Experts have shown us the 'real' Mr Darcy and he's precisely NOTHING like Colin Firth.

Ladies, we need to talk.

Women have been fantasising about Jane Austen’s Mr. Darcy since, well, probably since Pride and Prejudice was first published in 1813.

And especially since Colin Firth strolled onto television screens in the BBC adaptation of the book in 1995.

I mean… SWOON.

Now, so-called "experts" have determined that Mr. Darcy DIDN'T LOOK LIKE THAT AT ALL.

Fantasies = ruined.

The experts, including academic John Sutherland and historian Amanda Vickery, were commissioned by the UK's Drama Channel, and believe that a man deemed to have "handsome features" in Austen's day is a far cry to what we would call good-looking in modern times.

Mamamia Book Club talks about the re-imagining of Pride and Prejudice:

Instead, the "real" Mr. Darcy would have powdered mid-length white hair, a long oval face, a small mouth, a pointy chin and a long nose.

Oh, and he would also have "pink and white skin", with "slender sloping shoulders" and a "modest chest".

Um... what a babe?

Never fear, though, because he does have muscular legs because he does a lot of horse riding and fencing, obviously.

Illustrator Nick Hardcastle was given the task to produce a portrait of the real Darcy.

But this... isn't what we expected.

Some of my friends say he's less Colin Firth and more...Lord Voldemort.

While we're not ones to discount research (because, science is important), there's one thing we need to remember about Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy: he's mysterious.

That means, in our minds, he can look exactly the way we want.

I'll stick with this version, thanks very much: