So, in roughly ascending order, here is The Cast:

DR. FOXCASTLE

A theoretical magician and head of the Magicians' Society of York. Very stodgy. Refuses to believe that Norrell can do magic, and is thus humiliated. To be played by:



Stephen Fry (Jeeves & Wooster, Blackadder, V for Vendetta)- because it would be a crying shame if we didn't get him in there somewhere. Think of it as a cameo.

THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON

The, uh, Duke of Wellington. Famous military figure of the time and Real Genuine Person. Strange works with him for a while in aid of the war. To be played by:



Tobias Menzies (Rome) - Because he's proven to be quite good at playing historical military leaders (above, he plays Brutus, and does a damn good job of it). Also, he actually does sort of look like the guy, based on a quick Googling.

MR. HONEYFOOT

A sweet, pleasant theoretical magician, and one of the two to 'discover' Mr. Norrell. Perhaps not terribly bright, but certainly well-meaning. To be played by:



Colin Firth (Pride & Prejudice, Love Actually) - Look at that face. Isn't that adorable? The man can do things other than romantic leads; let him have a fun little cameo.

FLORA GREYSTEEL

A nice, charming young lady who (under the supervision of her father and aunt, of course) befriends Strange during his unpleasant (for him, anyway) stay in Italy. I like her. I wish she'd gotten more to do, but of course, the circumstances of her relationship with Strange prevent that. To be played by:



Carey Mulligan (Doctor Who--'Blink'--, the new Pride & Prejudice) - She's young, I suspect she can do charming, and she's freakin' adorable. Let's give the girl something to do.

VINCULUS

A likely unstable street 'magician' who tells fortunes to clueless people for a living. He is by far not the only one to do this, but unlike the others, he may have a certain grain of actual ability in there. But he's also kind of crazy and unwashed. To be played by:



Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who, Heroes, 28 Days Later) - crazy, scrawny, and thoroughly lower-class? Hell, just look at that hair. He could totally do it. And you know he'd have a blast.

JOHN SEGUNDUS

A theoretical magician who starts the story off by 'discovering' Norrell, with Mr. Honeyfoot, for the Magicians' Society of York. Quite a nice fellow, really, and provides a bit of a relatively normal perspective. He is the only member of the Society to avoid humiliation by Norrell. According to the footnotes, he went on to write presumably quite a good book about Strange. To be played by:



Tom Hollander (the second and third Pirates of the Caribbean, the new Pride & Prejudice) - he has, as of late, mostly gotten to play unpleasant sorts, but we are fully confident that he is capable of being a nice guy. Let him clean up his reputation a bit!

HENRY LASCELLES

One of the two social parasites who attach themselves to Norrell early on. The more aggressive of the two. Really not a particularly likable person. To be played by:



Lee Ingleby, of whom it is very hard to find a decent photo (Master & Commander, the first season finale of Life on Mars) - he hasn't gotten a chance to do much, but I have the sneaking suspicion he can do a fine job of being smarmy. Plus, he needs the work.

HENRY DRAWLIGHT

The other of the two social parasites. A fawning, effeminate sycophant with no real worth whatsoever. It is clear, then, that he must be played by:



Timothy Spall (Sweeney Todd, Harry Potter: The Prisoner of Azkaban, Enchanted) - I hate to do it to the guy, but he's so good at being the unpleasant, questionably-moralled sidekick. At least he gets paid for it?

SIR WALTER POLE

A respectable gentleman who becomes the patron of Norrell and Strange. Husband to Lady Pole, who is actually more important than he is. To be played by:



Jeremy Irons (The Merchant of Venice, Lolita) - what can I say, he just seems to fit.

LADY EMMA POLE

A lovely young lady who dies shortly after her first appearance. This, understandably, makes her husband rather upset. Thus, as his first act of magic that Actually Has Consequences, Norrell raises her from the dead. He does this by summoning a fairy to do it for him, which, of course, does not have any drawbacks at all. Very energetic and charming. For a while, anyway. To be played by:



Anna Friel (Pushing Daisies, A Midsummer Night's Dream--no, seriously, apparently she played Hermia) - did you know she was British? I didn't know she was British. Anyway, she can definitely do sweet and energetic, and she's just so cute. Also she has excellent experience with playing the undead.

