Love in a Cold Climate
Encyclopedia
Love in a Cold Climate is a novel
by Nancy Mitford
, first published in 1949. The title is a direct quotation from George Orwell's
novel Keep The Aspidistra Flying
(1936).
. The time frame of Love in a Cold Climate is the same as The Pursuit of Love
, but the focus is on a different set of characters. Fanny remains the fictional narrator. In The Pursuit of Love, Fanny narrates the story of her cousin Linda Radlett. In Love in a Cold Climate, Fanny narrates the story of Polly, to whom Fanny is distantly related through her father's family. Lady Leopoldina [Polly] Hampton, is the only child of the supremely aristocratic and very rich Earl of Montdore [fictional title] and his wife, Sonia. Lady Montdore is a product of the minor ranks of the aristocracy and her marriage to an earl is regarded as a social coup on her part. She is depicted by Fanny, as an avaricious, greedy snob, but not without charm. Her thrusting personality, allied to her husband's impeccable social standing, riches and political influence makes her a formidable woman. Lady Montdore, unbeknown to Lord Montdore, takes advantage of her husband's reputation to forward her own career as a hostess and manipulator of her social circle. After 20 years of marriage and no children, "Sonia felt less than well." The result is Polly. So beautiful and so perfect, the narrator, Fanny, adores Polly, as do her parents. Fanny loses contact with Polly, when Lord Montdore is sent as Viceroy of India.
Fanny receives an invitation to visit the Mondores at Hampton, their country house upon the family's return from India. Fanny is torn between her affection for Polly and her anxiety about the complex social issues involved in such a visit. Her reunion with Polly is successful in that the two young women rekindle their childhood affection and establish a mature friendship. Fanny, the readers' informant, has great affection for Polly, but is aware of Polly's reticence in revealing her personal feelings. Unlike Fanny's Radlett cousins who "Told everything", Polly reveals little of herself. Slightly older than Fanny, Polly has "come out" in India and as such a beautiful and socially important debutante, is expected to have a very successful Season in London. Such is the standing of the Montdore family, a Royal marriage is not an unrealistic expectation. Indeed, there are Royal guests at Polly's Coming Out Ball. Polly however, is not very interested in society and the London Season. She tells Fanny that when she "came out " in India, she found the whole thing very boring. Love affairs, so common in India, do not interest Polly, but she is hoping that "in a cold climate", society will be less interested in love affairs. Lady Montdore, hoping that Polly will make an important marriage, is exasperated by her daughter's apparent indifference to love and marriage. "Important" potential suitors acknowledge that Polly is very beautiful, but find her cold and aloof. The self contained Polly reveals to no-one that she has been in love with her uncle, "Boy" Dougdale [the husband of her paternal aunt, Lady Patricia] since she was 14. Fanny and her Radlett cousins have long suspected that the sexually ambiguous "Boy" has pedophile tendencies and he is a joke amongst Fanny's cousins for his inappropriate touches and furtive, "lecherous" behaviour towards young girls. Polly marries her widowed uncle, shortly after her aunt's death, causing a scandal in her social circle and distressing her parents deeply. It is also known in these circles that Boy has been Lady Montdore's lover for many years, unbeknown to Polly. Polly is excluded from her father's will upon her marriage and she and Boy ostracised from society. They move to Sicily and away from Fanny for several years.
Polly's place in the family is filled by the heir to Lord Mountdore's entailed fortune and title, Cedric Hampton. Born in Nova Scotia to a minor member of the Montdore family, Cedric has cast off his colonial origins and has used his exceptional good looks and personal charm to establish a place within the homosexual milieu of the European aristocracy. Cedric has lived a life of luxury as the lover of rich and aristocratic men. Currently out of favour in that quarter, Cedric accepts an invitation to visit the Montdores. His natural love of beauty, innate good taste and his careful use of flattery, enable Cedric to win the affections of Lord and Lady Montdore and many others. Cedric focuses his attentions upon Lady Montdore in particular and encourages her to update her wardrobe and general appearance and revive her interest in social matters, which has diminished since the "loss" of her lover and her daughter. Lady Montdore uses Cedric's popularity and charm to reestablish herself as a leading society hostess, to Cedric's advantage.
