The series is a dramatisation of the events surrounding the 1916 easter rising. As an added bonus, its based on historical events that still capture the interest of anglophiles across the globe. Presenting history on film in a way that is both historically accurate and dramatically satisfying can be a difficult task. Queen elizabeth ii, played by olivia colman, reigned over a number of societal scandals and. Whatre some great, historical tv shows that are extremely accurate.
While i enjoyed the first four episodes of showtimes the tudors immensely, there were some historical inaccuracies which irked me greatly. I in a previous hbo miniseries, she won an oscar for playing queen elizabeth ii, and in 1981. The virgin queen tv miniseries 2005 the virgin queen. Apparently, despite the lavish costumes and impressive sets, it lacked the depth of the original. T he majority of the criticism focuses on the perceived historical inaccuracies in the script. Morgans chief focus is on historical accuracy, and. While the first elizabeth elegantly fictionalised history into a compelling narrative, the golden. Historical howlers are the least of the things wrong with rtes rebellion drama. Although i enjoyed elizabeth i immensely, i do not think it quite measures up to either the virgin queen or with 1971s elizabeth r, with glenda jackson. Both are based on philippa gregorys historical novel. But this tv mini series and elizabeth as portrayed by the actress given this part was very good. A long, long time ago, i wrote that it would take too long to detail the very many historical inaccuracies present in elizabeth 1998 and as i recently found my copy of it and have a mighty need to throw it away, that particular article just begged to be written. Nearly all of the main events shown in elizabeth i appear to be reasonably historically accurate, with.
Despite helen mirrens star turn, catherine the great is just ok. Mirrens interpretation also follows a bbc miniseries the virgin. The relationship between the historical catherine and grigory. Cecil tells elizabeth that dudley was found dead at his lodge in oxford accurate. I am so sad it ends so soon, they have done such a great job. Who plays elizabeth cate blanchett whats it about elizabeth s ascension to the throne and her early years as queen. The trial and execution of mary queen of scots features prominently in elizabeth i, with marys execution scene being unexpectedly gruesome. Tonight hbo premieres a new fourpart miniseries called catherine the great starring. Alessandra stanley of the new york times wrote that mirren is one of the few actresses working today who can actually convincingly play a historical figure in her 40s and that elizabeth i was more historically accurate than elizabeth 1998, though she felt that the miniseries interpretation, like so many others, wallows in the painful selfpity of a powerful, aging woman who craves true love. I must admit i didnt expect to enjoy this because it seemed like it was going to be very slow and. From my experience, i know that mad men and deadwood are very accurate and with an outstanding writing.
What movie or tv series do you believe most accurately portrays. Starz is following up the 20 british miniseries the white queen with a sequel called the white princess, which premieres on sunday, april 16. Apparently, in 2005, hbo released a miniseries called elizabeth i, starring helen mirren as the queen fabulous. Covering the entire reign of elizabeth i, from her struggles with her halfsister mary just before being crowned as queen to her death in 1603, the series profiles the life of the virgin queen in detailand with historical accuracynot possible in the as beautiful, but much shorter.
While elizabeth took historical revisionism and somehow still managed to make a wellreceived film with a rotten tomatoes score of 81% elizabeth. Starzs hit television miniseries, the white queen, was adapted from a historical fiction book authored by philippa gregory. The addictive drama about the reign of britains queen elizabeth ii often touches on lesserknown aspects of u. Reign cw is a stylized take on the life of queen mary of scots. Her life just cant be documented in this 3 hour time allotment. The series is incredibly accurate and true to the history, robert lacey, a historical biographer and consultant for the series who just published his new book, the crown. Mary i death, elizabeth s suitors philip of spain, henri duc danjou, robert dudley, the babington plot. This is lightweight stuff, without the insight into character that would justify such liberties in the name of dramatic licence. Cool shows inspired by real royal families insider. Learn more about the queen who refused to marry in this video. Whats wrong with hbos dramatization of john adamss. Which historical events included in the crown season 3 are accurate. The golden age took the same approach but with the far less impressive score of 35%. I was impressed by the accuracy of elizabeth r 1971.
