It’s a Happy Christmas in ‘The Other Bennet Sister’ Special

Following Netflix’s release of the new Pride & Prejudice trailer, the BBC and BritBox have released the first images from their own hit version of Jane Austen’s famous novel, The Other Bennet Sister. The standalone series is BritBox’s biggest hit to date, and a massive draw on the far side of the pond as well, so much so that the BBC partnered with the streaming service to commission a three-part Christmas special, detailing the first holiday hosted by the newly married Mary Hayward (nee Bennet).

Based on Janice Hadlow’s acclaimed novel, the ten-part series follows Mary Bennet, Elizabeth’s often-overlooked middle sister in Pride & Prejudice, as she navigates the societal pressures of Regency England, where marriage is both aspiration and necessity, in the wake of her sisters’ weddings. The sympathetic edit retelling Mary’s story from her own perspective drew 9.5 million viewers for the BBC. It delivered record-breaking results for BritBox, driving more new subscribers than any previous new series and achieving the highest Nielsen ratings for a BritBox series to date.

Filming for the three-part special recently wrapped in Wales, and is expected to premiere on both sides of the pond during “the festive period,” which in the U.K. means sometime between December 20 and January 2.

Here’s the Christmas special’s synopsis:

The finale episode of the series saw Mary agreeing to wed Tom – but with marriage comes a new identity, and the question remains: who will Mary become as Mrs Hayward? But just as Mary begins this new chapter, an unexpected visitor from her past arrives at her door in need of her help…

The newly released images offer a glimpse of the returning cast, including Ella Bruccoleri (Call the Midwife), Donal Finn (Young Sherlock), Ruth Jones (Gavin & Stacey), Laurie Davidson (A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story), Tanya Reynolds (Ted Lasso), Poppy Gilbert (My Oxford Year), Grace Hogg-Robinson (COBRA), Molly Wright (The Long Shadow), and Maddie Close (Chasing Red).

The rest of the cast returning for the holiday special includes Anna Fenton-Garvey (The Nevers), Varada Sethu (Doctor Who), Ryan Sampson (The Crown), Victor Pilard (Stalling), and Aled Owens (The Witch in the Woods). The special will also add Nerys Amber-Stocks (Mammoth) as Mary’s housemaid, Lucy.

Series creator Sarah Quintrell wrote all three episodes, based on storylines by author Hadlow. Asim Abbasi (The Famous Five) is back to direct. Quintrell and Hadlow are also executive producers, alongside Jane Tranter, Kate Crowther & Becca Kinder for Bad Wolf, Robert Schildhouse, Jon Farrar & Jess O’Riordan for BritBox, and Rebecca Ferguson for the BBC.

The Other Bennet Sister’s three-part Christmas special will air during the 2026 holiday season.

The Other Bennet Sister

The Other Bennet Sister follows overlooked Mary Bennet as she journeys from Meryton to Regency London and beyond, in search of love, independence, and the self-worth she’s long been denied.

BritBox The Other Bennet Sister

All episodes of The Other Bennet Sister are streaming on BritBox, along with the 1980 and 1995 adaptations of Pride & Prejudice.