with Ann while she’s giving her her heart. “I mean I am, obviously!” She is Anne Lister, after all. Ann knows it; she knows her, and she recognizes her trying to remain the dominant, tough one. “But… sometimes I’m not.”

There are no words left to be said. They look into each other’s eyes - this is it. They are both in the same place, at the same time, the universe has aligned and all the obstacles are gone, there is just Anne for Ann and just Ann for Anne and nothing else can possibly matter as much as this. Ann tilts her head forward, signaling to Anne, and Anne dives in for a passionate kiss as the music is triumphant in crescendo. She looks at Ann for just a second - yes, she really is there, and this really is happening. The sun reflects on the tears streaming down her face as they get lost in each other, lush Yorkshire landscape and a vast blue sky behind them.

[nooowestayandgetcaught]

1-36 ALL OF EM. ALL OF EM.

THIS IS WHAT I LIKE TO HEAR, BRO. ALL FANDOMS.

1. First ship you remember

Peter Pan/Wendy Darling (Disney’s Peter Pan) is my best guess as far back as I can remember. That’s the original OTP next to Bruce Wayne/Selina Kyle (DCU) and Ariel/Prince Eric (Disney’s The Little Mermaid).

2. Your newest ship

Hmmm,,, I haven’t really watched anything new,,,,,,, but I mean I did get into Geralt/Jaskier (Netflix’s The Witcher) recently. I really like them.

3. Favourite ship ever

STARES LONGINGLY AT PETER/WENDY

I go between them and Mulan/Li Shang (Disney’s Mulan) and Korra/Asami Sato (Avatar: Legend of Korra) and  Yuuri Katsuki/Viktor Nikiforov (Yuuri On Ice) and Arya Stark/Gendry Waters (GOT/ASOIAF)  for my favorite ships of all time 

4. Favourite m/f ship

I grew up on the His Dark Materials books and I always was a Lyra Belaqua/Will Parry shipper and that has never ever changed. They’re so sweet. I WOULD LIKE PHILIP PULLMAN TO BRING THEM IN THE NEXT BOOK THAT IS SUPPOSED TO COME OUT. DO NOT FUCK AROUND.

5. Favourite m/m ship

you really can’t wrong with Ash Lynx/Eiji Okumura (Banana Fish) except you can and I don’t care,,,, everyone’s alive and fine and not depressed,,,,,,,

6. Favourite f/f ship

do you know how much my heart broke when they refused to do Emma Swan/Regina Mills (Once Upon A Time) EVEN THOUGH everything in canon said they were True Love????? now I’m just pissed,,,,, I can’t let go of them

7.Most innocent ship

OH GOD,,, KATARA/AANG (AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER). THE FLUFFIEST. THE HAPPIEST. THE SWEETEST BABIES.

8.Most fluffy ship

WHAT DID I LITERALLY JUST SAY???

9.Most angsty ship

good god it’s Clarke Griffin/Lexa (The 100) but I still love them and I know I wasn’t THERE for Lexa dying but I’m STILL livid about what they did and how they treated the LGBT+ community and I’m gonna throw hands,,,, ever since it happened and Clexa is mentioned in the show,,, it’s always so painful,,,,, Clarke is not letting Lexa go and tbh she shouldn’t and I’m gonna get mad again

10. Most smutty ship

Smut is optional, not a requirement for my ships.

11. Ship that you would never have wanted in canon but like in fanworks

I don’t fucking trust MCU so they can have none of my ships!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

12. Character that you can only imagine in one ship

BOOOOOOOOOOOOORING.

13. Most shippable character

Merlin (BBC Merlin) and Harry Potter.

14. Character that you can’t imagine in any ship

Any character I don’t like.

15. Favourite poly ship

I love love love love Rey/Finn/Poe Dameron. Finnreypoe. Jedistormpilot. I fell in love with Rey/Finn and Finn/Poe through “The Force Awakens” and then saw in the novelization that there was hints of Rey/Poe Dameron and LATCHED onto it. Don’t even fight me with “The Rise Of Skywalker” because it was COMPLETELY a Jedistormpilot movie and that’s all I was there for. Those three characters.

16. Characters that you kinda ship but prefer as brotp FRIENDSHIP

since I think Katniss might be aroace,,, I wanna say Katniss Everdeen/Peeta Mellark and don’t get wrong,,,, I do ship but more platonic ship

17. Characters that you ship and can’t imagine to be friends

Spike himself said that Buffy Summers/Angel (Buffy The Vampire Slayer) dynamic could never be friends and only friends and he’s right

18. Guilty pleasure ship

GUILT IS CRINGE!! CRINGE CULTURE IS DEAD!!! YOU SHIP THINGS TO YOUR HEART’S DELIGHT!!!!! HAVE FUN!!!

19. Ship that you never expected to ship.

I was straightbaited by Black Sails while watching as it aired and never saw Captain James Flint/Thomas Hamilton coming,,,, or them unburying the gays,,,,, I thought the whole time Thomas and James were sharing Miranda,,,

20. Ship that you liked but don’t anymore

at one point I liked Callum/Soren (The Dragon Prince) but I’m over them and I’m over that show and I don’t support Aaron fucking Ehasz

21. Ship that one day you were thinking of and thought “wait,when I started shipping it?”

I DO THAT LITERALLY WITH EVERY SHIP I HAVE

22. Ship that you immediately fall in love with after one scene despite not considering it before.

aahhhh I saw Toni Topez interact with Cheryl Blossom from Riverdale after their confrontation which was like,,,, the first time they ever spoke to each other,,,, but then the diner scene happened, and now I ship them. And they’re canon.

23. Poly ship that you ship despite not shipping some of the characters in it outside of poly ship.

I only ship Ryn/Maddie Bishop/Ben Powell with each other. That’s it. IT’S A CANON INTERRACIAL LGBT+ SHIP. IT’S REAL. I’M SO HAPPY.

