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.

@verenamaharajah6082

11 ай бұрын

Thank you so much for this extra information about the background to this letter. Absolutely fascinating!

@manitobasky

11 ай бұрын

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.

@nikiTricoteuse

11 ай бұрын

Oh. Brilliant comment. Thanks. I wonder if she actually ever got any of it or if he squandered it all.

@myladyswardrobe

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

@jaynegrunnill3705

11 ай бұрын

Thanks for the context!

She has an amazing ability to make the word "also" hilarious.

@henrikcarlsen1881

11 ай бұрын

She had to do something as it came up regularly. What a wife, glad mine isn't, wait ... never mind.

@WanderingSybil186

11 ай бұрын

That;s a lot of also lol

@theverseshed

10 ай бұрын

Joyce Grenfell had this same skill of accentuating the same word or phrase in various ways.

@petesong7146

5 ай бұрын

Also😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

@inyobill

4 ай бұрын

Ms, Newman is awesome.

Olivia Colman could read me the US tax code and I would be completely enthralled. She's amazing.

@chanieweiss4288

9 ай бұрын

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.

@MrRobertX70

13 күн бұрын

Yes, she is!

Also, I will have more letters such as this from Letters Live!

@shivasgirl1609

11 ай бұрын

Also, I would have more Olivia Coleman - period. That's more than enough for me. ❤

@gangoolie68

11 ай бұрын

Also, I will have it noted, that I wholeheartedly agree. With all of the above

@xVentax

10 ай бұрын

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.

@seanadean424

10 ай бұрын

Also, I would agree with all of the aforementioned

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.

@mattwilcoxuk

8 ай бұрын

It wasn't though. It was his. As in... literally.

@shelbynamels973

8 ай бұрын

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.

@dnmurphy48

7 ай бұрын

It was the decision of her father, she had no right to it.

@ellenchavez2043

7 ай бұрын

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.

@ellenchavez2043

7 ай бұрын

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.

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.

@shanepurcell8116

11 ай бұрын

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.

@gljames24

11 ай бұрын

​@@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.

@shanepurcell8116

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

@OldForestWitch

10 ай бұрын

@@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.

10 ай бұрын

@@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.

@guyjperson

Ай бұрын

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.

@2degucitas

11 ай бұрын

Also, she shall have ... lands! Lol. Waves arm.

@TheJayson8899

11 ай бұрын

She’s very in the closet

@frogpalpeeper4249

11 ай бұрын

Also, quite enjoyable. Also... LOL

@mattfrank9120

7 ай бұрын

Also... Thank for this comment

This wife should have been a lawyer. That was well laid out and thorough.

@ridercoachdanielle3220

11 ай бұрын

Right? I cannot account for that many things. In any context. How much clothes do I need? "I DON'T KNOW OH GOD."

@becbrown212

10 ай бұрын

This could have been a legal document as part of a marriage settlement and not a personal letter.

@markverani5088

7 ай бұрын

​@@ridercoachdanielle3220If you lived in that age and were a member of that class of nobility, you certainly would.

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!

@rheinhartsilvento2576

11 ай бұрын

Exactly. It's her money to start with

@ataraxigrace822

11 ай бұрын

I hoped the humour was more about the insane wealth and privilege. And hoped context had been shared about the inheritance

@TAD-LOW

11 ай бұрын

Ehhh...😅

@TAD-LOW

11 ай бұрын

Bit excessive no? No pardon me ur clearly a divorcee😅

@ataraxigrace822

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

Considering how marriage was a business transaction, it is great that she covered all bases, good job on her part

@lettylunasical4766

11 ай бұрын

Also, going by comments, it was her father's money anyway.

@johnnotrealname8168

10 ай бұрын

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.

@scelesteregina

9 ай бұрын

@aleejones7508 yeah still is actually

@johnnotrealname8168

9 ай бұрын

@@scelesteregina Not really.

@johnnotrealname8168

9 ай бұрын

@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!

