Artist creates first historically accurate portrait of Jane Austen's Mr Darcy and it's not what we expected

An artist has created the first historically accurate portrait of literary heartthrob Mr Darcy.

The character has been famously played on screen by Hollywood actors Colin Firth, Elliot Cowan and Matthew MacFayden. However, this artist's interpretation couldn't be further from the tall, dark and handsome actors.

The new portraits reflect recent research, suggesting that the Pride and Prejudice character would have been pale with powdered white hair.

Key findings also found that Darcy would have had a pointy chin, long nose and a very pale complexion, as well as slender sloping shoulders and a modest chest, large quads, thighs and calves, and a height of 5'11" (as opposed to Colin Firth's 6'2"). All a far cry from muscular modern on-screen representations!

Not what you expected, eh?

Well according to the research, The Real Mr Darcy's white mid-length hair was considered completely normal in the Austen era, and his strong thighs would have been a sign of virility, a good fencer and horseman.

Professor John Sutherland says, “There are only scraps of physical description of Fitzwilliam Darcy to be found in Pride and Prejudice; he is our most mysterious and desirable leading man of all time."

"What’s fantastic about Jane Austen’s writing is that Mr Darcy is both of the era and timeless. Our research for TV channel Drama’s ‘Jane Austen Season’ shows how Austen herself envisioned Mr Darcy, however the literature leaves space for the reader’s imagination to create their own Darcy and bring their own fantasies to the storyline.”

The mission to discover the real Mr Darcy was commissioned by TV channel Drama to celebrate Jane Austen Season, which starts on Sunday 12th February.

However, if the Real Mr Darcy drawings are a bit too much to cope with right now, here is Colin Firth's famous 'Darcy lake scene' to make you feel better.

(You're welcome)

• screen
• Pride and Prejudice
• Jane Austen
• Mr Darcy