The Famous Authors: Thomas Hardy

Thomas Hardy was one of the finest British authors of the 19th century. A novelist and a poet, many of his tales were set in his home of Dorsetshire where the gloomy and difficult terrain often inspired his naturalistic studies of character and environment. Some of his best-known novels are The Return of the Native, The Mayor of Casterbridge, and Tess of the d'Urbervilles. After years of receptive criticism for his work, he turned to writing poems in later life. This 30-minute documentary examines the long life of this Victorian gentleman writer.