24. Biggest notp

Dick Grayson/Barbara Gordon (DCU),,,,, oooh don’t get me fucking started

25. Favourite foe yay ship

L/Light (Death Note). That’s a classic. I know Light made sure his ass was murdered but c’mon,,, c’mon,,,, THE CREDITS TO THE LAST EPISODE THO??? DID YOU SEE THAT SHIT???? THAT WAS GAY AS HELL.

26. Characters that you like in every dynamic (lovers,friends,enemies)

we gotta go with Doctor/Master (Doctor Who),,, they’ve been all three,,,,, nobody can tell me otherwise and that’s the beauty of these two! My favorite versions are 1) Thirteen/Dhawan!Master, 2) Ten/Simms!Master, and 3) Twelve/Missy and if you add Simms!Master with the last one then it’s GOLDEN

27. Ship that you expected to ship before reading/watching franchise and you do

I saw gifs and things of Anne Lister/Ann Walker (Gentleman Jack) before I started watching and I already knew I was gonna fall in love AND I DID

28. Ship that you expected to ship before reading/watching franchise and you don’t

this might be a weird one but I really thought I was gonna ship Victor Van Dort/Victoria Everglot or Victor Van Dort/Emily (Corpse Bride) and I just didn’t for either of them. I DO HOWEVER SHIP EMILY/VICTORIA EVERGLOT.

29. Favourite crossover ship

OHHHHH we gotta go with Kate Kane/Kara Danvers (Arrowverse) like look at them look at the gay it’s like SuperBat but the female millennial version

30. Favourite canon ship

Princess Bubblegum/Marceline (Adventure Time)! I’m overjoyed they are canon! I’m not done watching all of this show but still,,,,, and that means we can get Prince Gumball/Marshall Lee to be confirmed canon too?? Yes?? 

31. Favourite non-canon ship

I know we can’t like CONFIRM in canon but Frodo Baggins/Samewise Gamgee are in love and there’s no denying this. They’re canon enough to me.

32. Favourite ship for hurt-comfort

All of my ships are good for hurt/comfort and whump. I don’t discriminate.

33. Ship that you ship in one installment of franchise but not in other (for example in movie,but not in the book this movie is based on)

I ship Hannibal Lecter/Clarice Starling in the movies for Hannibal related things, even though Will Graham exists in them, but I ship Hannibal Lecter/Will Graham for NBC’s Hannibal 100% and won’t ship them with anyone else

34. Ship that you never expected to ship when you were younger but here you are

I never expected to ship Harry Potter/Ron Weasley/Hermione Granger all together years down the road,,,,, since as a kid I flip-flopped between Ron/Hermione & Harry/Me,,,, er,,,,,,,,, I mean Harry/My OC That Was Definitely Not Me At All and Harry/Hermione but here we are

35. Ship that you have kinda love/hate relationship with

right now it’s Rue Bennett/Jules Vaughn (HBO’s Euphoria) because they’re so cute,,, they really are,,, but they can be so bad together and I hate that! I just want it to work out but Jules doesn’t understand her own feelings,,, and is kinda fucking around with Rue’s feelings,,,,,, and Rue needs to deal with her drug addiction problems first,,,, but let’s see what happens for Season 2

36. Characters that you can’t decide if you prefer as ship or brotp

okay FIRST OFF we don’t “brotp” anything no more because the term was created with homophobic connotations so replace it with “friendship” and honestly I can’t decide if I like Lucifer/Chloe Decker (Netflix’s Lucifer) as a romantic or platonic ship or somewhere between. I haven’t decided.

[trashyeggroll]

Please explain appeal of Danolsen to me cuz I honestly don't get it! My blocks for shipping it currently - it feels like a make up for Kara/Jimmy being broken up so fast not an organic pairing. There's no filler to their relationship it's all just cute looks this season. Kelly in S5 feels like she could be replaced with extra of the week & nothing would change sadly. So why should I ship Danolsen 2.0 when I could just rewatch Sanvers stuff or another show?

Ok ok ok wait, parameters here. What are the terms of the discussion?

filler vs cute looks: usually I would use the word filler to describe vapid or irrelevant content (“empty calories”); in the context of your message, I think you mean substantive storylines vs the cutesy moments?

Danolsen vs Dansen: just so I don’t confuse myself, if I say Danolsen it’s Kara/James and Dansen is Alex/Kelly

Some overhead disclaimers from me:

1. While Dansen and ThunderGrace are often used as examples of white wlw rejecting wlwoc, we’re talking about an entire media landscape and the experience of being in wlw fandom spaces online, whether this hellsite or AO3 or whatever.

There are a lot more ships of varying degrees of development/duration involving women of color out there, across networks. All American has Coop/Patience. I hear Annalise Keating’s storyline is all unfolding around her wlw identity in How to Get Away with Murder. Proven Innocent made me cry with the romance between Madeline and Wren. Charmed has had like four or five romantic interests for Mel Vera. Freya and Keelin got fckn married in The Originals, and they’re still married in the sequel spinoff.

And if you spend enough time looking for wlw content around this site, you’ll see that white wlw are watching whole series and movies even the single gifset of wlw content… but it’s never these couples. “This fandom” and “that fandom”, whatever—but it’s almost never interracial couples or wlwoc. Why? Why do people spend the time writing whole apologisms for Gentleman Jack and the predatory behavior of Anne Lister, but they “just don’t see it” for healthy relationships? Why is it more appealing to watch fascist propaganda ruining the lore of witches, cheering on the love of someone who isn’t even aware that the person she loves is part of a massive campaign to force people to die by suicide en masse?

And we see when media rises and passes from blog to blog, too. Word of mouth is absolutely a thing, even here on the ol’ tumblr, so we see how a single kiss from a series circulates like wildfire and a whole gifset of ThunderGrace gets no notes—over and over and over and ov

2. Whenever this topic pops off in the Discourse, almost without fail, and a white wlw reacts to the above questions, it’s about “chemistry” or an adjacent concept. Again, this isn’t about one single ship—it’s about black women and nonblack poc being told their ships just have “no spark” over and over and over and ov

3. While there is logic to comparing ships in terms of quality, duration, and volume of content in order to assess who reasonably or “rightfully” gets more attention or dedication, that’s all just subjective and honestly sounds like bull to me. See #1.

