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Product Description

Sarah Hollis Andrews stars as Mary Lennox, a lonely and spoiled girl who is sent to live with her uncle in the wake of her parents' death. In his dark and foreboding manor, her life is transformed by unexpected friendships and a surprising, hidden fantasy world. Impeccably mounted, with a literate script and superb performances, this magnificent BBC production is among the most acclaimed adaptations of Frances Hodgson Burnetts classic childrens novel that has captivated generations of readers.

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Though there are several notable film adaptations of Frances Hodgson Burnetts classic childrens story about an orphan girl and a bedridden boy, this 1975 BBC rendition is among the most acclaimed for its understated British elegance, superb performances, and faithful adherence to the books essence. Sarah Hollis Andrews plays Mary Lennox, a spoiled, neglected child living in 19th century India who is suddenly orphaned after an outbreak of cholera. She is sent to live with her uncle, Archibald Craven, in his estate on the Yorkshire moors of England. Thus begins Marys new life at Misselthwaite Manor, and soon, the rough edges of her contrary nature begin to soften through the kindness of house servants--especially Martha (Jacqueline Hoyle)--and the discovery of a beautiful, hidden garden. The manor contains another mystery, Cravens allegedly crippled son, Colin, bedridden for years and as feisty as Mary. When the cousins finally meet, their cantankerous spirits clash before a friendship ensues, thanks to the magical touch of Dickon (Andrew Harrison). The same enchantment that turns a colorless garden into an infusion of brilliant hues works to make a boy walk and a family heal. This version (seven 30-minute episodes) is more kid-friendly than its 1993 counterpart (which took lavish dramatic license) and is so authentic to the original story that much of the script is verbatim from the booka point literary purists will cheer--not to mention the deliciously flawless Yorkshire accents. (Ages 8 and older) --Lynn Gibson

Product details

Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.33:1
Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ Unrated (Not Rated)
Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.75 x 5.75 x 0.53 inches; 4 ounces
Media Format ‏ : ‎ Color, Closed-captioned, NTSC, DVD, Full Screen
Run time ‏ : ‎ 3 hours and 30 minutes
Release date ‏ : ‎ July 12, 2005
Actors ‏ : ‎ Sarah Hollis Andrews, John Woodnutt, Jacqueline Hoyle, Hope Johnstone, William Marsh
Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English
Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
Studio ‏ : ‎ Homevision
ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0009KQPAK
Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1

Best Sellers Rank: #67,784 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
- #5,175 in Kids & Family DVDs

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4.3 446 ratings

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4.3 out of 5

446 global ratings

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Laura Runkle

True to the Book

Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2024

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This is the most beautifully done, true-to-the-book retelling. I absolutely loved this movie. The only thing that was missing was when the children explored the mansion and all those closed-up rooms (which was in the book but not the movie). Hollis-Andrew did an amazing job portraying Mary Lennox. The movie made me nostaglic and made me wish I could explore Mistlethwaite myself. It's a classic that I will watch again and again and again. My favorite Secret Garden movie I've ever seen.

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MattB

Comparison with Other Versions

Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2022

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First, here's a rundown of most of the others:
1949 Margaret O'Brien version: Not bad, very 40's, terrible music (sounds like it was written for The Wizard of Oz), b&w (except for the garden), melodramatic and rather gothic, Elsa Lanchester as Martha was incredibly annoying (constantly erupting in a phony, humorless titter, you can understand why Mary can't stand her), but the kids were not bad, though Dean Stockwell as Colin looked way too healthy and stocky for the part (not to mention sounding American).
1987 Hallmark Hall of Fame version: the less said the better -- truly terrible, with American children who can't act and a woefully miscast Barrett Oliver as Dickon. Yikes.
1993 Agnieszka Holland version: the most gloriously lyrical of the bunch - gorgeous cinematography, beautiful music and writing, and, though Archibald was kind of creepy, the rest were strong performances all around including probably the best Dickon of them all.
2017 steampunk version: um, oookay, no.
2020 Colin Firth version: terrific Mary and Dickon, Martha mostly sidelined, Colin (the son) an interestingly different take on the character, the most over-the-top garden of them all, and the magic was overt rather than subtle and natural. All versions make changes from the book which is fine, they are Adaptations not crib notes, but this one makes the biggest changes for no particularly discernible reason, changes that are mostly random and unnecessary.
The Lucy Simon Broadway musical version: pretty wonderful and magical in many ways, but too much time spent with Archibald and his brother mooning around over Lily. And having an adult play Dickon was kind of creepy.

