Olivia Williams’ role in the BBC production of Jane Austen’s Emma  brought her to the attention of Kevin Costner, who cast her in The Postman and described her as “one of the most beautiful women to come on screen in the last 10 years.” Since then her many roles in Hollywood blockbusters (including The Sixth Sense and Rushmore) have been accompanied by frequent returns to her love of Jane Austen, most recently in the film Miss Austen Regrets with Greta Scacchi and Hugh Bonneville.

Olivia Williams’ rich voice is ideally suited to this reading of  Jane Austen’s  Persuasion, available as an audiobook download from Silksoundbooks.