4. Unless you’re a Trump voter, you’re most likely reading these posts and going, but I’m not racist, and I’m only one person. It’s easy to say. But we are all a product of a racist, xenophobic system, and at the end of the day, you can do what you want, watch what you want, but if you get defensive about these indirect callouts… It’s up to you to put words to why that is.

Ok, parameters set, now I’ll get to SG—

Making up for Danolsen: Honestly I highly doubt that that’s what the writers were trying to do—it’s an entirely different couple? Unless the implication is that they’re trying to treat an interracial couple better, which… is a good thing? I’m of the mind that SG added Azie because the cast would be almost entirely white once Mehcad left. Remember, Kelly Olsen was not introduced as a love interest for Alex, but the actresses thought their chemistry was too good, and they asked for it, which I thought… is exactly what we want from shows. I think the fact that she’s James’ sister is arbitrary, just a means to plug her into the story, and they’ve been winging it since then.

Dansen content in season five: I guess there are multiple elements to this, but for the “no filler” bit—the question is what kind of filler you want. They had lots of romantic moments early in the season, and then continued to be happy and in love. So is the content you want relationship drama or storylines that cut closer to the core of each episode? Because when I go back and look at Sanvers, there was a lot of pain and struggle in that relationship, which is sometimes how they go until people get their bearings, but ya’ll… It doesn’t have to be that way. There was Kelly’s PTSD moment and subsequent breakup with Alex, but they resolved that in one episode and… that’s a good thing, too. They talk about things, openly and truthfully, without shame or strife, and that’s what a good relationship should look like, whether it’s wlw or any other variation.

Like I get that the meat and potatoes of TV romance has always been friction. No story without conflict, right? But I worry that the insistence that Sanvers had so much more chemistry is largely based on the sharp rises and falls, which yeah produce lots of emotions and stirring words and speeches with clauses that you can print on a shirt, but that type of relationship will always burn out, or burn you out, if you don’t figure out how to prevent it from getting to that point.

So what I’m saying is, see #2. Nobody has to do anything or support anyone, but there’s no absolute truth to interpretation of a relationship. I’m sure I am preferential to Dansen over non-canon ships like SuperCorp because I’m old and married and I move through the world as a team with my badass wife, and that’s what I see for them. Kelly brought Alex her lunch and Alex practically squealed with delight even though they definitely woke up in the same bed a little while earlier.

And what’s confusing to me too is, you don’t have to stop shipping Sanvers? That relationship existed, the content is there, the storyline was ended with a padlock? (Folks: Please do not ever stay with someone hoping they will change their mind about having kids) But you can also look at how happy your fave is with her new girl and see it for them? Maybe kudos some fics, reblog a couple gifsets, not tweet about them lacking chemistry?

At the end of the day, a tension here is that the big picture makes fandom spaces feel hostile and dismissive towards fans of color, especially black women. How is someone supposed to feel when they finally have a complex, long lasting wlwoc relationship in front of them, and it’s constantly degraded for “chemistry” reasons while all the white ships, even ones with zero canon content, float to the top and get all the art and content that we are all here to enjoy? The whole issue is that fandom and culture are, and have always been, lenses into society and people’s worlds. It’s a question of empathy and openness and accountability, and it’s not just about one ship versus another.

[heathtrash]

6, 11, 17, 21 and 36 (I'll stop there, even though I'm really curious and want to ask more xD)

6. List your OTP from each fandom you’ve been involved in.

i’m such a multishipper so i don’t really vibe with the term OTP

for tww my faves are: all of them oop. okay so i’m not that into algiebat because writing or reading m/f does nothing to validate me and it’s already canon. but hackle, hicsqueak, hubblestar, mumbroom, phb&j, starabella, starbroom. also rarepairs ada/bat and tapsbroom. you can’t make me choose

ships for fandoms i’m not involved with because i’m scared of other fandoms: beaujester (critical role), catradora (she-ra), elsamaren (frozen), julia argent/carmen sandiego (carmen sandiego), kira/jadzia (ds9), anne lister/ann walker (gentleman jack), mary/baxter (downton abbey), gelphie (wicked)

wild that the shipping part of my brain only truly activated after i discovered the joys of fanfic lasT YEAR

11. Who is your current OTP?

i guess hicsqueak?? but certainly not to the exclusion of any other pairing. i love them all equally!! i just find it easier to write hicsqueak because of the way that i have thought a lot about their histories and developed so many headcanons about that whole timeline. i’m presently writing hicsqueak and have a huge backlog of hicsqueak wips

17. Who was your first OTP and are they still your favourite?

hicsqueak, and i guess?? i just have a lot of headcanons and too many ideas that work well for their dynamic

21. What was the first fanfic you ever wrote?

A Clock With No Hands was my first fic and i’m still writing it oop. it starts off awfully but picks up. loads of things got in the way of continuing so i last updated it like 100 days ago but i promise i will get back to it sometime!

36. What’s your favourite genre to write?

i think my most successful attempts have been fluff & angst. is that a genre? who knows asdkhjgasdkj. anyway, soft romance with a plot

(please ask more if you like!)

fanfic questions list :: ask

[xvnot15]

Gentleman Jack is NOT VICTORIAN!!!!!!

Please, please, please stop referring to Gentleman Jack and Anne Lister as Victorian!!!!!

Anne Lister was categorically Georgian!!! NOT Victorian!!

If you insist on being pedantic yes the last 3 years of her life were at the very start of the Victorian era, but everything that shaped her character and the environment in which she lived and “got away with” her eccentricities was GEORGIAN!!!

Again for the pedant that will also include the Regency period which of course is a subset of the Georgian Period.