And now this version: it suffers from all the shortcomings of the BBC in the 70s - low budget, dingy looking with poor lighting, a sad little garden, and yet ... the most consistently delightful of them all. They made all the right choices, didn't create any unnecessary villains, made it very clear why Colin was the way he was, didn't overhype the drama, but just let it play out gently and compassionately. They find the humor that's there in the book but usually ignored in other versions. But mostly it's the performances that make it so delightful: Martha and her mother, the nurse and doctor, John and Ben Weatherstaff, even Mrs. Medlock turns out to be a decent human being. Most especially it's the relationship between Colin and Mary -- every scene when they're together is just terrific, as if they really are cousins learning for the first time what it's like to have a friend, and to be one. Other versions may be more lavish or beautiful, but this one is just joyous, and is the one we keep coming back to.

16 people found this helpful

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C. rowell

Realistic and touching to watch!!

Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2007

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I recently watched an abridged version of this movie and plan to purchase the full version as I want to know what sections are missing and because I love the way the British depict a story. What was shown in the l00 plus minutes to me was lovely to say the least! I would not say that this film was cheaply made at all, in fact I was impressed with the decors of the rooms, the dress of the characters and the look of the large home from outside and the countryside. Yes, there is slight grainy filming only when the characters go outside, but it is not really that bad and when they enter the garden it looks normal like the inside of the house. To me this did not take away from the film. I also enjoyed the accents of the characters and the interaction between characters. I did not find it hard at all to understand their speech and I felt that the characters had great concern and emotion for one another. I was surprised that Colin's father actually appeared normal and rather nice because I had watched two other versions of this movie and felt the 1993 version though beautiful to watch was not so realistic nor did I feel the characters were as loving towards one another especially the head maid and Colin's father toward Colin or Mary. The father was extremely unrealistic and foreboding in that version. I watched the 1949 version and the acting was somewhat overdone and the movie was dark overall. I felt in this BBC version that all the characters started out somewhat disliking one another but all came around and even Colin's father and the head maid showed care and concern for Mary and I was happy that it was a very happy story. I also liked the character development and much interaction between the maids and the children without hatred shown and the sets were just right and not fake at all. The garden was just that...a garden a realistic garden. I can't wait to see the longer version because the pace of the BBC movies is nice and slow giving time to developing the characters!! If you like realism and getting to know the characters without a lot of overplay and hype this is the version for you!!

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Teresa Mateus Cordeiro

DVD de O Jardim Secreto

Reviewed in Spain on June 14, 2023

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Corresponde ao esperado

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Patzee

If you liked A Little Princess you'll love this.

Reviewed in Canada on January 12, 2018

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This is the best version of the movies made from the book.

Damiano

The secret garden (Il giardino segreto) BBC 1975 - la serie integrale

Reviewed in Italy on November 15, 2019

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Bellissima miniserie televisiva in sette puntate prodotta dalla BBC nel 1975 e molto più fedele al romanzo originale di Frances Hodgson Burnett rispetto al famoso film del 1993 con Maggie Smith. Sebbene la miniserie sia girata in studio, l'interpretazione é davvero eccellente e le scenografie davvero molto suggestive, che rispecchiano molto la storia originale. Sono molto soddisfatto di questo acquisto,perché il dvd contiene la serie nella sua versione integrale (7 puntate da 24 minuti ciascuna), mentre la vecchia Vhs aveva solo un film di montaggio che durava appena 107 minuti in totale. Questa sarà sicuramente un'ottima miniserie per la famiglia nelle prossime festività natalizie.

