A STATELY home in Gloucestershire is set to be seen by millions of TV viewers as the backdrop to a period drama.

Newark Park, near Wotton-under-Edge, was used by the makers of a four-part adaptation of Thomas Hardy's well-loved novel, Tess of the D'Urbervilles.

Starring new Bond girl Gemma Arterton, it is set for transmission this autumn on BBC One.

Visitors to the National Trust property have seen for themselves some of the rooms where key scenes were acted out, as trust visitor services manager Michael Claydon explained.

"The murder of Alec (Tess's lover) and the prison scenes for Tess were shot here," said Mr Claydon.

"Filming began in early May and they were here for six days. They were filming at several National Trust properties and this is the first time the BBC has been here."

Newark Park, at Ozleworth, dates from around 1550 and the Clutterbuck family, who bought it in 1790 and remodelled it, gave it to the NT in 1949.

Writer David Nicholls penned a four-part adaptation of Hardy's famous novel, which follows Tess's tragic attempt to better herself through the grand lineage of her ancestors.

Tess is played by Gemma Arterton, who will appear as MI6 Agent Fields in the forthcoming James Bond film, Quantum of Solace.

Executive producer Kate Harwood said: "David Nicholls' adaptation brings Hardy's tragic heroine, Tess, to life with verve, passion and sensitivity."

Originally titled Tess of the D'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented, Hardy's novel was serialised in The Graphic during 1891 – although in censored form as its challenge to the sexual attitudes of the day was considered too overt.

Tess Durbeyfield is the heroine of the novel and when her drunken father discovers their family can trace their ancestry back to Norman nobility, her unhappy fate is set in motion as a train of events is unleashed.

Tess of the D'Urbervilles will be shown on BBC One starting from September 14.

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