Premieres Sundays, May 4 – May 18, 2025 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV / PBS app
MISS AUSTEN takes a literary mystery – Cassandra Austen notoriously burning her famous sister Jane’s letters – and reimagines it as a fascinating, witty and heart-breaking story of sisterly love.
The drama begins in 1830, a while after Jane has died. Cassandra races to see her friend Isabella who is about to lose her home following her father’s death. Cassandra is ostensibly there to help, but her real motive is to find a stash of private letters which, in the wrong hands, could destroy Jane’s reputation.
7 Reasons You Need to Watch MISS AUSTEN
EPISODE GUIDE:
Episode 1: Premieres Sunday, May 4, 2025 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - The year is 1830 and a letter arrives for Cassandra Austen, relaying that her dearest friend Eliza’s husband, Fulwar Fowle, now lies on his deathbed at Kintbury. Arriving unannounced, Cassandra is met with a cool reception at first but soon forms a bond with Fulwar’s daughter Isabella. In the days after Fulwar’s death, Cassandra finally finds an opportunity to search the house, and the object of her search is revealed: the letters Jane wrote to Eliza throughout their friendship. Cassandra is keen that her sister’s private correspondence should not fall into the wrong hands.
Episode 2: Premieres Sunday, May 11, 2025 at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - Cassandra’s determination to keep Jane’s letters private is stronger than ever and is joined by a second objective: to secure a home for Isabella. Following a trip to town in hopes of helping Isabella, Cassandra begins to feel unwell, and the past comes crashing in with her recollections of the difficult years after her fiancé Tom’s death and the uncomfortable turn of events that followed at her brother’s grand estate in Kent.
Episode 3: Premieres Sunday, May 18 - part of the special two-episode finale at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - Cassandra’s fever is raging, and despite Dinah’s protestations, Isabella refuses to send for Mr. Lidderdale, insisting that she will nurse her herself. In her delirium, Cassandra nearly lets slip that she has Jane’s letters, but manages to keep Mary Austen from finding them. As she travels in and out of consciousness, Cassandra relives the dramatic events of her youth. Once better, parallels with the present, in which Cassandra is witnessing Isabella’s own eviction from the vicarage, prompt her to take drastic action about Isabella’s future.
Episode 4: Premieres Sunday, May 18 following the conclusion of Episode 3 as part of the special two-episode finale beginning at 9 p.m. on KPBS TV - Mr. Dundas and his wife prepare to move into the Kintbury vicarage, and the urgent question of Isabella’s future continues to occupy Cassandra. Though she learns the truth about Isabella and Lidderdale’s past, Cassandra is powerless to bring about a reconciliation. Dinah makes a reckless decision, imperiling her own life in order to change the course of Isabella’s. Upon arriving back at Chawton, Cassandra burns the letters in a final act to protect Jane’s legacy.
Watch On Your Schedule: MISS AUSTEN will be available to stream with the PBS app. Watch the best of PBS anytime, anywhere on the free PBS app. Stream your favorite PBS shows on-demand and livestreamm shows from your local station, all from your favorite device.
Credits: A co-production of Bonnie Productions and MASTERPIECE, in association with the BBC and Federation Stories. The Executive Producers are Christine Langan for Bonnie Productions, Susanne Simpson for MASTERPIECE and Polly Williams for Federation Stories. Keeley Hawes, Andrea Gibb and Aisling Walsh are also executive producers.
