Jeremy John Irons rose to prominence in this big-budget TV miniseries with a strong cast, including John Gielgud (as Charles' father) and Laurence Olivier, both well-known knighted actors, Anthony Andrews, a British pop star . "The Hometown After Wind and Rain" clearly reveals the British's nostalgia for the British Empire , which was in full swing before the First World War . The Oxford campus and the gorgeous Brideshead manor are the glory and symbols of the once-prominent British Empire. Granada went to great lengths to create the set, with the 12-hour drama claiming to have cost £4.5 million, but it was actually estimated to be £11 million. For example, the cost of shooting 8 minutes on the Queen Elizabeth II cruise ship is as high as 500,000. Others such as "Brideshead" manor (actually Castle Howard, the mansion of BBC chairman George Howard), Venice , Malta, Gozo Island, all reflect the extravagance of production. In stark contrast to the lavishness of the scene is the decadent lifestyle of Sebastian and his rambunctious friends. Sebastian's doll, Aloysius, was also popular among emerging white-collar men in the 1980s because of the show's fame. As Charles and Julia's romance develops, Sebastian becomes more and more depressed, and the idyllic Oxford and Brideshead fade into the picture, replaced by a sad and sentimental atmosphere.
The play won the 1982 Emmy Awards for Best Miniseries, Best Actor (Anthony Andrews, Jeremy John Irons), Best Supporting Actor and many other nominations, and finally only Laurence Olivier won the Best Supporting Actor Award. Anthony Andrews was originally cast to play the role of Charles, but after reading the novel he decided he was more suited to play Sebastian, who was originally cast by Jeremy John Irons, who was more interested in Charles, and the two swapped Role.