Fanny, as a regular visitor to the Montdores, shares with her readers all of the activities of the Montdore household and Cedric soon becomes a close friend of Fanny. Polly, heavily pregnant, returns from Sicilly with Boy. The marriage has turned sour and Fanny notes that neither Polly nor Boy is in love any more. Polly is regularly visited by the elderly Duke of Paddington [a fictional title] while pregnant, who gifts her with luxurious flowers. Polly reconciles with her mother after bearing a child who dies shortly after its birth. Cedric and Boy meet and fall in love. "Cedric arranged the whole thing perfectly", according to Fanny. While Polly recovers from the difficult birth, Cedric whisks Boy and Lady Montdore to France, leaving Polly free to be carried off by the elderly Duke. While this outcome shocks the conservative social circles in which they mix, Fanny takes a broader minded view, pleased to see people she loves each finding happiness in their own way.
Don't Tell Alfred
(1960
) is a sequel
to the novel giving further insight into the married life of Fanny and Alfred.
can be spotted reading the Vintage Books
omnibus edition of The Pursuit of Love
and Love in a Cold Climate in Sex and the City 2
.
A copy of the same edition can also be seen in Wes Anderson
's short film Hotel Chevalier
.
Both versions were broadcast in the U.S. by PBS
as part of Masterpiece Theatre
.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
by Nancy Mitford
Nancy Mitford
Nancy Freeman-Mitford, CBE , styled The Hon. Nancy Mitford before her marriage and The Hon. Mrs Peter Rodd thereafter, was an English novelist and biographer, one of the Bright Young People on the London social scene in the inter-war years...
, first published in 1949. The title is a direct quotation from George Orwell's
George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
novel Keep The Aspidistra Flying
Keep the Aspidistra Flying
Keep the Aspidistra Flying, first published 1936, is a socially critical novel by George Orwell. It is set in 1930s London. The main theme is Gordon Comstock's romantic ambition to defy worship of the money-god and status, and the dismal life that results....
(1936).
Plot summary
Love in a Cold Climate is a companion volume to The Pursuit of LoveThe Pursuit of Love
The Pursuit of Love is a novel by Nancy Mitford, first published in 1945. It is the first in a trilogy about an upper-class family in the period between the wars...
. The time frame of Love in a Cold Climate is the same as The Pursuit of Love
The Pursuit of Love
The Pursuit of Love is a novel by Nancy Mitford, first published in 1945. It is the first in a trilogy about an upper-class family in the period between the wars...
, but the focus is on a different set of characters. Fanny remains the fictional narrator. In The Pursuit of Love, Fanny narrates the story of her cousin Linda Radlett. In Love in a Cold Climate, Fanny narrates the story of Polly, to whom Fanny is distantly related through her father's family. Lady Leopoldina [Polly] Hampton, is the only child of the supremely aristocratic and very rich Earl of Montdore [fictional title] and his wife, Sonia. Lady Montdore is a product of the minor ranks of the aristocracy and her marriage to an earl is regarded as a social coup on her part. She is depicted by Fanny, as an avaricious, greedy snob, but not without charm. Her thrusting personality, allied to her husband's impeccable social standing, riches and political influence makes her a formidable woman. Lady Montdore, unbeknown to Lord Montdore, takes advantage of her husband's reputation to forward her own career as a hostess and manipulator of her social circle. After 20 years of marriage and no children, "Sonia felt less than well." The result is Polly. So beautiful and so perfect, the narrator, Fanny, adores Polly, as do her parents. Fanny loses contact with Polly, when Lord Montdore is sent as Viceroy of India.
