Olivia Colman reads a hilarious seventeenth century letter from a wife to her husband
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- Опубликовано: 28 июн 2023
- On March 3rd, 1610, the one time Lord Mayor of London Sir John Spencer died, leaving behind a vast fortune to be inherited not by his daughter, Elizabeth, whom he had often treated terribly, but to her husband, Lord William Compton-an amount so large, in fact, that Compton was said to have “lost his way” for some time. It was in 1618, when Compton’s health was restored, that Elizabeth wrote him the following letter and listed the many ways in which was to spend some of her late father’s money.
Olivia Colman joined us to read this letter at Letters Live at the Union Chapel in 2019. 
Развлечения
This Very Famous letter needs context. The young Lady fell in LOVE with the not just penniless… but £28,000 in DEBT William Compton. Upon getting ahold of control of her money he squandered £72,000 Gambling in the 1st 2 Months. Average wage in 1600 was under £25 a YEAR. 83% had income under £50 a year, Only the rich had more than £100 a year. She had £800,000!!!
So while this sounds like a lot, what do you suppose costs are for multi-Millionaires and Billionaires today? Can you imagine Kim Kardashian or Megan Markle with only 20 Dresses, 2 Cars, Staff for 3 houses, Security, Travel costs? She also asks him to stay out of debt, to be charitable and not to lend out their wealth either. I applaud her stating her case and reasoning and her willingness to overlook his large flaws, asking only to be kept in the style to which she had been born and accustomed. The entire cost of her requests was a drop in the bucket and far less than he already gambled away.
Thank you so much for this extra information about the background to this letter. Absolutely fascinating!
Don’t forget all the money was left from her Father’s estate, and could not be left to the daughter because laws did not allow women ownership of property.
Oh. Brilliant comment. Thanks. I wonder if she actually ever got any of it or if he squandered it all.
@@manitobasky On the contrary, Elizabeth could and should have inherited as her father's only heir. Spencer did not treat his daughter well and her husband Lord Compton had Spencer imprisoned for that ill treatment and forced the marriage to Elizabeth in 1580s. Spencer refused to provide any marriage portion for his daughter so she was entirely beholden to her new husband.
There are cases of fathers of great wealth with daughters as sole heiresses, ensuring that the inheritance could NOT be touched by any husband apart from a dowry. These were set up in trusts with male trustees and provided protection for the daughter.
In this case Spencer was not taking care of his daughter Elizabeth. But she seems to have been able to manage her husband Compton, despite him squandering a lot of the inheritance initially.
Thanks for the context!
At first I thought, "What a demanding woman." But then I read that her father left his vast fortune to--her husband. So, I'm quite in agreement with her having full access to the money that was truly her inheritance. Whether I agree with how it was spent, or not--it was her money.
It wasn't though. It was his. As in... literally.
Fourhundred years ago a woman in England could not have money or own property in her own right. Don't apply 21st century standards to the lives of people who lived hundreds of years ago, it won't work.
It was the decision of her father, she had no right to it.
She probably brought that wealth as part of her dowry in exchange for her title.
Until the 1920s, all property that a wife brought into the marriage by law, belonged to her husband, as did any children from the union.
Until the 1950s, in the US and UK, women could not be sole signature of contracts, or any other papers for ownership or transfer of goods. She was not at liberty to remove her children from her husband's home. These laws locked many women into abusive relationships.
She probably brought that wealth as part of her dowry in exchange for her title.
Until the 1920s, all property that a wife brought into the marriage by law, belonged to her husband, as did any children from the union.
Until the 1950s, in the US and UK, women could not be sole signature of contracts, or any other papers for ownership or transfer of goods. She was not at liberty to remove her children from her husband's home. These laws locked many women into abusive relationships.
Also, I will have more letters such as this from Letters Live!
Also, I would have more Olivia Coleman - period. That's more than enough for me. ❤
Also, I will have it noted, that I wholeheartedly agree. With all of the above
Also, I do declare, I could listen to Olivia Coleman reading from the telephone book, and enjoy it immensely, such is my regard for her.
Also, I would agree with all of the aforementioned
She has an amazing ability to make the word "also" hilarious.