Olivia is a national treasure, I love her personality and her acting is peerless. Shockingly sharp sense of humour too.

@michaeljones1445

6 ай бұрын

Yes, the ability to read is a marvel, i wish i could read and write.

Imagine to have written such a letter that people laugh their hearts out centuries later.

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.

@howardchambers9679

11 ай бұрын

If it's the same Compton, that would be the Earl of Northampton, Castle Ashby House. Nice place, nice grounds.

@myladyswardrobe

11 ай бұрын

@@howardchambers9679 It is and she mentions that house in her letter.

@howardchambers9679

11 ай бұрын

@@myladyswardrobe she calls it Ashby House.

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!

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 :)

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.

@paulie-g

11 ай бұрын

Her father chose not to leave her the money. Nothing to do with unfair laws.

@Dinki-Di

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

@birgittabirgersdatter8082

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

@mangelwurzel476

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

@Dinki-Di

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

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!

@2Sugarbears

11 ай бұрын

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'.

@beccaandrews3160

11 ай бұрын

@@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 :(

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.

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 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 😉

Wow, the one time the KZread 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!

@kattoneycliffe6715

10 ай бұрын

100% agree! 😻

That's an hilarious reading by Olivia Colman (who is sublime!), rather than an hilarious letter 😄

@rafarequeni822

11 ай бұрын

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 could listen to her all day, every day. ALSO, she is unbelievably talented. ALSO, she's hilarious

@sadmimikyu8807

8 ай бұрын

The list goes on

@atomicwendy

8 ай бұрын

@@sadmimikyu8807 ... it's quite long

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

@annieseaside

11 ай бұрын

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.

@dolinaj1

11 ай бұрын

Unlikely.

@stocktonjoans

11 ай бұрын

@@dolinaj1 but amusing nether the less

@jenniferpearce1052

11 ай бұрын

@@annieseaside £ not $

@RichardX1

11 ай бұрын

​@@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!!!

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.

God I love Olivia Colman so much, she's brilliant 💛🌻

Context truly is everything. 😊

Take a drink every time she says "also" - you'll be very hydrated or very hammered 😂

She would make an excellent divorce lawyer 😂😂😂

Olivia Coleman is another jewel in the crown!

Olivia Colman is the only person who could read this. Absolute perfection!

Now THERE'S a woman that knows her own worth! (Also, I pray we all do so.)

£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.

@sugarnads

11 ай бұрын

Whats that in pounds sterling you damned colonial.

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

No one could have read this better than Olivia 😂 can we get more of her letters live performances???

As a Yank may I say that Ms. Coleman is one of the most outstanding actors of our time.

Good for her. The money should have been hers in the first place.

When young and sad, and facing divorce, my ex and I argued earnestly over a spider plant.

@harmoniabalanza

10 ай бұрын

live and learn

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.

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..

The only filmstar/celebrity I saw out in the streets during the hight of covid feeding the homeless. Respect.

@criticalcommenter

11 ай бұрын

So she broke lockdown rules? That wasn't allowed.

@harmoniabalanza

10 ай бұрын

@@criticalcommenter she kept the law of God.

@criticalcommenter

10 ай бұрын

@@harmoniabalanza lol

How can you not love Olivia Colman

Oh bloody brilliant Olivia!

Both ladies, writer and reader, are equipped with skills well beyond what is normal, methinks. Olivia is marvellous and real; love her wit.

I could watch Olivia Colman all day long. She is always sparkling and lovely and just adorable. And this performance is just 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!

Also... this was excellent. I love how Olivia Coleman' read this extortionate letter!

@ArsonFire00

11 ай бұрын

'Extortionate'?! Read the video description. By the sounds of it, all that wealth was hers anyway.

@nunyabizness3777

11 ай бұрын

@@ArsonFire00 It wasn't hers; her father left the money to her husband.

@SiroccoDream

11 ай бұрын

@@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.

@billboth4814

11 ай бұрын

@@nunyabizness3777 Should have been hers. Daddy was an arsehole.

