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Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel is a 1987 miniseries, adapting material from three of L.M. Montgomery's original novels: Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island, and Anne of Windy Poplars.

The film has been titled as Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel for re-airings and DVD releases, but was titled Anne of Avonlea during its original airing in Canada. It was aired in the United States as Anne of Avonlea: The Continuing Story of Anne of Green Gables.

Synopsis[]

Anne Shirley accepts a teaching position at a girls boarding school in a town dominated by a rich and belligerant family determined to make her life miserable.

Plot[]

Resuming the story of Anne Shirley, who chose to study for her college degree by correspondence in order to remain at Green Gables and help an aging Marilla look after the house and farm, Anne now holds a Teacher's License and teaches at Avonlea school. However, she aspires to be a writer, though is met with early disappointment when her story, an overly romantic story called "Averil's Atonement" is rejected by a magazine. Her friend and former rival, Gilbert Blythe, also informs Anne that her best friend, Diana Barry, has accepted a proposal of marriage from Fred Wright. Anne is bewildered by Diana's decision, believing it to be impulsive, though she comes to accept it as Diana is happy with her choice.

Despite being seventeen years old, Anne still finds herself in various mishaps, including impulsively selling her Jersey cow that repeatedly escapes and damages Rachel Lynde's field to the Blythes. Soon afterward, Anne is shocked to discover her story has been published as the winner of the Rollings Reliable Baking Powder Co. advertisement contest and becomes a local celebrity. A delighted Diana reveals that she submitted the story to the contest, with a few minor revisions to include the baking powder in the story. Ashamed with how her story was published, she confides in Gilbert, who offers a critical perspective of the use of flowery language and lack of dimension to her characters. When he suggests that Anne would be more successful writing about a setting and about people she is more familiar with, Anne becomes upset with Gilbert and goes home. As Marilla tries to reassure her things are not as bad as they seem, Anne admits she acted foolishly when Gilbert had only offered ways to improve her writing and feels that their relationship has changed. Marilla points out that Gilbert's behavior reflects the fact that he loves Anne, much to her disbelief. However, Anne's bad day continues when she realizes she accidentally sold the cow belonging to the Lynde family rather than her own. When she and Marilla approach Rachel Lynde pay her for the sale of the Lyndes' cow, Rachel's husband Thomas has a fatal heart attack. Rachel moves in with Marilla at Green Gables; with Rachel to support her and her eyesight having improved over the past two years, Marilla encourages Anne to resume her old ambition of attending college.

At a clambake celebrating Diana and Fred's engagement, Gilbert proposes to Anne, who turns him down believing that they would be unhappy together. When they see each other again at Diana and Fred's wedding, Anne sees Gilbert with a young woman named Christine Stuart. Gilbert tells Anne that he and Christine are just friends, then offers to wait for her if there is any hope of them getting together. Anne rejects him again, and Gilbert suspects that there is someone else, despite Anne's assertion there is no person she cares about more than him. Gilbert leaves to attend medical school in Halifax with his and Anne's relationship apparently broken. Recalling a job offer from her former teacher Muriel Stacey, Anne decides to take accept a position as an English professor in New Brunswick at Kingsport Ladies' College in the hope that it will inspire her and give her something to write about.

Initially, Anne finds her new job to be difficult. A member of the local community — and member of the powerful Pringle family — had also tried for Anne’s post and was rejected, causing resentment. However, Anne gradually earns the respect of her students, their families and her colleagues, including the severe and critical Katherine Brooke and the Pringle family. Anne organizes a play to raise money for the college, which is greatly appreciated. Her dream of being published is also finally achieved after she writes a series of short stories based on Avonlea inspired by a suggestion from Gilbert, whom she manages to reconcile with after a chance encounter and learning that he is now engaged to Christine. While teaching at the Ladies' College, Anne grows close to one student, Emmeline Harris, at whose house she is boarding, along with the stern, controlling grandmother Harris and her repressed daughter Pauline, who is a virtual prisoner in the house. Anne is able to convince Mrs. Harris, a hypochondriac, to leave the house and go to a community picnic, and to let Pauline attend a friend's wedding overnight in another town, where she strikes up a romance. Emmeline's widowed father Morgan Harris, a well-to-do traveling businessman, becomes impressed with Anne's spirited nature and determination, particularly with how Anne is able to persuade his formidable mother into leaving her house. He eventually proposes marriage to Anne, after Anne and Emmeline had visited his spacious house in Boston. While Morgan Harris appears to be the dark melancholy suitor that Anne had once dreamed of, she realizes that he is not the man she wants to be with and turns down his proposal.

Anne chooses to return to Green Gables for the summer with Katherine Brooke after successfully persuading her to spend a badly-needed summer vacation at Avonlea, where she opens up her feelings to Anne. In Avonlea, she learns that Gilbert is ill nearby with scarlet fever, having returned home from Halifax Medical School. Anne finally realizes her true feelings for Gilbert, and goes to visit him; he reveals that he broke off his engagement to Christine because he still loves Anne. After Gilbert regains his health, he proposes once more, though he warns her that he still needs to finish medical school and they will not have all the things she has always dreamed of. Anne accepts him with a kiss, declaring, "I don't want diamond sunbursts, or marble halls. I just want you."