Why is this important?? Because it has a direct effect on her beliefs, actions and character and as I said above what she was socially able to to get away with in living her life on her terms.

Not that it was easy or acceptable to be a lesbian and act on it in the Georgian period but it was less proscribed for women than it would become in the Victorian period.  The Georgian period was, in the elite layer of society more fluid than we would suspect, especially during the decade of the Regency.

There’s a hint of that in the opening episode with the issue of the Reform bill now specifically disenfranchising women of any social standing or property ownership from voting, which they were allowed to do up until that bill was passed.  

It’s a bugbear of mine if you haven’t guessed/ LOL

Periods

in

English history

Elizabethan

1558–1603

Stuart

1603–1714

Jacobean

1603–1625

Caroline

1625–1649

(

Interregnum Civil War

)

1649–1660

Restoration

1660–1714

Georgian

1714–1837

Regency

1811–1820

Victorian

1837–1901

Edwardian

1901–1914

[iredreamer]

As I've been rewatching Gentleman Jack lately I've been noticing the placement of Ann Walker's rings. For instance, in episode 2 she's wearing one on her left hand forefinger and one on her right hand middle finger. But, after things get more ~serious~ with Anne, she has the one on her right forefinger, just like Anne. And when they go to take the sacrament she's only wearing the engagement ring. More of an observation than an ask, but would love your insight/perspective on that costume choice!

hey :) first of all I want to thank you so much for this observation. I personally love rings and what they symbolize. I wear many rings and I always wear them on the same fingers, their position never changes. Your message is very fascinating and I do think there’s a reason and a meaning behind Ann’s rings, behind what kind of rings she wears and on what finger she wears them.

As you said, she has two rings, one on her right hand and one on her left hand. The rings are always the same two rings and while the ring on her left hand never moves from her index finger, the one on her right hand does change place.

Let’s start with the ring on her left hand. Wearing a ring on the left index finger doesn’t symbolize anything special but, usually, important rings were worn on that finger, it’s a great position to show off a ring. I don’t think she wears that ring there to show it off but I do think she wears it there because that ring can help us understand her character and so we are supposed to notice it. It looks like that ring matches her earrings: amethyst in a gold circlet in both cases.

Amethysts symbolize luxury, royalty and allegiance to Christ (the color purple always symbolized Christ and amethysts were, and still are, the stones used on Bishops’ rings). All the attributes that amethysts have are good. They are positive gemstones. Throughout history it was believed amethysts could control evil thoughts, encourage calm and bravery, help process information and clear one’s thoughts. Apparently amethysts are also considered stones of comfort for who’s grieving the loss of a loved one and they’re the stones of faithful love. This tells us so much about Ann, about what she wants and needs and about the journey of self discovery she’s gonna go through. I think we could say that the amethyst is for sure Ann’s stone, they chose it for her because it fits her, it’s a stone that reflects who Ann is and what Ann needs/wants (she’s rich, she’s devoted, she needs comfort and protection from – her own – “evil” thoughts, she’s good and has a kind soul). She also wears a necklace with an amethyst pendant most of the times.

Now, about the ring on her right hand. As you said, she wears it on her middle finger in the first two episodes. After all the flirting with AL and after realizing she’s falling in love with her, but before anything happens between them, from episode three, the ring on her right hand is not on her middle finger anymore but is on her index finger and stays there for the whole season.

The middle finger usually symbolizes balance and responsibility. A ring on the middle finger doesn’t say much about someone (and, personally, it is also very uncomfortable to wear a ring there), but I guess this lack of meaning also tells us something about who Ann was before meeting AL and discovering herself. She was “in the middle”, she did what was considered “right”, never taking risks or having the confidence to make her own choices.

When she starts wearing the ring on the index finger it’s because she’s starting to change, she’s starting to know herself. She becomes conscious of her wants, her needs, her desires. The index finger symbolizes power, leadership, confidence and that’s what Ann Walker is looking for: “It is confidence, isn’t it? I never had any”. Oh but does she wants it.

I also think that the fact that she moves her ring to the index finger is a way to emulate Anne Lister. AW is not just in love with Anne Lister, she admires her, she looks up to her. It’s so easy for me to imagine Ann one morning, waking up, looking at that ring before putting it on, an image of Anne Lister wearing the ring on her index finger crossing her thoughts, and thinking: “I want to be more like her”. Thinking that maybe wearing a ring on the same finger will give her some of AL’s energy and confidence, doing it, and suddenly feeling more connected to her somehow, closer.

That ring looks like an amber ring. The thing I personally find fascinating about amber is that it holds life itself (quite literally since some amber pieces hold living things) and that it can became electrically charged if rubbed against wool or silk. Amber balances emotions, eliminates fears and it has a warm, old, wise energy. I don’t know how to explain it, but, the fact that Ann Walker moves the amber ring to her index finger makes total sense to me. It’s like she’s “activating” it. I don’t know if this makes any sense…

After Ann says to Anne Lister to get rid of Ainsworth’s ring (which is a ring she never wore in the series**), she stops wearing both rings. After that scene she doesn’t have them on in episode five and she’s also not wearing a necklace, something she always wears (at least when AL is around). I think that it could be an indication of her state of mind and her health, she’s not taking her time to put on jewelry, she’s letting herself go, not taking care of her looks as much as before.

**At first I thought the ring on her right hand was the ring Ainsworth gave her, but she’s wearing it in the last scene of episode six, so it is not that ring. They just kinda look alike.

Ann Walker (just like Anne Lister) never wears a ring on her ring finger because wearing a ring there meant you were engaged or married to someone (just like today). When the Ann(e)s finally exchange rings they put them on their ring finger because, from that moment on, they consider themselves married to each other. And onyx ring is all Ann Walker needs, that’s why she’s not wearing her own rings in that scene. Anne Lister, choosing an onyx ring, basically bought Ann a “protection ring”. Onyx is a calming and relaxing stone that is believed to absorb all evil and turn bad energies into positive ones, it defends you from all negativity (especially the one thrown at you by others). 

