Enchanted April by Mike Newell (1991)

If your life sometimes feels like a cold gray London day when nothing is going your way, you need a soft blanket, a comfy couch and some time to watch Enchanted April. This 1991 Mike Newell film is a perfect balm to all your frenzied worries. Rose and Lottie both see the same ad in the newspaper for a villa in Italy to let. Dare they dream? Can you really have wisteria and sunshine when your life seems to be all rain and husbands who misunderstand you? This is a magical movie that, though it takes place post-world war one, seems to me to be timeless. Four women who just want to escape their lives for a little bit. When they do, they find friendship and timeless beauty in San Salvatore. The setting and costumes are simply perfect and Polly Walker is the most amazing flapper I’ve seen in cinema.

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