By Polly Dunbar
Last updated at 10:12 AM on 21st February 2011
A dashing, tousle-haired man clasps the hand of his bonneted sweetheart.
Yet despite the brooding features and determined jaw of Mr Darcy, the leading man is not Colin Firth – but his brother Jonathan.
The 43-year-old has worked solidly since leaving drama school. But while Colin is favourite to scoop Best Actor at the Oscars later this month for The King’s Speech, his younger brother’s career trajectory has been less spectacular.
A tale of two Firths: Colin in his winning wet shirt as Mr Darcy in the BBC's popular adaptation of Pride and Prejudice , left, Jonathan is a familiar face in the BBC docudrama Pompeii: The Last Day
Initially, Jonathan seemed destined for greater success. Colin went to the Drama Centre London but Jonathan attended the more prestigious Central School of Speech and Drama and toured with the Royal Shakespeare Company.
In 1994, Jonathan won acclaim for his role in the BBC costume drama Middlemarch.
Leading men: Hollywood calls for Colin with Renee Zellweger and Hugh Grant in Bridget Jones II, while Jonathan gets acclaim for his role in Middlemarch, starring alongside Rachel Power
But in an ironic twist, its success paved the way for another adaptation, Pride And Prejudice, which made Colin a heart-throb and global star. Colin has since starred in Fever Pitch and Bridget Jones’s Diary.
Last year he was nominated for an Oscar for A Single Man. There is little doubt that this is his year.
Top of his game: Colin playing a football-mad teacher in Fever Pitch and Jonathan in Midsomer Murders
Meanwhile, amid roles in Midsomer Murders, Victoria & Albert, Pompeii: The Last Day and Far From The Madding Crowd, the project that would lift Jonathan to another level never came.
And on Oscar night, if Colin fulfils expectations, few would blame Jonathan for wondering what might have been if he too had once donned a wet shirt.
Singular talent: Colin received his first Oscar nomination for A Single Man while Jonathan was dashing in Far From The Madding Crowd
Acting royalty: This year Colin is hotly-tipped to win Best Actor for his role as King George VI in The King's Speech. Jonathan, right, gives a royal turn in Victoria and Albert
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