As you can see in the picture the onyx stone is surrounded by diamonds. This is what I think: the diamonds represent Ann Walker and the onyx is Anne Lister. They’re opposites but together make the perfect couple, just like diamonds and onyx make the perfect ring. And ANNE IS THE ONE WHO’S GONNA PROTECT ANN FROM ALL EVIL AND ANN IS THE ONE WHO MAKES ANNE’S LIFE COMPLETE SURROUNDING HER WITH LOVE AND LIGHT.

my god

i love

this show

[psychedelic-platypus]

Poor Food: A Gentleman Jack Fanfiction Column - #1, The Adventures of Anne and Sam Lister

By Joni Catt, aka “Platypus” 10.21.2020

[1805, East Yorkshire...]

Her feet jaggedly dance across the slick cobblestone street, darting in a stumble to catch her balance.

‘Thew darts out of the bar door, charging, with a slamming fist once more.

She falls onto the street, scrambling back up into a boxer postion, her back-tied dark hair disheveled, dirt and scrape on her face. “You want to have another go?” her eyebrows tight, panting.

They breath a visible mist into the cool, damp air.

She false jumps for his face and punches his stomach, then spins to the side, elbowing his jaw, knocking him out of balance.

The other two boys rush, filtering out of the bar, circling in the street.

“Don’t interfere.” Shawn tells Rufus holding him back. “Guys, stop it! Break it up!”

They lock each other with their arms, Anne Matthew’s head, and “Thew” around her waist, clumsily limping through the street fighting for control.

Young Hardy comes back, (he was told during the game only to watch, that he couldn’t play because of his young age, but he ran out the door when the scuffle between found-out Lister and his brother ensued) rushing down the street with a taller, older boy at his side.

“Stop it!” Anne hears a heart-familiar voice from yards back.

‘Thew throws her off his grasp, knocking her out of balance and throwing several punches in a row as she staggers back, blocking them.

“Stop!” Sam calls, ramming into Matthews chest, Anne on the ground behind him.

‘Thew clamors, punching the side of Sam’s face, before he grabs his arm, restaining him and looking firmly into his blue eyes.

“Stop”. He says, sterner, but quieter.

Matthew shakes viciously, before tiring himself out, and with calm hope, Sam lets him go.

They stagger back from each other, Sam paying a glance to Anne, getting up behind them before turning back to him. The other boys stand on the sides of the street.

Matthew pants, looking, before slowly singing a breathy tune, “Samuel Lister...has a sister...”

“Her name was little Anne!” Rufus shouts from behind.

“What are you doing?” Shawn turns to him.

Anne lunges. “I’m not little!” Sam, holding her back.

“Anne, don’t.” he says.

She sniffles, angrily staring at ‘Thew, who pays his blue gaze back, and wipes her knuckle to her nose.

“You’re right.” she says. “He isn’t worth it.” Then turns around to start walking off. “Come on, Sam.”

But he’s still staring at Matthew.

“Stay away from my sister!” he spits with a sharp step forward. “Or you’ll have to mask your face for the rest of your life!”

“Sam!” Anne whips around.

He stumbles off with her, and they walk side to side.

“Hey, Lister!” ‘Thew calls. “How big is your cock?”

Rufus laughs, Shawn snickers. Hardy only watches in terrified silence.

Sam begins to turn around, parting his lips when Anne cries--

“Bigger than yours!”

“Ooooh!” Rufus goes back with a deep, hard cackle, pointing at ‘Thew.

He frowns, immediately whipping around to pay a sharp look.

Shawn wanders back inside, with Hardy quick to follow.

Anne and Sam, jaggedly walking down the street together.

She feels him turning to her.

“You want to tell me what happened?”

“No.” she says sternly. “And I didn’t need you to jump in.”

“Sure.”

“Who called for you anyway?” She whips to him. “I’d taken the necessary of making sure you wouldn’t show up.”

He chokes on a laugh. “Like I wouldn’t know where to look for you.”

She turns her gaze to the ground. “It was a different bar.” she mumbles.

He turns his gaze as well as they walk.

“Anne, what happened?”

He looks forward.

She sighs. “You do know that I’m older than you, right? I think you forget. Sometimes.”

“How would you let me.” he mutters.

“So if anyone has a right to be overprotective--” She continues. “It’s me. And it will always be me. You understand?”

“I think I’m getting the feeling of why he punched you.” he smiles at his joke.

Anne stops, quick to elbow him, before they continue on their path.

“I thought I’d go over to play cards.”

Sam glances at her, up and down. “Let me guess, and you thought you’d be a lad?”

“It wouldn’t work any other way.” she says, swinging her arms continuing. “Anyway...I think Shawn noticed partway through, but didn’t have the guts to say anything. That, or he didn’t care to. ‘Thew looked me in the eye and called me out for it...”

“These the names of your new friends?”

Anne rolls her eyes. “Keep making snide comments. Anywho, you remember ‘Thew! He was the kid passing by our house about...what is it, a week ago? The one with the blue patch sewn on his vest...”

“Anne, how many young people pass our house?”

“Anyway,” she continues, “he must’ve recognized me, that sneaky bastard. And wasted no time in exposing my true identity.”

“A bullfrog.”

“You’re a bullfrog.”

They stagger down the street.

“We can’t go home like this.” Sam says.

“Why?”

He looks at her. “You’ve got blood on your nose and lip! Father won’t be--”

“That’s too bad.” she says. “It’s too bad if his daughter comes home with a bloodied face, and it disturbs him. It’s too bad if mud gets on the floor. It’s too bad Sam, because unfortunately I can’t have much capacity to care.”

They keep walking, their footsteps crunching against a few leaves, and sliding through shallow puddles, the sound residing between their silence.

“Mum isn’t well, Anne.” Sam gently speaks. “And father’s trying to contend. He’s...relying on us.”

Anne sighs. It doesn’t take long for him to witness the sadness, but more the guilt, riddling his sister’s face. She takes a turn, changing the course, as they walk to the town water pump.