She had to do something as it came up regularly. What a wife, glad mine isn't, wait ... never mind.
That;s a lot of also lol
Joyce Grenfell had this same skill of accentuating the same word or phrase in various ways.
Also😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Ms, Newman is awesome.
Olivia Colman could read me the US tax code and I would be completely enthralled. She's amazing.
Not a bad idea. It would be good to actually pay attention to things like the tax code. It not being entertaining on it's own, I'd definitely not pay attention.
Yes, she is!
Honestly, it doesn't seem unreasonable. Especially since her husband got all that and more from her father! I applaud her setting expectations in this way.
I dunno, almost seems like there might have been a good reason why her father might have given over the wealth to the husband over his own daughter. Just food for thought.
@@shanepurcell8116Considering the fact that this letter was written to keep the husband from gambling away more of her father's estate, that most definitely wasn't why he was given the estate. It wasn't until the Married Women's Property Act in 1870 that women were allowed to inherit property.
@@gljames24 Yeah, you're right, I saw that comment elsewhere in the comments. I wouldn't have typed what I did, if I had just perused the comments just a bit further down.
@@shanepurcell8116 From Wikipedia: By his wife, Alice Bromfield, Spencer had an only child, Elizabeth, who in 1598 was sought in marriage by William Compton, 2nd Lord Compton. Spencer strongly disapproved of the match, but Compton's influence at court enabled him to procure Spencer's imprisonment in the Fleet Prison in March 1599 for ill-treating his daughter. The young lady was ultimately carried off by her lover from Canonbury Tower in a baker's basket. The marriage quickly followed, but Spencer gave his daughter no marriage portion. When, in May 1601, his daughter became a mother, he showed no signs of relenting. But some reconciliation apparently took place soon afterwards, it is said, through the intervention of Elizabeth.
@@OldForestWitch In a baker's basket? That's a very large basket, what did they put in there?... or she was tiny! 😅
It’s the little flairs that really sell the performance- the cutesy “none lend but I, none borrow but you,” the disgust at washmaids, the little grin when she talks about gentlemen ushers, and the broad vagueness of “purchase lands!” The attention to these moments elevate the letter even more than its contents on their own.
Colman is an absolute star as a comedienne. Her hand flourishes, her quick asides and her timing is great. I've loved watching her since I noted her in Mitchell and Webb. Were she to have been The 13th Doctor, I would have been rivetted every ep.
Olivia is supremely talented and every time she does a reading for Letters Live she brings the house down. She seems like such a kind, genuine person too. She's the kind of person you just root for automatically. So happy for all the success she's found doing what she loves. Also, this letter is very funny.
Also, she shall have ... lands! Lol. Waves arm.
She’s very in the closet
Also, quite enjoyable. Also... LOL
Also... Thank for this comment
This wife should have been a lawyer. That was well laid out and thorough.
Right? I cannot account for that many things. In any context. How much clothes do I need? "I DON'T KNOW OH GOD."
This could have been a legal document as part of a marriage settlement and not a personal letter.
@@ridercoachdanielle3220If you lived in that age and were a member of that class of nobility, you certainly would.
Considering how marriage was a business transaction, it is great that she covered all bases, good job on her part
Also, going by comments, it was her father's money anyway.
Ironically they were more successful back then. Also I am not sure it is totally true how it is portrayed. Most Royals did have happy marriages...well it depends on the country to a degree.
@aleejones7508 yeah still is actually
@@scelesteregina Not really.
@aleejones7508 It was not a business really. Even this case is an example as she seems to have loved her husband.
I love how she acts the letter, not just reads it. Fabulous!
I know this letter seems funny, but she was basically demanding what would have already been hers, today. Superbly read by Olivia Colman, a national treasure!
Exactly.
It's her money to start with
I hoped the humour was more about the insane wealth and privilege.
And hoped context had been shared about the inheritance
Ehhh...😅
Bit excessive no? No pardon me ur clearly a divorcee😅
@@TAD-LOW The wealth was her fathers. As her husband, he inherited her families wealth. From all accounts, he was terrible with money and actually gambled away more than she asked for. From what I read, she was trying to avoid him losing the whole of the family fortune.
