Rebecca (novel) his deceased wife, Rebecca. The supernatural reaction of the portrait doesn't convince him and so he places her in a cupboard. The 1970 Parallel Time storyline of the Gothic soap opera "Dark Shadows" was heavily inspired by "Rebecca" including the costume ball scene. Also the second "Dark Shadows" motion picture, "Night of Dark Shadows" took inspiration from the novel including a mention by Kate Jackson's character who hopes the housekeeper is not like Mrs. Danvers The fifth episode of the second series of "That Mitchell and Webb Look" contains an extended sketch parodying the 1940 film, in which Rebecca is
Daphne du Maurier novel "Mary Anne" (1954) is a fictionalised account of her great-great-grandmother, Mary Anne Clarke née Thompson (1776–1852), who, from 1803–08, was mistress of Frederick Augustus, Duke of York and Albany (1763–1827). He was the "Grand Old Duke of York" of the nursery rhyme, a son of King George III, and brother of King George IV and King William IV. The central character of her last novel, "Rule Britannia", is an aging actress, thought to be based on Gladys Cooper (to whom it is dedicated). Du Maurier's short stories are darker: "The Birds", "Don't Look Now", "The Apple Tree", and "The