Cast[]

  • James O'Regan as Mr. Pye
  • Patricia Carroll Brown as Avonlea Townswoman
  • Chick Roberts as Avonlea Townsman
  • Martin Donlevy as Jerry Buote
  • Naula Fitzgerald as Mrs. Tom Pringle
  • Meg Hogarth as Mrs. James Pringle
  • Carolyn Hetherington as Mrs. Walter Pringle
  • Lynne Gorman as Mrs. John Pringle
  • Maxine Miller as Mrs. Albert Pringle
  • Robert Gailbraith as Mr. Pringle
  • Molly MacNeil as Myra Pringle
  • Fiona MacGillivray as Hattie Pringle
  • Juno Mills-Cockell as Jimsie Pringle
  • Dave Foley as Lewis Allen
  • Louise Nicol as Miss Kerr
  • Ingrid Bauer as Miss MacKay
  • Charles Jolliffe as Alec McGuiness
  • Janice Bryan as Maid at Mrs. Pringle's
  • Dora Dainton as Maid at Maplehurst
  • Gladys O'Connor as Maid at Maplehurst
  • Joe Franklin as Isaac Kent
  • Glori Gage as Elvira Evans
  • Marilyn Boyle as Gossip at Ball
  • Araby Lockhart as Gossip at Ball
  • Lionel Purcell as Cab Driver
  • Blair Purcell as Wagon Driver
  • Richard Cryer as Shepherd
  • Hudson Sullivan as Diana's Baby
  • Miranda de Pencier as Josie Pye (uncredited)
  • Michael Fletcher as Minister (uncredited)
  • Ellen Wilkes Irmisch as Schoolgirl (uncredited)
  • Jordan-Patrick Marcantonio as Young Boy (uncredited)
  • Autumn Smith as KLC Girl (uncredited)

Crew[]

Behind the scenes[]

Casting

Differences from the novels

The film incorporates elements from three of L. M. Montgomery's novels, further altering each to create a cohesive story.

Anne of Avonlea

  • Davy and Dora Keith are absent. They later appeared in the spin-off series Road to Avonlea.
  • Anne's trouble with Dolly the jersey cow involves Rachel Lynde instead of Mr. Harrison. This leads up to Thomas Lynde's death in the film; in the novel these events were unrelated to each other.
  • Anne sells the wrong cow to Gilbert's father John Blythe, whereas in the novel she sold the cow to Mr. Shearer of Carmody and his son Jim.
  • Some of Anne's experiences teaching at the Avonlea school instead take place at Kingsport Ladies' College (i.e. fireworks in the stove, whipping Anthony Pye/Jen Pringle, befriending a motherless student).
  • In the book, Anne's "Jonah day" culminates with whipping Anthony Pye for misbehaving at school. In the film, it is when she hits Gilbert for criticizing her writing.
  • Diana and Fred's engagement news comes relatively earlier in the film. Additionally, Anne sees them in love in the novel, but in the film she finds out from Gilbert.
  • In the novel, Anne falls through a roof while trying to find a new platter for Josephine Barry. In the film, this happens while attempting to retrieve a confiscated bicycle.
  • Anne still decides to leave Avonlea when Rachel moves to Green Gables, but Marilla initially plans to board a girl from another town prior to Mr. Lynde's death.

Anne of the Island

  • "Averil's Atonement" and the Rollings Reliable fiasco happen earlier in the film than in the novel.
  • Mr. Harrison's advice to Anne about her writing in the novel instead comes from Gilbert in the film.
  • Anne's education at Redmond College in Nova Scotia is replaced by a teaching position at Kingsport Ladies' College in New Brunswick.
  • In the novel, Anne hears about Jane Andrews's millionaire fiancé from Rachel Lynde and Mrs. Harmon Andrews. In the film, she meets the couple in person and learns about them from Ruby Gillis, who by that point in the book had already died of consumption.
  • Diana's wedding and Gilbert's first proposal happen before Anne leaves for Kingsport. They also occur around the same time instead of the former taking place a year after the latter.
  • Christine Stuart first appears at Diana's wedding instead of Kingsport. Moreover, in the novel Christine and Gilbert are merely friends, but in the film they become engaged.
  • Roy Gardner, a fellow college student who proposes to Anne, is replaced by Morgan Harris, an older suitor and the father of one of Anne's students.
  • Anne visits Gilbert while he is gravely ill and shows him the published book he helped inspire, rather than simply finding out that he is expected to recover.

Anne of Windy Poplars

Gallery[]

Anne of Green Gables Wiki has 6 images of Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel (view gallery).
Anne of Green Gables Wiki has 213 images from Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel (view gallery).

Videos[]

Trailers

Clips

Interviews

External links[]

See also[]

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