---

Anne sits in the kitchen chair, a peice of wood carefully fixed in her hand, focusing the blade up and down it’s soft edges.

She stops midway, looking up and forward, before turning to acknowledge young Marian who she’s felt staring at the side of her face for a strong minute.

“What are you looking at?” she says through her teeth.

Marian blinks, still watching her.

“Shut up!” Anne yells.

“I haven’t said anything!”

“I don’t care!” Anne throws the piece of wood, and it bounces off the table, Marian, dodging it’s trajectory.

“Girls, stop!” Sam enters the room.

“Marian was bugging me!”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“Enough.”

Their father stands in the doorway. He glances up and down at Anne and Sam’s stained clothing...Anne’s muddy boots, her in her trousers and vest. Their expressions and gestures. He looks at all three of them now. Their hair, Anne’s and Marian’s dark and Sam’s a bright blonde. Their eyes and faces, images in his mind, so familiar for his heart. He knows too well, the way a father knows.

“You children are ridiculous.” He steps in.

“Paint it on our graves.” Sam walks to the kitchen.

“Carve it.” Anne corrects. “In the stone.”

“Anne Lister”. He spreads his arms. “I can just see your funny name, spread out on a tab.”

“Right next to yours.” She says.

“You really think so?’ Sam asks, then looks in thought. “Yeah, you’ll be buried fine enough near me.”

“Samuel Lister...” she begins with a playfully stern eye. “You listen to me, and listen carefully. I have every right to die first. Do you understand?”

“Of course.” he complies. “And I shall have the privilege of witnessing it.”

“Indeed you shall.” Anne says, then spreads her hands, “and it’ll be an extraordinarily legendary death. Only to go with all my other accomplishments.”

“Naturally.” Sam says.

“No one will forget Anne Lister.” she says. “I have a fair plan...here’s how it’ll play out--”

“You’re planning your death?” Sam asks.

“Well, I have to have a little bit of infrastructure to make sure it all plays out.” She says, then begins, “I’ll get into a well equipped sword fight...”

Their father rolls his eyes.

“...it’ll be heroic, obviously. He’ll be some capital villain. We’ll be really fencing it out--”

“Lemme guess”, Sam joins, “And he’ll slash your head off, and it’ll go rolling across the floor.”

“No, no--” Anne stops him. “Not yet. We’ll be battling on a royal ship--”

“Does the ship have a flag?” Marian leans intently, a deep gaze.

“Why does it matter?” Anne asks.

“It does.” she says. “The flag is crual.”

“You mean ‘crucial’.” Anne says. “And yes, of course it has a flag. It’s a royal ship. Anyway, we’re fighting, and there’s a whole crowd on the cliffs watching--”

“Anne! Anne, I was talking!” Their father shouts.

“Stop interrupting me.” she simply says.

He sighs, glancing to where Marian mouths to him.

“She’s getting to the good part.”

“Sparks fly as our swords bat at each other. And it’s just now, right before this moment of parting, that I feel...infinitely alive.”

“And then what happens?” Marian bounces in jittery excitement.

She looks at her, with a wide grin. “And then, Marian...I lead him into accidentally knocking the lantern down from the mast of the ship, and it falls, breaking, igniting fire!”

“Wow!” Marian gasps.

“He screams as his leg catches fire, and in that moment--”

“Boom.” Sam blatantly says.

“Exactly.” Anne points.

“Wait,” Marian asks, “Why was he bad again?”

“I don’t know...” Anne says, then scrambles for a resolving answer. “He was a thief? No, a murderer.”

“He was both.” Sam says.

“Yes.” Anne nods. “He was both.”

“And he ate children.” Sam throws.

“And he ate children.”

“Now I’m fascinated.” their Dad says.

“Wait...” Sam begins. “But that doesn’t explain how you die.”

“Yes, I was getting to that.”

“Does he stab you last minute?”

“No.”

“The ship sinks?” Marian asks.

“Not yet”. Anne says. “It bursts a bright beautiful flame as it sets sail on the horizon!”

“That’s preposterous, Anne.” Her father scoffs. “Why didn’t you just jump off?”

“I would’ve drowned anyway.” she says. “We were too far from shore. No. This way, I embrace the flame and it embraces me--and my spirit is freed...into the sky and ocean.”

“Wooow!” Marian gasps in awe.

“Great.” their father says. “Now that we’re done with your little story, Anne, let’s get back to--”

“It was Anne and Sam, Papa!” Marian says. “They were out.”

“Yes, I know, dear.”

Anne turns. “Yes, Marian, he was talking to us. Surely, his precious little girl could never do anything wron--”

“Anne!” he shouts.

She turns to him and he feels the blazing of her gaze.

“Can you ever just--” he stamps. “You’re my eldest. And my daughter. Why can’t you ever just own some...dignity for yourself.”

“I have dignity!” she yells, her voice cracking.

“Oh, I know.” he says. “You’re so full of it aren’t you--”

“Oh, you mean be like a lady, all little and quiet in frills--”

“Anne!” he shouts. “Yes! You are a lady! In case you’ve been too blind to realize!”

She whips around, retreating in steps against the wood.

“Oh, you want to be whipped?” but he’s fading in his determination as she escapes. “Take off your boots!”

Sam looks at him in his green gaze, before walking and following his sister.

He chases her, trying to catch up, but she’s already made her way up the stories of the house.

He stops in front of a small wooden door, gently knocking his knuckle.

No reply.

“It’s Sam!”

Quiet.

Then her voice sounds from inside. “Sam? Sam who?”

“Samuel Lister!” he goes along, talking in a stronger accent. “The tall gentleman who lives just a couple houses down, madame! Come to see Anne Lister!”

“Which gentleman?”

“Oh, the blonde with rogue green eyes and an impossibly handsome face!”

“Oh--you mean Samuel Lister!”

“Yes, ma’am.” he sings. “‘Tis I.”

