My Newest Obsession: Poldark

How many of you ladies out there are hopeless romantics and love a good love story? Come on, raise your hands! I know who you are.

I for one absolutely adore a good love story with a handsome, strong leading man and a feisty, beautiful leading lady. Story of my life! Did you read my post on my infatuation with Gone With the Wind and how I came to marry my husband? If not, click here. Perhaps it was that in my own life, I had my parents' own love story to live by which seemed to span countries, continents and a lifetime of struggle.

As a young girl, I loved to watch classic movies. Maybe it was an escape from the reality that was happening outside my own door, living in Buenos Aires during the terrible dirty war where young so called "subversives" (those who may oppose the military dictatorship) were kidnapped, tortured, and never heard from again. Movies offered me a way to escape to another world when my own seemed so fragile and terrifying.

I cannot tell you how many times during my girlhood I fell head over heels in love with such dashing and memorable actors as Clark Gable, Rock Hudson, Errol Flynn and even some of those handsome Argentine actors of my youth such as Claudio Levrino ("Un Mundo de Veinte Asientos") and Rodolfo Beban ("El Gato").

My passion for a good love story followed me into adulthood. Now that my husband works nights as a Sommelier at a restaurant in the French Quarter, I find myself watching some wonderful English classics after I put the kids to bed. Call me nostalgic, I'm guilty.

My most recent love affair has been with the newly re-released "Poldark," a BBC television series based on the novels written by Winston Graham which was first transmitted in the UK between 1975 and 1977.

Hailed as a British Gone with the Wind, Poldark created a sensation on PBS's Masterpiece Theatre with its dashing, romantic hero and his infamous exploits. This classic miniseries demonstrates the enduring appeal of a gripping storyline and unforgettable characters.

Returning to Cornwall after the American Revolution, Capt. Ross Poldark (Robin Ellis) finds his life at home has fallen apart. His estate is in disarray. His former flame, Elizabeth (Jill Townsend), is engaged to his cousin. And his family's copper mines have become targets for the Poldarks' bitter rivals. Duels, smuggling, and attempted murders unfold as Ross strives to resurrect his fortunes and find true love, which he does in the feisty but beautiful, head strong Delmeza (Angharad Rees). This spellbinding saga dramatizes the deep rifts in British society on the brink of industrialization, played out against the rocky, ruggedly beautiful Cornish coast.

At first, I had to adjust to the whole 1970s Masterpiece Theatre style. I'll admit, as movies and filming have become more and more sophisticated and filled with special effects, you watch the first few episodes and feel that you are watching a home video of a live English play. But then you fall in love with all of it -- the filming, the sets, the costumes, the story, the characters, the actors, especially Robin Ellis -- the dashingly handsome Ross Poldark.

Trust me on this one, you will fall in love with Robin Ellis aka Ross Poldark.

And, as the episodes have rolled on (there are 29 episodes in this saga and I'm on 25!), I have become attached to them. Curious as a cat, I googled to see what happened to some of the actors. I'm sad to say that coincidentally, Richard Morant who played Dr. Dwight Enys in the first series of Poldark died suddenly in London on November 9, 2011 (just over a week ago). Angharad Rees lives in London and has a successful and beautiful jewelry collection that has been widely featured in movies and the press.

And my beloved Robin Ellis, well, he is well and every bit as handsome and fit and living in the South of France with his American wife, Meredith Wheeler (some women get all the luck, I tell you).

His life-long passion for cooking plus a diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes led to writing his first cook book, Delicious Dishes for Diabetics: A Mediterranean Way of Eating, recently published by Constable & Robinson on 4th August 2011 in the UK and by Skyhorse in the United States just this month (November 2011). It is available at local bookstores or online at www.amazon.co.uk or www.amazon.com.

Robin maintains a blog where he writes about his travels and cooking and can also be followed on Facebook and Twitter. How is it I know all this? Well, I'm his newest groupie! :)

And I'm certain you'll be too once you watch him in "Poldark" (now available for instant streaming on Netflix).

Hope you are having a fabulous weekend wherever this post finds you.