JOHN CHILDERMASS

Norrell's servant. Withdrawn, surly, and smarter than he lets on. Not particularly inclined to talk much about himself, though, so we don't know much about him. He's very loyal, though. To a certain extent. To be played by:



Jack Davenport (All three Pirates of the Caribbean, The Talented Mr. Ripley) - like his colleague Tom Hollander, not his typical role, but DMC-Norrington comes pretty close. Plus, he's a good physical match for how Childermass is described in the book.

ARABELLA STRANGE

Strange's wife. Responsible, charming (I'm using that word a lot, but it applies to so many!), and very likable. Probably does not deserve her husband. Comes to befriend the post-deceased Lady Pole. To be played by:



Jennifer Ehle, circa 1996 (Pride & Prejudice, Bedrooms and Hallways) - look, she has played this exact role. Well, perhaps a little wilder. But seriously, this is all up in her area. She's a bit too old for it now, though, alas. Still, we can always hope.

STEPHEN BLACK

A well-regarded servant of Sir Walter Pole's. Intelligent, responsible, and likable...which, unfortunately, leads to the Gentleman growing attached to him. Has a much larger role than I am describing here. It's late, shut up. To be played by:



Chiwetel Ejiofor (Serenity, Kinky Boots) - a solid, British black actor of the right age and with a high degree of talent! And he can definitely do serious.

THE GENTLEMAN

The fairy Norrell summons to raise Lady Pole. Not malevolent, per se, just...possessed of an extraordinary ego, a ridiculous level of power, and no real wish to be nice to anyone besides the few he grows attached to. (See: Stephen Black. And Lady Pole.) Of course, 'nice' falls under his definition. Likes a good ball. The bad guy of the story, really. To be played by:



Jude Law (The Talented Mr. Ripley, A.I.) - charismatic? Egotistic? Kind of an asshole? Why, hello!

MR NORRELL

An old man, who, shut away in his isolated library of spellbooks, never quite got the memo that nobody did magic any more. Sort of crotchety and would probably have preferred to remain alone, but very proud of himself. Becomes teacher to Strange, summons the Gentleman, name's in the title, etcetera. To be played by:



Ian Holm (The Lord of the Rings, Ratatouille, lots of highly respectable things I can't think of) - tiny old man, and this is what his career was made for. Seriously, just look at that picture. I know that's Bilbo Baggins, but still.

JONATHAN STRANGE

A nice man who could never decide what he wanted to do until he heard that magic was being done again, whereupon he decided to try it for himself. A bit arrogant, but still nice, and he really does want to help people out, which is why he decides to help out with the war for a while. Becomes student to Norrell, but Norrell is stingy with his knowledge, and so eventually grows apart from. Married, logically, to Arabella Strange. Becomes a bit more emotionally invested in this than perhaps he should be. Name's in the title. To be played by--well, duh--



Paul Bettany (Master & Commander, A Knight's Tale, A Beautiful Mind) - JUST LOOK AT THAT. I MEAN, REALLY. REALLY. HE'S EVEN GOT THE REDDISH HAIR, FOR CHRIST'S SAKE. Also, an amazing actor and has the experience to do it. Honestly, Strange isn't that different from Stephen Maturin, just with a little more pride.

And, in a cameo appearance:

THE RAVEN KING

A young man who was raised in a fairy kingdom and came back to England hundreds of years ago to, er, take control of it. Well, part of it. And some other places which were less accessible to humans. Ushered in the age of real magic and is considered the progenitor of very nearly all of it, actually...but went away centuries back and is presumed dead, what with humans not typically being able to live that. Presumed. Typically. Oh come on, he's a mythical figure, you really think he's going to die easy? To be played by:



Nobody, and I mean nobody--well, okay, except for Cate Blanchett, so nobody male--does ethereal intensity like Cillian Murphy. Can't you just picture him as a changeling king? Also, totally matches the description in the book and is an excellent actor. Just a cameo, though, like I said. Really. Teeny cameo. Yeah, yeah, mythical figures always come back, but the Raven King's a busy guy.


I'M GOING TO BED NOW. *falls over*