Fanny receives an invitation to visit the Mondores at Hampton, their country house upon the family's return from India. Fanny is torn between her affection for Polly and her anxiety about the complex social issues involved in such a visit. Her reunion with Polly is successful in that the two young women rekindle their childhood affection and establish a mature friendship. Fanny, the readers' informant, has great affection for Polly, but is aware of Polly's reticence in revealing her personal feelings. Unlike Fanny's Radlett cousins who "Told everything", Polly reveals little of herself. Slightly older than Fanny, Polly has "come out" in India and as such a beautiful and socially important debutante, is expected to have a very successful Season in London. Such is the standing of the Montdore family, a Royal marriage is not an unrealistic expectation. Indeed, there are Royal guests at Polly's Coming Out Ball. Polly however, is not very interested in society and the London Season. She tells Fanny that when she "came out " in India, she found the whole thing very boring. Love affairs, so common in India, do not interest Polly, but she is hoping that "in a cold climate", society will be less interested in love affairs. Lady Montdore, hoping that Polly will make an important marriage, is exasperated by her daughter's apparent indifference to love and marriage. "Important" potential suitors acknowledge that Polly is very beautiful, but find her cold and aloof. The self contained Polly reveals to no-one that she has been in love with her uncle, "Boy" Dougdale [the husband of her paternal aunt, Lady Patricia] since she was 14. Fanny and her Radlett cousins have long suspected that the sexually ambiguous "Boy" has pedophile tendencies and he is a joke amongst Fanny's cousins for his inappropriate touches and furtive, "lecherous" behaviour towards young girls. Polly marries her widowed uncle, shortly after her aunt's death, causing a scandal in her social circle and distressing her parents deeply. It is also known in these circles that Boy has been Lady Montdore's lover for many years, unbeknown to Polly. Polly is excluded from her father's will upon her marriage and she and Boy ostracised from society. They move to Sicily and away from Fanny for several years.
Polly's place in the family is filled by the heir to Lord Mountdore's entailed fortune and title, Cedric Hampton. Born in Nova Scotia to a minor member of the Montdore family, Cedric has cast off his colonial origins and has used his exceptional good looks and personal charm to establish a place within the homosexual milieu of the European aristocracy. Cedric has lived a life of luxury as the lover of rich and aristocratic men. Currently out of favour in that quarter, Cedric accepts an invitation to visit the Montdores. His natural love of beauty, innate good taste and his careful use of flattery, enable Cedric to win the affections of Lord and Lady Montdore and many others. Cedric focuses his attentions upon Lady Montdore in particular and encourages her to update her wardrobe and general appearance and revive her interest in social matters, which has diminished since the "loss" of her lover and her daughter. Lady Montdore uses Cedric's popularity and charm to reestablish herself as a leading society hostess, to Cedric's advantage.
Fanny, as a regular visitor to the Montdores, shares with her readers all of the activities of the Montdore household and Cedric soon becomes a close friend of Fanny. Polly, heavily pregnant, returns from Sicilly with Boy. The marriage has turned sour and Fanny notes that neither Polly nor Boy is in love any more. Polly is regularly visited by the elderly Duke of Paddington [a fictional title] while pregnant, who gifts her with luxurious flowers. Polly reconciles with her mother after bearing a child who dies shortly after its birth. Cedric and Boy meet and fall in love. "Cedric arranged the whole thing perfectly", according to Fanny. While Polly recovers from the difficult birth, Cedric whisks Boy and Lady Montdore to France, leaving Polly free to be carried off by the elderly Duke. While this outcome shocks the conservative social circles in which they mix, Fanny takes a broader minded view, pleased to see people she loves each finding happiness in their own way.
Don't Tell Alfred
Don't Tell Alfred
Don't Tell Alfred is a novel by Nancy Mitford, first published in 1960 by Hamish Hamilton. It is the third in a trilogy centered around an upper-class English family, and takes place twenty years after the events of The Pursuit of Love and Love in a Cold Climate.-Plot:As in the previous novels,...
(1960
1960 in literature
The year 1960 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*November 2 – Penguin Books is found not guilty of obscenity in the Lady Chatterley's Lover case in the United Kingdom....
) is a sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to the novel giving further insight into the married life of Fanny and Alfred.
In popular culture
Carrie BradshawCarrie Bradshaw
Carrie Preston is the fictional narrator and lead character of the HBO sitcom/drama Sex and the City, portrayed by actress Sarah Jessica Parker. She is a semi-autobiographical character created by Candace Bushnell, who published the book Sex and the City, based on her own columns in the New York...
can be spotted reading the Vintage Books
Vintage Books
Vintage Books is a publishing imprint founded in 1954 by Alfred A. Knopf. Its publishing list includes world literature, fiction, and non-fiction...
omnibus edition of The Pursuit of Love
The Pursuit of Love
The Pursuit of Love is a novel by Nancy Mitford, first published in 1945. It is the first in a trilogy about an upper-class family in the period between the wars...
and Love in a Cold Climate in Sex and the City 2
Sex and the City 2
Sex and the City 2 is a 2010 American romantic comedy film directed by Michael Patrick King. It is the sequel to the 2008 film Sex and the City, which is based on the HBO TV series of the same name....
