Uploaded April 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Shakespeare Network Educational Programme - Leo Tolstoy`s masterpiece has been adapted many times for film and television, but never with such care and attention to detail. Made by the BBC (10 Episodes - Series), this definitive version first aired on Masterpiece Theatre in 1977 and has been a fan favorite ever since.
Set in Imperial Russia in the 1870s, this is an epic tale of passion, betrayal, society, and the search for happiness. Nicola Pagett (Upstairs, Downstairs) stars as Anna - young, beautiful, and trapped in a loveless marriage to the high-minded, much older Karenin (Eric Porter, The Forsyte Saga). When she meets debonair cavalry officer Count Vronsky (Stuart Wilson, The Age of Innocence) on a Moscow train platform, she can`t resist looking back.
Anna Karenina is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Tolstoy called it his first true novel. It was initially released in serial installments from 1875 to 1877, all but the last part appearing in the periodical The Russian Messenger. By the time he was finishing up the last installments, Tolstoy was in an anguished state of mind and, having come to hate it, finished it unwillingly.
The novel deals with themes of betrayal, faith, family, marriage, Imperial Russian society, desire, and the differences between rural and urban life. The story centres on an extramarital affair between Anna and cavalry officer Count Alexei Kirillovich Vronsky that scandalises the social circles of Saint Petersburg and forces the young lovers to flee to Italy in a search for happiness, but after they return to Russia, their lives further unravel.
Subtitles "YouTube Translator": En, Fr, De, It, Es, Pt, He, Ja, Zh, Hi
Watch Part I - Episodes 1-3: youtu.be/fU5E0Bj-PEs
Watch Part II - Episodes 4-6: youtu.be/BOmDmYOlJB4
Watch Part III - Episodes 7-10: youtu.be/x0x76TtqIpY
YOUTUBE MEMBERSHIPS - Please choose your membership level and provide recurring support for our Education Programs, Archives, and In-house Productions - Your support truly makes a difference! - youtube.com/channel/UCBD1uffdDBLhkapQvl3EBmg/join
CHANNEL SUBSCRIPTION - Please consider subscribing to our channel - youtube.com/user/ShakespeareNetwork?sub_confirmation=1
Cast
Nicola Pagett - Anna Karenina
Stuart Wilson - Vronsky
Davyd Harries - Stiva
Carole Nimmons - Dolly
Eric Porter - Karenin
Robert Swann - Levin
Caroline Langrishe - Kitty
Marilyn Le Conte - Annushka
Paul Spurrier - Seriozha
Sheila Gish - Princess Betsy
Patricia Lawrence - Princess Shcherbatsky
Geoffrey Toone - Prince Shcherbatsky
David Gwillim - Petritsky
Margot Van der Burgh - Lydia
April Walker - Paula
Mary Morris - Countess Vronsky
Anna Wing - Agafea
Directed by Basil Coleman
Subtitles "YouTube Translator": Fr, De, It, Es, Pt, He, Ja, Zh, Hi
Read Shakespeare's Complete Works online for free: shakespearenetwork.net/works
_______________________________
Screen Adaptation - Co-Production : MISANTHROPOS – Official Website - misanthropos.net
Adapted by Maximianno Cobra, from Shakespeare's "Timon of Athens", the film exposes the timeless challenge of social hypocrisy, disillusion and annihilation against the poetics of friendship, love, and beauty.
IMDb page: imdb.com/title/tt6946736
_______________________________
Support Us - Donations:
Why Donate?
Donations to Shakespeare Network help sustain free knowledge and educational programs on Shakespeare Network and our ecosystem of Shakespeare Network projects. Your contributions ensure these resources remain accessible and valuable for all. Thank you.
25% Direct support to website / 25% Administration and governance / 50% Direct support to communities.
Contact us for further info. →
______________________________________
Shakespeare Network Educational Program:
- A Companion to Shakespeare -masterclasses, reviews, reactions, Academic Studies, historical and original audio-visual content, etc.
