Star magazine called the film 'stuffy,', while the TV Examiner claimed 'Hallmark Channel has cranked a sweet, ultimately uplifting old school holiday film' and called it an 'old style of made-for-TV film'. From the Publisher: This story of an 1820s Thanksgiving is filled with the warmth of character. It is also the network's most watched and highest-rated November original movie ever.

This made the film the fifth-highest-rated original movie in the network's history to its date, and its fourth-most-watched original movie among households. This made Hallmark Channel rank sixth for the week. Editions for An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving: 0060004509 (Hardcover published in 2005), (Kindle Edition published in 2011), 1625587503 (ebook published in. It also ranked No. 1 in the time period for household and total viewer ratings and deliveries, and boosted the network to rank first in prime Ttme for the day. When the film premiered on the Hallmark Channel, it gained 5.2 million viewers, delivering a 3.2 household rating and nearly 2.8 million homes, making it the highest-rated cable movie of the premiere day and week. Tatiana Maslany as Mathilda 'Tilly' Bassett.However, Mary resents her mother's attempts to help them out of their financial difficulties. Isabella comes to the farm to offer her help and finds a kindred spirit in Tilly. Oldest daughter Tilly ( Tatiana Maslany) writes to Mary's wealthy and estranged mother Isabella ( Jacqueline Bisset), exaggerating their situation in a lengthy letter. Widow Mary Bassett ( Helene Joy) and her three children have hit difficult times on their farm it is especially apparent when they cannot even afford a turkey for their Thanksgiving dinner. It was followed by the sequel, An Old Fashioned Christmas which aired on December 11, 2010. Filmed on location in Canada, the film premiered on Hallmark Channel on November 22, 2008. An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving is a television film loosely based on a short story by Louisa May Alcott.

An old fashioned thanksgiving book