.
A copy of the same edition can also be seen in Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson
Wesley Wales Anderson is an American film director, screenwriter, actor, and producer of features, short films and commercials....
's short film Hotel Chevalier
Hotel Chevalier
Hotel Chevalier is a short film written and directed by Wes Anderson and released in 2007. Starring Jason Schwartzman and Natalie Portman as former lovers who reunite in a Paris hotel room, the 13-minute film acts as a prologue to Anderson's 2007 feature The Darjeeling Limited...
.
Television adaptations
Love in a Cold Climate has been adapted twice as a miniseries:- in 1980 by Simon RavenSimon RavenSimon Arthur Noël Raven was an English novelist, essayist, dramatist and raconteur who, in a writing career of forty years, caused controversy, amusement and offence...
for Thames TelevisionThames TelevisionThames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....
starring Lucy GutteridgeLucy GutteridgeLucy Karima Gutteridge is an English actress.Gutteridge was born in London, the eldest daughter of Bernard Hugh Gutteridge by his marriage to Nabila Farah Karima Halim, the daughter of Prince Muhammad Said Bey Halim of Egypt and his British second wife, Nabila Malika...
, Rosalyn LandorRosalyn LandorRosalyn Landor is an English film, television, and stage actress and audio book narrator.-Early life:Landor was born in London. She began her career at the age of seven, when she appeared in the Hammer Horror film The Devil Rides Out .-Career:In 1970 she appeared with Susannah York in Jane Eyre,...
, Michael AldridgeMichael AldridgeMichael William ffolliott Aldridge was an English actor. While it was his role as Seymour in the television series Last of the Summer Wine which made him widely recognised, his long career as a successful character actor on stage and screen dated back to the 1930s.-Early life:The son of Dr...
, Judi DenchJudi DenchDame Judith Olivia "Judi" Dench, CH, DBE, FRSA is an English film, stage and television actress.Dench made her professional debut in 1957 with the Old Vic Company. Over the following few years she played in several of William Shakespeare's plays in such roles as Ophelia in Hamlet, Juliet in Romeo...
, Vivian PicklesVivian PicklesVivian Pickles , is an English actress.She began her career as a child star after being chosen by Mary Field for a series of Saturday Morning children's films, including the lead roles in Jean's Plan and the serial The Adventures of Peter Joe...
and Jean-Pierre CasselJean-Pierre CasselJean-Pierre Cassel was a French actor.-Life and career:Cassel was born Jean-Pierre Crochon in Paris, the son of Louise-Marguerite , an opera singer, and Georges Crochon, a doctor. Cassel was discovered by Gene Kelly as he tap danced on stage, and later cast in the 1957 film The Happy Road...
- - in 2001 by Deborah MoggachDeborah MoggachDeborah Moggach is an English writer. She has written sixteen novels to date, including The Ex-Wives, Tulip Fever, and, most recently, These Foolish Things. She has adapted many of her novels as TV dramas and has also written several film scripts, including the BAFTA-nominated screenplay for Pride...
for the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
starring Elisabeth Dermot-WalshElisabeth Dermot-WalshElisabeth Dermot Walsh is an English actress, known for portraying Elizabeth in Falling for a Dancer and Dr Zara Carmichael in Doctors.-Background:...
(Love in a Cold ClimateLove in a Cold Climate (TV serial)Love in a Cold Climate is a British television serial drama produced by the BBC in association with WGBH Boston, and first broadcast in two parts on BBC One on 4 and 11 February 2001...
)
Both versions were broadcast in the U.S. by PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
as part of Masterpiece Theatre
Masterpiece Theatre
Masterpiece is a drama anthology television series produced by WGBH Boston. It premiered on Public Broadcasting Service on January 10, 1971, making it America's longest-running weekly prime time drama series. The series has presented numerous acclaimed British productions...
.