“The prick”

He rolls his eyes and leans against the door.

“Could you just let me in?”

He waits, picking his fingernail.

“It’s already open, you nitwit.” Anne teases.

He gently opens it, and steps up inside, looking to where she’s leaned upside down against the wall, closing it behind him. He frowns at the dust on the floor.

“Why’ve you come up here?” he asks. “To the attic?”

She has a book propped in her hands, concentrated on the page. Finally, she answers, “I don’t know. Might as well get used to it.” Then she brings her legs down off the wall and turns over on her side. “They’re just drawn to me.” She cheekily smiles.

Sam lies down, head towards the wall beside her. “How so?”

She sighs, closing her eyes and looking to the ceiling. “They’re the place of my confinement.”

Sam looks down to the floor, as she then pulls a card from the pocket of her vest. He glances at it, the corners, the shapes, an the man illustrated in the middle.

Jack of Hearts.

“Did you steal that?” he asks the obvious question.

Anne doesn’t answer, simply sliding it into place, fitting the spine of the book as a mark for her place and closing it, setting it to the side. She leans back on the floor, placing her hands on her stomach and knitting her fingers, staring at the ceiling.

Sam looks at his sister.

“So why today?”

He asks.

She stares upward still.

“Hmm?” She barely turns.

He shifts on his elbow and reaches to fix a loose strand of her hair as she swats him away, then he moves to adjusting the lapel of her vest.

“Why the little outing? You were just aching to play cards?”

She doesn’t answer, still just gazing carefully at the knots and marks in the wood on the ceiling. The little paintings they paint. She thinks she sees a shape that looks like a lion, running through a field.

“I just wanted to...go out.” she breathes. “And thoroughly enjoy this day in purgatory before I travel back to hell tomorrow.”

Sam gazes. “Surely, it can’t be that bad.”

She knits her eyebrows, “It actually isn’t. I mean, besides the poor cuisine, or the attitudes of most of the professors and peers, the place is actually quite enhancing.”

“Yeah?” he asks.

“I mean...” she continues, lifting her hand, “they have a fine selection of books. The library is definitely one of my favorite haunts...that is, the days when Priscilla Wood and her friends haven’t decided to inhabit a place...”

“She your nemesis?” he asks, moving from his elbow and laying on his back to stare at the ceiling too.

“Oh, she’s terrible!” Anne exasperates. “So set back in her ways, and makes it her point to just minimalize me...I mean, she could be sitting at the table on the farthest side of the room, and she still gets to me!”

“I get it.” Sam nods.

“But...other than that, the library is a very nice place. I mean, I would consider a different option for the decoration, but the room and it’s very soul is just...uplifting.”

There’s a silence.

“Oh, and the literature teacher isn’t quite bad...actually fairly intelligent. I do believe she also may acquire some geography and a little knowledge of mathematics.”

“That’s good.”

“Yeah.” she says thoughtfully and soft.

They sit in the floating dust of the attic, reflecting against the little sunlight that pours in from the window as the sky begins to carefully dim.

The sound travels easy in the house, mildly grand as it is. There’s the muffled sound of Marian and John laughing, and in an entirely separate room their mother coughs.

They look at the ceiling, like they’re cloud watching, or two campers gazing at the stars. Dreamily.

“I don’t want to go.”

Anne swallows. Her voice soft.

“I’ll miss you.” Sam softly speaks. “I always do.”

He pauses in a gaze for a moment.

“You know Marian doesn’t sleep at night when you’re gone?”

“Did Marian ever sleep at night?”

They lightly laugh.

“Even when she was a little baby.” Anne begins. “She’d cry throughout the night.”

“Tiny little baby Marian.”

Another short silence as Sam shifts to get comfortable.

“I think she just misses you, too.”

“What, and John doesn’t? Typical. I’ll have to talk to the little bugger.” Anne jokes.

“No, he does.” Sam says. “I suppose it just gets to Marian...I know you may often think she hates you, but I think she looks at you in a different way.”

“What?”

“You know...” Sam continues, stumbling for words. “You’re her big sister.”

“And what does that mean?”

“She looks up to you a bit. In a certain way.”

Anne just quietly stares at the ceiling.

“I don’t know, Sam.”

“It’s okay.”

They quietly dream in the ceiling.

[silentnightingale]

Gentleman Jack Post-wedding Filming Location

So we all know the Ann(e)s got married at the Holy Trinity Church on Goodramsgate, York. Let’s have a look at where the ending scenes in episode 8 were shot!

Here you can see Holy Trinity Church in the middle of York. It’s relatively close to York Minster. And in the background of the shot where Ann(e) gets out of the carriage, we can see it in the background.

York Minster, standing pretty in the background, doesn’t look too far from where they are standing - maybe about a block away. In comparison, Holy Trinity Church looks a bit far from York Minster.

Since the entrance of Holy Trinity Church is on Goodramgate (the road running up and down to the right of the map here), there’s no possible way for this scene to have been shot at the actual location. The iconic front of York Minster is all the way to the left on the above map. No matter which way you frame the camera, you can’t capture the front of York Minster from the entrance of Holy Trinity Church. To make matters even more confusing, here’s the entrance of Holy Trinity Church.

Sadly, it’s a nondescript entrance that’s (unfortunately) boarded up in this Google Maps photo. Goodramgate is a main shopping road in York, and all around it are restaurants and small shops and there’s even a Tesco across from the church.  Spinning this shot on Google Maps also shows the front of York Minster is not visible from the entrance of the church. After seeing how this looks on Google Maps, how could Sally Wainwright have made it look like the 19th century?

The answer is obviously simple: a secondary filming location. Looking back at where the Ann(e)s got out of their carriage, the second location must be within a block of York Minster, with no shops visible to hide any 21st century modernization. After a lot of Google Maps searching, it looks like the location is Precentor’s Court, located directly across from the main entrance of York Minster.

York Minster really is beautiful ;_; 

Here’s how this street on Google Maps compares to the ones in the show.