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THE SECRET GARDEN [1975 / 2005] [DVD] [BBC Children’s Classic]

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 26, 2018

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THE SECRET GARDEN [1975 / 2005] [DVD] [BBC Children’s Classic] The BBC’s Classic adaption of the Frances Hodgson Burnett’s most loved story!

This enchanting children's classic tells the story of a spoilt, lonely orphan girl whose life is transformed by a secret garden.

After her parents die, Mary Lennox [Sarah Hollis Andrews] is sent to live with her embittered Uncle's sad and gloomy house on the Yorkshire moors. Left in the care of the servants, the arrogant child soon befriends the maid’s brother Dickon and gets bedridden cousin Colin, and the three of them find new happiness in an overgrown hidden garden which weaves its magic on all who enter its walls. It is a touching tale of self-reliance, newfound laughter and innocent faith.

This BBC production was originally broadcast in 1975. For the first time this DVD brings together all seven digitally remastered episodes to delight both young and old alike.

FILM FACT: The BBC drama was nominated for a British Academy Television Award in 1976 in the drama/entertainment category, and in 1979 it was nominated in the children's entertainment series category at the 1979 Daytime Emmy Awards.

Cast: Sarah Hollis Andrews, Hope Johnstone, William Marsh, Jennie Goossens, Jacqueline Hoyle, John Woodnutt, Tom Harrison, David Patterson, Lorraine Peters, Andrew Harrison, Richard Warner, Basil Clarke, Alison Lowndes, Gabrielle Hamilton, John Linstrum, Liza Kendrick, Jonathan Wall, Richard Beaumont, Tracy Mottau, Lysbeth Stevens, Binu Balani, Ray Dunbobbin, Clifford Cox and Charles Collingwood

Director: Dorothea Brooking

Producers: Anna Home and Dorothea Brooking

Screenplay: Dorothea Brooking and Frances Hodgson Burnett (novel)

Composers: Carl Neilson and Ronald Binge

Cinematography: John Baker

Image Resolution: 480i and 1080i

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1

Audio: English: 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio

Subtitles: English SDH

Running Time: 200 minutes

Region: Region B/2

Number of discs: 1

Studio: 2|Entertain Video

Andrew’s DVD Review: ‘THE SECRET GARDEN’ [1975] was a wonderful mini-series of its time, that was in seven parts of half an hour each episode, and made by the wonderful BBC and adapted very close to the book by the author Frances Hodgson Burnett and despite being slightly drawn out and a tad slow, but at the same time it is a very enchanting Victorian drama for the whole family.

Mary Lennox [Sarah Hollis Andrews] is a ten-year-old upper class English girl who lives in India with her parents. She is incredibly spoiled and generally disagreeable. Her parents, and pretty much everyone else too, get wiped out with cholera, but Mary Lennox is forgotten about and eventually found by a couple of British soldiers and gets shipped off to her uncle in Yorkshire.

The Yorkshire setting is at Misselthwaite Manor, of Mr. Archibald Craven’s [John Woodnutt] home, is being looked after by the strict, no-nonsense housekeeper, Mrs. Medlock [Hope Johnstone], and Mary Lennox, in turn, is being looked after by the wholesome Yorkshire lass Martha [Jacqueline Hoyle], who is stunned by the girl’s inability to do even the simplest of things on her own, such as dressing herself.

Eventually, being bored with the exceedingly gloomy and gothic house, Mary Lennox finds her way outdoors, and discovers the gardens and befriends a gardener and a robin, and Martha Lennox’s brother Dickon [Andrew Harrison], who cannot just keep a secret; and he seems to be able to talk with the animals of the moor. Mary Lennox also stumbles upon two great mysteries: a secret garden that’s been shut up for the past ten years, and a wailing, crying in the night.

The secret garden gets discovered, obviously, and the crying turns out to be that of Colin Craven [David Patterson Mr. Archibald Craven’s sickly boy, who astonishingly enough is even more stuck-up and “contrary” than Mary Lennox herself! Question is, is he really as sickly as he and everyone else thinks he is, or is there hope for the would-be hunchback?