Enjoy unlimited ad-free YouTube videos with YouTube Premium. Subscribe now and watch without interruptions. [ Link to YouTube Premium - youtube.com/premium ]
Shakespeare Network Educational Programme - Leo Tolstoy`s masterpiece has been adapted many times for film and television, but never with such care and attention to detail. Made by the BBC (10 Episodes - Series), this definitive version first aired on Masterpiece Theatre in 1977 and has been a fan favorite ever since.
Set in Imperial Russia in the 1870s, this is an epic tale of passion, betrayal, society, and the search for happiness. Nicola Pagett (Upstairs, Downstairs) stars as Anna - young, beautiful, and trapped in a loveless marriage to the high-minded, much older Karenin (Eric Porter, The Forsyte Saga). When she meets debonair cavalry officer Count Vronsky (Stuart Wilson, The Age of Innocence) on a Moscow train platform, she can`t resist looking back.
Anna Karenina is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Tolstoy called it his first true novel. It was initially released in serial installments from 1875 to 1877, all but the last part appearing in the periodical The Russian Messenger. By the time he was finishing up the last installments, Tolstoy was in an anguished state of mind and, having come to hate it, finished it unwillingly.
The novel deals with themes of betrayal, faith, family, marriage, Imperial Russian society, desire, and the differences between rural and urban life. The story centres on an extramarital affair between Anna and cavalry officer Count Alexei Kirillovich Vronsky that scandalises the social circles of Saint Petersburg and forces the young lovers to flee to Italy in a search for happiness, but after they return to Russia, their lives further unravel.
Subtitles "YouTube Translator": En, Fr, De, It, Es, Pt, He, Ja, Zh, Hi
Watch Part I - Episodes 1-3: youtu.be/fU5E0Bj-PEs
Watch Part II - Episodes 4-6: youtu.be/BOmDmYOlJB4
Watch Part III - Episodes 7-10: youtu.be/x0x76TtqIpY
YOUTUBE MEMBERSHIPS - Please choose your membership level and provide recurring support for our Education Programs, Archives, and In-house Productions - Your support truly makes a difference! - youtube.com/channel/UCBD1uffdDBLhkapQvl3EBmg/join
CHANNEL SUBSCRIPTION - Please consider subscribing to our channel - youtube.com/user/ShakespeareNetwork?sub_confirmation=1
Cast
Nicola Pagett - Anna Karenina
Stuart Wilson - Vronsky
Davyd Harries - Stiva
Carole Nimmons - Dolly
Eric Porter - Karenin
Robert Swann - Levin
Caroline Langrishe - Kitty
Marilyn Le Conte - Annushka
Paul Spurrier - Seriozha
Sheila Gish - Princess Betsy
Patricia Lawrence - Princess Shcherbatsky
Geoffrey Toone - Prince Shcherbatsky
David Gwillim - Petritsky
Margot Van der Burgh - Lydia
April Walker - Paula
Mary Morris - Countess Vronsky
Anna Wing - Agafea
Directed by Basil Coleman
Subtitles "YouTube Translator": Fr, De, It, Es, Pt, He, Ja, Zh, Hi
Read Shakespeare's Complete Works online for free: shakespearenetwork.net/works
_______________________________
Screen Adaptation - Co-Production : MISANTHROPOS – Official Website - misanthropos.net
Adapted by Maximianno Cobra, from Shakespeare's "Timon of Athens", the film exposes the timeless challenge of social hypocrisy, disillusion and annihilation against the poetics of friendship, love, and beauty.
IMDb page: imdb.com/title/tt6946736
_______________________________
Support Us - Donations:
Why Donate?
Donations to Shakespeare Network help sustain free knowledge and educational programs on Shakespeare Network and our ecosystem of Shakespeare Network projects. Your contributions ensure these resources remain accessible and valuable for all. Thank you.
25% Direct support to website / 25% Administration and governance / 50% Direct support to communities.
Contact us for further info. →
______________________________________
Shakespeare Network Educational Program:
- A Companion to Shakespeare -masterclasses, reviews, reactions, Academic Studies, historical and original audio-visual content, etc.
Enjoy unlimited ad-free YouTube videos with YouTube Premium. Subscribe now and watch without interruptions. [ Link to YouTube Premium - youtube.com/premium ]