Olivia is a national treasure, I love her personality and her acting is peerless. Shockingly sharp sense of humour too.
Yes, the ability to read is a marvel, i wish i could read and write.
It all makes more sense if you read the intro - the money came from her father and she had been blocked from it for 8 years. She may also have been pressed to provide a detailed account of what she needed money for. And oh yes, if he was angling to be an Earl, she had to prove that she was worthy of running the various homes worthy of an Earl.
If it's the same Compton, that would be the Earl of Northampton, Castle Ashby House. Nice place, nice grounds.
@@howardchambers9679 It is and she mentions that house in her letter.
@@myladyswardrobe she calls it Ashby House.
Imagine to have written such a letter that people laugh their hearts out centuries later.
Hilariously read!
Reading the background of where the money came from, & comments about the husband, it sounds like she was endeavouring to protect her family fortune & the future for her children, albeit at a level beyond any of our comprehension!
The injustice of historical inheritance laws makes my blood boil. This lady was just advocating for what she should have had in the first place.
Her father chose not to leave her the money. Nothing to do with unfair laws.
@@paulie-g Suggest you look up the Married Women's Property Act 1882. Before that time, a married woman could not own property. Legally, even the clothes she wore were the property of her husband. No wonder this woman had to protect herself.
@@Dinki-Dialso, her husband was legal responsible for providing for his wife and children and also, was legally obligated to pay all of her debts. The women might not have had many of today’s rights but the men had all the responsibilities.
@@birgittabirgersdatter8082Which they could easily have shared were it not for the fact that they were unwilling to give women the rights which came with the responsibilities.
@@birgittabirgersdatter8082 Fine in theory. In practice if a man didn’t take his responsibilities seriously, there were very few remedies available to the woman to compel him to. Suggest you read Anne Brontë’s excellent novel “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall” for a realistic depiction of the dreadful situation many married women were left in.
Seeing that the money was left from her father, she was entitled to want all of this and perhaps more. Good on her! ALSO, I love Olivia Coleman :)
Her little asides and faces (especially about being her "gentleman usher" in her coach) are just sublime. Can never watch this too many times!
I never get tired of listening to this, the letter in itself is funny, but Olivia Colman reading it and it becomes hilarious and a real treasure.
Well done, this lady! She doesn't want much 😂 at a time when women weren't afforded much, she's claiming what's hers and trying to cover herself, she certainly knows her own mind. Another fabulous reading from the wonderful Olivia!
Remember all her large (probably or he wouldn't have married her) dowry. She's just getting a bit back to keep it from his gambling and mistress'.
@@2Sugarbears of course, she's only claiming back what's rightfully hers, so she can go on living in the manner to which she's accustomed. It's wonderful she fell in love, but sad that he squandered a fortune :(
Wow, the one time the RUclips algorithm actually delivers gold into my feed. Olivia Colman is amazing and this letter and the way Colman read it had me howling with laughter, brilliant stuff!
100% agree! 😻
I just get the sense here, that out of "respect" for her husband, she is simply letting him know what's happening! Quite clear and competent communication, of you ask me 😉
Watching Olivia read, is better than hearing the letter read. Her expressions and reactions to what is on the page make for a wonderful presentation. Yes, she brings the house down every time she reads.
That's an hilarious reading by Olivia Colman (who is sublime!), rather than an hilarious letter 😄
Indeed. Read it with a stern voice and there's not a single joke in the whole letter. That's what a good performer will do for a text.
I can't help but imagine that this letter was written despite the husband and wife living together full time and got passed over the breakfast table
She had $800,000, he was penniless. He gambled away $72,000 the 1st 2 months of Marriage. She fell in love and married him against her Father’s wishes. She just wanted to keep the standard of living she was born to in a time (1598) where most people got by on less than $25 a year.
Unlikely.
@@dolinaj1 but amusing nether the less
@@annieseaside £ not $
@@annieseasidethe whole time having to deal with her father saying, "I told you so..."
Who doesn't just love Olivia Colman? She's just the best!!!
I am so in love with her it's getting ridiculous. I'll watch this whenever I'm feeling down and just need to smile and feel happy.
also; good on Eliza, I hope she got all that she demanded
I could listen to her all day, every day. ALSO, she is unbelievably talented. ALSO, she's hilarious
The list goes on
@@sadmimikyu8807 ... it's quite long
Olivia Coleman is another jewel in the crown!