It is a very heart-warming story and it’s all about finding life where you might think there is none. The only slight downside is the artificial sets, because the secret garden was built in the studio, but you have to understand that was the way the BBC did these types of dramas in 1975, plus the slow pacing of the story line and the stock shots of a robin on a tree branch who helped Mary Lennox find the secret garden. But a big plus was seeing the wonderful animals in their natural setting and adds to a wonderful ambient atmosphere and charm of this BBC drama min-series. What is also good about this DVD is that you can watch the seven episodes in one go or you catch each episode separate.

DVD Image Quality – 2|Entertain Video brings you this wonderful and entertaining BBC mini-drama series. Shot in 1975 and the production suffers from some of the drawbacks of the medium in that period of the 1970s, because the outdoor scenes were shot in 16mm film and the interior shots were filmed with video tape, so you get different image resolution. Colours will seem rather flat with the outdoor scenes, detail is indistinct and black levels are lacking slightly. There is some murkiness to most outdoor scenes, and inserted film pieces stand out for their grain levels. There is plenty of flaring, whites are often slightly blown out, and some banding appears as does some ghosting and the odd dropout. There are a few minor compression issues. Most, if not all, of these are due to the original source, and are not things I could see easily corrected, but despite this, this is the best you will experience and of course being released on a DVD the image resolution will be slightly below par, but despite this, I am still pleased to finally have this classic BBC mini-series. Playback Region B/2: This will not play on most Blu-ray players sold in North America, Central America, South America, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. Learn more about Blu-ray region specifications.

DVD Audio Quality – 2|Entertain Video presents us with just one standard 2.0 Dolby Digital Stereo Audio which is very respectable, with no major technical flaws. Dialogue is often excessively sibilant, which can sometimes now and again you get a slight hissing sound, and especially with the actress Hope Johnstone [Mrs. Medlock] where the voice sometimes suffers the most. The thick accents may also be a challenge for some people, especially for an American audience, but luckily you have the English SDH subtitles to help out people who are not adjusted to a very heavy Yorkshire accent. There is some background hiss due to the location recording. Despite these issues, there is nothing really unexpected here and this is the best you will ever experience and I do not expect an upgrade in the far off distance.

DVD Special Features and Extras:

Special Feature: The Secret Garden Gallery [1975] [480i] [1.33:1] [2005] Here you get to view 31 images from the BBC mini-drama TV Series ‘The Secret Garden.’ What you get to view is the English children's television producer and director Dorothea Brooking’s wonderful images of scenes from the film set that was given to Sarah Hollis Andrews during filming. What you also get to view is some black-and-white illustrated drawings by the production designer Guthrie Hutton, plus you also get to view some colour and black-and-white images of scenes of the actors rehearsing. To view all the images you have to click on the word NEXT to move to the next image.

Special Feature: The Secret Garden Quiz [2005] [480i] [1.33:1] Here you get asked several questions about the BBC mini-drama TV Series ‘The Secret Garden.’ With each question you get given three options to guess the right answer and at the very end of the many questions asked, you are given a score on how many questions you answered correctly.

Special Feature: Cast Interview: Remembering The Secret Garden [2005] [1080i] [1.33:1] [11:33] Here we get a very nice intimate thoughts from the main character actors who appeared in the BBC mini-drama TV Series ‘The Secret Garden, and the actors that are featured in this special feature are Jacqueline Hoyle [Martha], Andrew Harrison [Dickon], Sarah Hollis Andrews [Mary Lennox] and David Patterson [Colin Craven] and was filmed in The Geffrye Museum which is located in Shoreditch area of London. Here they have a set load of questions asked via specially printed cards. They are asked about their specific parts in the dramatization of the Frances Hodgson Burnett novel. They all give great insight into their character roles in The Secret Garden. They also get asked what was there favourite scenes they performed in, as well as their most memorable and funny scenes they were filmed in. They are also asked who were there favourite cast and crew members. They are of course asked have they ever received fan mail and ever been recognised from their character in ‘The Secret Garden’ then and now. Also have they carried on with their acting careers and if so what have they appeared in. Finally, they are asked how do they feel meeting up after 30 years since appearing in ‘The Secret Garden.’ So all in all this is a really nice special feature and seeing how far the actors have aged and they look really good and they feel very honoured to have participated and enjoyed appearing in ‘The Secret Garden.’

