(L-R) Dan Stevens, David Morrissey, Dominic Cooper, Hattie Morahan and Charity Wakefield star in Sense And Sensibility

David Morrissey, Hattie Morahan, Charity Wakefield, Dominic Cooper and Dan Stevens lead the cast in Andrew Davies’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic 19th-century novel.

Sense And Sensibility is a story of two young sisters – restrained, rational Elinor Dashwood and the wildly romantic, impulsive Marianne Dashwood – on a voyage of burgeoning sexual and romantic discovery.

The death of their father throws their privileged world into chaos. With no entitlement to his estate, they are forced to live in poverty. Although the sisters’ chances of marriage seem doomed, attractive men are drawn to them. Elinor becomes attached to the highly eligible Edward Ferrars – but why is he so guarded and secretive? Marianne attracts both war hero Colonel Brandon and glamorous, Byronic Willoughby.

But do these attachments represent true love, or are these men simply amusing themselves with the young heroines? With a sub-plot that features the seduction and abandonment of a 15-year old schoolgirl – not to mention a duel – the stakes are high.

In episode one, Mrs Dashwood is devastated when her beloved husband dies. The late Mr Dashwood’s estate and fortune are bequeathed by law to his son from a previous marriage, John Dashwood, to the delight of John’s rapacious wife, Fanny.

Mrs Dashwood and her daughters are forced to move to a tiny cottage on a cousin’s estate in Devonshire, to start their lives again. It is perhaps Elinor, the eldest daughter, who is most upset to leave her childhood home. She has fallen in love with Fanny’s brother, the kind and unassuming Edward Ferrars, who promises to come and visit her in her new home.

Meanwhile, Mrs Dashwood’s cousin, Sir John Middleton, ensures that the family settles into life in Devonshire. Before long, Elinor’s younger sister, Marianne, finds that she has an admirer in Sir John’s friend, Colonel Brandon. However, a rival soon emerges in the form of the dashing young neighbour, Willoughby, who rescues Marianne after a fall. As Elinor eagerly awaits the arrival of Edward, Marianne realises that she has two suitors to choose from…

Elinor Dashwood is played by Hattie Morahan, Marianne Dashwood by Charity Wakefield, Edward Ferrars by Dan Stevens, Colonel Brandon by David Morrissey, Willoughby by Dominic Cooper, Mrs Dashwood by Janet McTeer, John Dashwood by Mark Gatiss, Fanny by Claire Skinner and Sir John Middleton by Mark Williams.