party, called me julie, spilled red wine down my top. >> reporter: we revisit their lives on the samamday each year over two decades. their story has struck a chord with readers around the world. the writer of the book, now the screenplay, explains why. >> i think people make a very strong connection between the book and their own lives. i think most of the messages are received, say things like, i am emma. or i know a dexter. they make a connection between themselves and the characters in the novel. and i think that's quite rare. >> reporter: the book has enjoyed enormous success. it was first published two years ago. and since then it sold more than 1 million copies in the uk alone. it's also been translated into 40 languages including arabic, greek, and chinese. the question now is whether that success can be matched at the multiplexes. fans of the novel won't necessarily love the film. especially with an american actress adopting a yorkshire accent to play emma. >> it was a big learning experience for me to do the accent. there were pleley of times that i didn't think i could do it.