Special Feature: Author Profile of Frances Hodgson Burnett [2005] [1080i] [1.33:1] Here we get an in-depth information about the author Frances Hodgson Burnett [1849 – 1924] and was a British novelist and playwright. Frances Hodgson Burnett is best known for the three children's novels Little Lord Fauntleroy (published in 1885–1886), A Little Princess (1905), and The Secret Garden (1911). Frances Eliza Hodgson was born in Cheetham, Manchester, England. After her father died in 1852, the family fell on straitened circumstances and in 1865 emigrated to the United States, settling in Jefferson City, Tennessee. There Frances began writing to help earn money for the family, publishing stories in magazines from the age of 19. In 1870, her mother died, and in 1872 Frances married Swan Burnett, who became a medical doctor. The Burnett’s lived for two years in Paris, where their two sons were born, before returning to the United States to live in Washington, where Frances Hodgson Burnett then began to write novels, the first of which was published to good reviews was Little Lord Fauntleroy (1886) and made her a popular writer of children's fiction, although her romantic adult novels written in the 1890s were also popular. She wrote and helped to produce stage versions of Little Lord Fauntleroy and A Little Princess. Frances Hodgson Burnett enjoyed socializing and lived a lavish lifestyle. Beginning in the 1880s, she began to travel to England frequently and in the 1890s bought a home there, where she wrote The Secret Garden. Her oldest son, Lionel, died of tuberculosis in 1890, which caused a relapse of the depression she had struggled with for much of her life. Frances Hodgson Burnett divorced Swan Burnett in 1898, married Stephen Townsend in 1900, and divorced him in 1902. A few years later she settled in Nassau County, Long Island, where she died in 1924 and is buried in Roslyn Cemetery. In 1936 a memorial sculpture by Bessie Potter Vonnoh was erected in her honour in Central Park's Conservatory Garden. The statue depicts her two famous Secret Garden characters, Mary and Dickon.

Finally, ‘THE SECRET GARDEN’ was a brilliant BBC drama mini-series that is completely truthful to the book of author Frances Hodgson Burnett. The story is developed carefully and thoroughly, and presented in great detail. The characters are rich and a true reflection of what people were like in Victorian England and especially in Yorkshire and again are completely truthful to the very enchanting book. The story is developed carefully and thoroughly, and presented in great detail and the characters are rich and show us what life was really like in the Victorian era. The Yorkshire countryside is faithfully portrayed as only the BBC drama department know how. It is delightful to enjoy true Yorkshire accents which are an important theme in the book, especially if they are sometimes difficult to understand for an American audience. The secret garden is gentle and real, which over time really blooms. Yes there are some minor flaws where some lines are actually flubbed in a couple of the final episodes, but really they are inconsequential. If you have taken the time to read the book, then by all means take the time to see this delightful BBC drama, because you will be glad you did. I also am so pleased that the BBC decided to offer all seven episodes put back to back after all these years. Watching this on BBC DVD brought tears to my eyes because it is such a wonderful and authentic version of the book and it took me right back to the time when I first saw this BBC min-drama series in 1975. Highly Recommended!

Andrew C. Miller – Your Ultimate No.1 Film Aficionado
Le Cinema Paradiso
United Kingdom

16 people found this helpful

2277

画質は当時のままだが原作好きにおすすめ。

Reviewed in Japan on June 21, 2022

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児童文学は映像作品化されるとやたら改変されて残念に思う人も多いかもしれないが
BBC制作の本作は原作に沿った作品です。
英字幕も出るので英語の勉強にも良さそうです。

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The Secret Garden (1975) [DVD]

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Format	Color, Closed-captioned, NTSC, DVD, Full Screen
Contributor	Sarah Hollis Andrews, Hope Johnstone, Jennie Goossens, Basil Clarke, Alison Lowndes, Tom Harrison, Jacqueline Hoyle, John Woodnutt, William Marsh, David Patterson, Lorraine Peters, Andrew Harrison See more
Language	English
Runtime	3 hours and 30 minutes