Olivia Colman is the only person who could read this. Absolute perfection!
Context truly is everything. 😊
Brilliantly read! How was lady Compton going to survive on such a tiny requested allowance? £26,000 in 1618 would barely be over £5 million today..
Now THERE'S a woman that knows her own worth! (Also, I pray we all do so.)
God I love Olivia Colman so much, she's brilliant 💛🌻
"Also!"
The equivalent to "But wait! There's MORE!" 😆😆😆
I discovered Olivia Colman on one of my binges to The Graham Norton Show, and the more I see of her, the more I adore her. She's absolutely fantastic!
As a Yank may I say that Ms. Coleman is one of the most outstanding actors of our time.
How can you not love Olivia Colman
Also… this lady’s reincarnation could make a career in requirements engineering and/or systems design.
This letter gives me flashbacks to my decades working on waterfall style software development projects.
It reads much like requirements and design specifications.
No one could have read this better than Olivia 😂 can we get more of her letters live performances???
Both ladies, writer and reader, are equipped with skills well beyond what is normal, methinks. Olivia is marvellous and real; love her wit.
£1 in 1619 is ~$324 USD in 2023. She's talking about roughly $20M USD per year. Another comment below states that due to her inheritance her husband was receiving £800,000 per year (~$250M USD) to put that amount in context.
Whats that in pounds sterling you damned colonial.
She would make an excellent divorce lawyer 😂😂😂
Is there anything Olivia can’t do well ? Love this woman ,she makes reading a letter so much fun to listen to ,her face is telling the story and we just follow ,blessings dear !
The only filmstar/celebrity I saw out in the streets during the hight of covid feeding the homeless. Respect.
So she broke lockdown rules? That wasn't allowed.
@@criticalcommenter she kept the law of God.
@@harmoniabalanza lol
Take a drink every time she says "also" - you'll be very hydrated or very hammered 😂
I could watch Olivia Colman all day long. She is always sparkling and lovely and just adorable. And this performance is just brilliant!
When young and sad, and facing divorce, my ex and I argued earnestly over a spider plant.
live and learn
I have now declared that I will never get another reasonable thing done in the foreseeable future and I blame it all on Olivia Colman and her reading of this letter.
Oh bloody brilliant Olivia!
This is one of the funniest video's I every found on RUclips. I'm in stiches 😂
Also
Olivia Colman is an absolute delight ❤
Hats off to Olivia Colman (for her enormous talent, of course) and to the lady who wrote the letter for her business acumen and ability to negotiate (demand, lol). Both women are forces of nature.
This is hysterical. Olivia says it like no one can. The Good Dame should've just made a fracking list.
Good for her. The money should have been hers in the first place.
One of the most underrated actors, she is an extremely talented and charming personality.
There's THAT word again. Underrated. Is there a financial reward available for those who use the word "underrated"? I see it used so many times I begin to wonder.
She has an academy award, how can she be underrated?
@@MasukaMutenda An Oscar although still considered a milestone only indicates a single performance. And unfortunately the Oscars have become so political they've reduced their own prestige. As far as being underrated she is far more deserving of larger roles. Almost every thing I've seen her in she gives a memorable performance. I would certainly put her in with actors like Meryl Streep, Hepburn or Mcdormand.
Olivia Colman is one of my favorite actresses and will watch anything she is in.
Well, it begs to ask... did the lady get everything that was requested?
Yes! It was Her Daddy’s money. The guy was penniless, a Gambler and no good, but she fell head over heels and ran away to marry him.
@@annieseaside Do you have a source for this? Because I can't find any source that says what she actually got!
Love this lady .. such a great actress 🎉
Olivia Coleman is a gift and treasure.
I adore Olivia Coleman. She's such a scream. 😂
A competent woman who knows what she wants! I aspire to be such a mindful wife.
The lady at the end is all of us against Olivia's brilliance! Incredible reading.
These videos with benefits so much from having context be shared before reading the letter
Well, if you don't ask... Olivia C is great !
Her comedic timing is exquisite.