So there it is!! We did it ladies we found it :’) 

In conclusion, the pre and post wedding scenes from Gentleman Jack were not filmed right outside Holy Trinity Church where Anne Lister and Ann Walker were married in real life, but on a separate road right across from York Minster. A gate was erected in the alley to replicate the entrance gate to Holy Trinity Church. 

As for the scenes shot in the church courtyard, all we can do assume that they are shot in the actual location, since Google Maps doesn’t have pictures of the courtyard available. The wedding was definitely shot in the church itself, since those scenes match up with pictures of the inside of the church.

And last question, the reason why I started looking here in the first place - where is the rainbow and blue plaque that says Anne Lister took sacrament here with Ann Walker?? I’m guessing it’s in the courtyard where I can’t see from Google Maps - but I swear one day I’ll visit Shibden and York just for it :)

[morganaspendragonss]

Rules: Pick 5 shows, then answer the following questions. Don’t cheat. Tag 10 (or however many) people.

I was tagged by @flamingmirrorbookish ! Thanks! I think I’ve done this one before so I’ll try and use different shows.

The Witcher

Élite

9-1-1 Lone Star

Gentleman Jack

Atlantis (BBC)

Who is your favourite character in 2?

Hmmm... Nadia, I think.

Who is your favourite character in 1?

I love most of them but I think Yennefer

What is your favourite episode of 4?

Oh yikes I don’t remember what they’re called. I really loved the last episode (1.08)

What is your favourite season of 5?

Both have their merits but I think 2 purely because of Pythagoras and Icarus

Who is your favourite couple in 3?

T.K. and Carlos

Who is your favourite couple in 2?

Guzmán and Nadia

What is your favourite episode of 1?

Ngl I watched it too quickly to have much of a sense of different episodes but I guess the first and last would be my favourites

What is your favourite episode of 5?

Something from season 2, I don’t really remember it all that well

What is your favourite season of 2?

Probably 2

How long have you watched 1?

Just over a week lmao

How did you become interested in 3?

I saw a few gifsets in tumblr that intrigued me so I went into the tag and searched YouTube for clips and it was a fast slide into obsession from there

Who is your favourite actor in 4?

I love Suranne Jones as Anne Lister

Which do you prefer: 1,2, or 5?

Probably 1 purely because Élite s3 was a mess and Atlantis got cancelled leading to an incredibly unsatisfactory finale

Which show have you seen more episodes of: 1 or 3?

Lone Star but only because it has 10 eps whereas The Witcher has 8

If you could be anyone from 4, who would you be?

I want to be Anne Lister but without all the capitalist landowner shtick. Basically I want her raw lesbian energy and ability to flirt with girls

Would a crossover between 3 and 4 work?

No not at all can you imagine lmao

Pair two characters in 1 that would make an unlikely but strangely okay couple

First instinct is Yennefer and Jaskier, but I’m also thinking Yennefer and Renfri would be quite interesting

Overall, which show has the better storyline: 3 or 5?

This is hard... I’m going to say Lone Star because Atlantis was so disappointing at the end, though I do think it also had a fantastic storyline

Which has better theme music: 2 or 4?

Élite has some pretty good music but nothing can beat the Gentleman Jack theme

It’s late and I’m on mobile so just anyone who sees this feel free to consider yourself tagged!

[sarah-crewe]

Tagged by: @jennamacaroni​ Rules: pick 5 shows, then answer the following questions, don’t cheat. tag 10 people

1. Charmed 2. Atypical 3. Killing Eve 4. Gentleman Jack 5. Parks and Rec

who is your favourite character in 2?  Casey but I like p. much everyone

who is your least favourite character in 1?  Ehhh... of like the REAL characters and not single episode guests, I guess maybe Cole? Or like whoever it was that Nick Lachey played? Basically, most of the men can fuck off. 

what is your favourite episode of 4? The final episode of the season, but tbh, they’re ALL good. 

what is your favourite season of 5? So many good seasons... I guess maybe season 5, but narrowly.

who is your favourite couple in 3?  When Villanelle gets laid. Villanelle and Eve for all their deliciousness?

who is your favourite couple in 2? Casey and Izzie duhhh

what is your favourite episode of 1? For absolutely no reason, I loved the episode when they went back to see themselves as little kids. I also liked the epsiode where Piper and Leo slept together and dream world and basically any big emotional episode for Piper. 

what is your favourite episode of 5?  How do you pick one? At this exact moment in time, I guess I’ll say Road Trip from season 3

what is your favourite season of 2?  Season 3

how long have you watched 1? Since 2005 I think. Maybe even earlier

how did you become interested in 3? Saw gifs on Tumblr from previews and stuff and needed more. I waited until the whole thing had aired though and then binged the first season.

who is your favourite actor in 4?  Sophie Rundle but by an itty bitty smidge

which do you prefer 1, 2 or 5?  I guess Parks is the biggest comfort show to me out of the three now, but they’re all for different moods. 

which show have you seen more episodes of 1 or 3?  There are one hundred and seventy eight episodes of Charmed and sixteen episodes of Killing Eve...

if you could be anyone from 4, who would you be?  Listen the mid-19th century does NOT sound that fun...

would a crossover between 3 and 4 work? you know, given some narrative wiggle room, I think Anne Lister and Villanelle could have some fun... 

pair two characters in 1 who would make an unlikely but strangely ok couple?  L A D I E S. ANY TWO NON RELATED LADIES!! It’s set in SanFran and there’s exactly ONE SUBTLY HINTED gay couple in the SEVENTH SEASON for ONE EPISODE and ONE OF THEM DIES.

overall, which show has the better storyline, 3 or 5? I mean lbr, there’s some great character development on Parks and stuff, but KE’s a masterpiece of writing. 

tagging @youstartedoutrandom @seemssostrange @thecrackshiplollipop @littleoases @also-angels @stennnn06 @lingeringlilies @venuscomb @ohhheyitsnic idk if you wanna do it, do it