@annieseaside

11 ай бұрын

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 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.

I adore Olivia Coleman. She's such a scream. 😂

One of the most underrated actors, she is an extremely talented and charming personality.

@FrozenHero2010

9 ай бұрын

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.

@MasukaMutenda

6 ай бұрын

She has an academy award, how can she be underrated?

@deanbusch2727

6 ай бұрын

@@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.

Well, it begs to ask... did the lady get everything that was requested?

@annieseaside

11 ай бұрын

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.

@jama211

11 ай бұрын

@@annieseaside Do you have a source for this? Because I can't find any source that says what she actually got!

@MrJas321

7 күн бұрын

@@annieseasideAnd that’s how she learned wisdom: the hard way.

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 !

That was hilarious! The lady of the letter has undoubtedly been reincarnated as a divorce attorney! Ms. Coleman was excellent!

@francesmorrighan368

11 ай бұрын

Imagine her as a lawyer setting up prenups! 😅😂

No narrator better for a letter such as this 😂

A competent woman who knows what she wants! I aspire to be such a mindful wife.

Olivia Colman is one of my favorite actresses and will watch anything she is in.

The BEST divorce ALSO settlement ever ! 😂😂😂😂

Well, if you don't ask... Olivia C is great !

This is hysterical. Olivia says it like no one can. The Good Dame should've just made a fracking list.

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!

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 one of the funniest video's I every found on KZread. I'm in stiches 😂 Also Olivia Colman is an absolute delight ❤

Love this lady .. such a great actress 🎉

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.

@criticalcommenter

11 ай бұрын

But neither of them were comedians.

@wratched

11 ай бұрын

@@criticalcommenter I'll assume you are an American.

@criticalcommenter

11 ай бұрын

@@wratched Ok. You'll be wrong but you do you 👍

@wratched

11 ай бұрын

@@criticalcommenter Well you're certainly not from the UK, or you'd be familiar with all the comedic work they did.

@danshaggy292

7 ай бұрын

@@wratched That doesn't mean they're comedians - both very gifted comic actors

Wonderful, just wonderful. Beautifully read and rendered and... well, poor Elizabeth Spencer Compton. One never knows how the other half lives lol

Pure brilliance, also my favourite letter yet 👏

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.

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.

Her comedic timing is exquisite.

Beautifully read 😊 I enjoyed listening to Olivia Colman

The lady at the end is all of us against Olivia's brilliance! Incredible reading.

I aspire to be as fabulous as Olivia Coleman

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

@patigc1

2 ай бұрын

This wasn't the Victorian era. It was the Renaissance.

These videos with benefits so much from having context be shared before reading the letter

Olivia Coleman is a gift and treasure.

Her facial expressions are extremely funny.

This woman would have made a great project manager. Such incredible attention to detail.

Her delivery is sublime!

This was fabulous!!

Married women lost their money to their husband without any say of it. And if the husband wasn't clever about money, or had his wife cut off, she would have no way of earning money for herself and her children. So i get her letter.

Olivia Colman is a wondrous treasure beyond riches!🌟🌟🌟

And Olivia thinks she can't perform Shakespeare. She was BORN to perform Shakespeare.

The one and only brilliant Olivia Colman, she makes this planet a better place to be.

What performance! Fantastic

Lovely reading

fabulous , well played

Glorious! Both the very specific and unfortunate Mrs. Compton, and (it goes on) Ms. Coleman as her herald.

OC is so awesome :). National treasure!

Incredible reading. Love her.

simply brilliant

This is glorious!

"Are you sure ? Nothing else my princess ? Also ..I might of gambled the entire fortune of your dear father yesterday night ....."

@annieseaside

11 ай бұрын

He almost did.

I love Olivia's delivery of this letter. She really makes it so funny.

This is absolutely delightful. 'nuff said.

Brilliantly read! I could hear the writer.

This might be my new favorite channel. Assuming I had one in the first place.