Sounds like this letter-writer has had previous husbands, and has become acquainted not only with the rules of the game, but every trick in the book, too!
The BEST divorce ALSO settlement ever ! 😂😂😂😂
I have watched this before, and was of course entranced and entertained, and educated. But, a few months later here am I watching again, and less than two minutes in, I'm able to fully appreciate the sheer skill and care in delivery, performance, interpretation, which Olivia generously gives us.
I'd go so far as recommending you do the same: set an alarm to repeat this experience 2, 3, or 6 months hence, and treat yourself to a whole new level of enjoyment. OK, on with the video, and the warm anticipation of a unique few minutes.
Also... this was excellent. I love how Olivia Coleman' read this extortionate letter!
'Extortionate'?! Read the video description. By the sounds of it, all that wealth was hers anyway.
@@ArsonFire00 It wasn't hers; her father left the money to her husband.
@@ArsonFire00it was never hers because women of the day were considered chattel and certainly not capable of inheriting anything of worth!
Also, whilst this was fact, but I do disdain it, so you will pardon my snark.
@@nunyabizness3777 Should have been hers. Daddy was an arsehole.
She & her family were extremely wealthy and she was marrying an equal. This was in fact Rare to have survived, but agreeable to all parties. Think what a Kardashian would insist in terms of homes, cars, clothes, jewelry, staff, etc, etc. For we ordinary middle class this sounds like a lot, but the rich have always, Always had different standards.
I aspire to be as fabulous as Olivia Coleman
This woman would have made a great project manager. Such incredible attention to detail.
No narrator better for a letter such as this 😂
Wonderful, just wonderful. Beautifully read and rendered and... well, poor Elizabeth Spencer Compton. One never knows how the other half lives lol
Ms. Colman is a delightfully funny lady. I just love to listen to her reading letters here! Much love from Texas, USA.
I'd never known how threatening the little word "also" could be.
That was hilarious! The lady of the letter has undoubtedly been reincarnated as a divorce attorney!
Ms. Coleman was excellent!
Imagine her as a lawyer setting up prenups! 😅😂
People always forget that Olivia Colman is a comedian. The same thing happened to Emma Thompson. Emma is at her best when she's funny. I hope Hollywood recognises that sometime.
But neither of them were comedians.
@@criticalcommenter I'll assume you are an American.
@@wratched Ok. You'll be wrong but you do you 👍
@@criticalcommenter Well you're certainly not from the UK, or you'd be familiar with all the comedic work they did.
@@wratched That doesn't mean they're comedians - both very gifted comic actors
I love Olivia's delivery of this letter. She really makes it so funny.
Beautifully read 😊 I enjoyed listening to Olivia Colman
Olivia Colman is a wondrous treasure beyond riches!🌟🌟🌟
Seriously these letters being read by such as she, and others of her like, makes them all sound so Shakespearean😊
Pleased she is empowering herself and requesting a comfortable lifestyle, we so early ask for what we actually want, so it's very refreshing to hear 💝 especially out of the Victorian era
This wasn't the Victorian era. It was the Renaissance.
Olivia Coleman is worth every penny and more.
Pure brilliance, also my favourite letter yet 👏
Letters Live is a daily dose of literary wonderment!
Her facial expressions are extremely funny.
OC is so awesome :). National treasure!
Glorious! Both the very specific and unfortunate Mrs. Compton, and (it goes on) Ms. Coleman as her herald.
Her delivery is sublime!
The one and only brilliant Olivia Colman, she makes this planet a better place to be.
As a Canadian, one of the many things I LOVE about Britain, is how having famous (& talented) actors read letters can get a public and TV audience. Wouldnt happen in my beloved Canada, let alone in the US, whence most of our TV comes.
It's all in the delivery!
What performance! Fantastic
Lovely reading
Olivia is superb!!!
fabulous , well played
And Olivia thinks she can't perform Shakespeare. She was BORN to perform Shakespeare.
This might be my new favorite channel. Assuming I had one in the first place.
Olivia Coleman is a World Treasure.
I certainly hope this last got every damn thing she asked for as it was HER father’s money not her gambling ne’er do well husband’s.
Olivia’s brilliant!! So many ways to say “also”