How factually accurate is the tv show the tudors, and is. From series that take many liberties with historical accuracy to fairly accurate period dramas, here are 12 shows inspired by reallife royal families in the uk, france, and beyond. Then i discovered that the bbc had done its own miniseries four onehour. It was not the intention of the films producers to create an accurate portrayal of queen elizabeth s life or reign, but to create a fantasy around the actual historical events. Cate blanchett is the best thing about this sumptuous but sinful version of history. Elizabeth i a highly entertaining tv miniseries from hbo about englands. A list of the historical inaccuracies in the showtime tv series, the tudors. Their elizabeth, as in the other films, is smart and charismatic and given to witty repartee but in a lot of ways shes. Nearly all of the main events shown in elizabeth i appear to be reasonably historically accurate, with some concessions made to dramatic and artistic license. Here, dr anna whitelock, a reader in early modern history at royal holloway, university of london, explores what really went on behind the closed doors of the socalled virgin queen. The virgin queen is a fourpart miniseries about elizabeth i, played by annemarie duff.
Elizabeth is a fantastic period drama and one of the best historical films i have ever seen. Mirren, who takes elizabeth from nimble middle age in part 1, tomorrow at 8 p. Williams and hooper cover the last quartercentury of elizabeths reign. In reign, there are many historical differences, about people and time periods differences.
Historical discrepancies in the showtime television series the tudors. The story follows the reign of edward iv and his wife elizabeth woodville, who is commonly regarded at the. I want to commend you for pointing out several serious cases of historical inaccuracies. Netflixs new show focuses on the early years in the reign of elizabeth ii. So much, in fact, that i had to make an entire page.
It ran over 7 hours, and included so much more of elizabeth s life. Lets see whatre some tv shows that are extremely accurate in representing an historical period. That events from throughout elizabeths reign are presented as occurring in the first five years is forgivable as dramatic license, but numerous madeup events and historical errors mar the film. Helen mirren plays catherine the great in hbos steamy miniseries. Elizabeth i is a threepart british docudrama first broadcast in 2017 about elizabeth i, and starring lily cole as a titular character and vincent kerschbaum as duke of feria in may 2017, leeds historian dan jones cowrote and copresented, with dr. The miniseries is quite accurate in its depiction of steinems political activism, including her early career at ms. Netflixs luxe drama about queen elizabeth iis reign has a royal. This tv series may only have one episode about mary, but the character gets a complete wardrobe of four different gowns with two distinct.
Netflixs sleek period drama the crown has captivated audiences with its peek into the private life of queen elizabeth ii claire foy, but many fans may be wondering how. Elizabeth i is a twopart 2005 british historical drama television miniseries directed by tom. The golden age, but while the team behind that film decided that 1588 minus 1533 equaled a smoothskinned 38yearold, the casting of helen mirren in elizabeth i reflected a set of filmmakers with both a better grasp of arithmetic and a different story to tell. A four part mini series charting elizabeths ascension and entire reign. Sometimes factchecking the crown is more complicated than rehashing history. Last years elizabeth, directed by shekhar kapur and starring cate blanchett, is the most recent attempt to dramatize the life of one of historys most interesting characters. With anywhere from three to twelve episodes, miniseries typically pack a lot of story into a small time frame, which is part of what makes them great. This eightpart mini series is a bit of a cheat since it features. The crown is a sweeping, sumptuous history lesson the. If you want to see the best to date drama, watch the 1971 version with glenda jackson. Whats wrong with hbos dramatization of john adamss story. Wolf hall might not be historically accurate so what. From what i know of the actual history, the milnegiedroyc is the most faithful in. Historical accuracy, for all that muchvaunted research, seemed dubious, from essexs haircut to queen marys death.
Elizabeth i is a tv miniseries from 2005 that was originally produced for home box office hbo. Miniseries are a unique category of television production that deserves special attention, especially as we discuss some of the best miniseries to have ever aired. The flirty monarch with an iron fist the new york times. For a queen known for her alleged virginity, elizabeth is love life has long been the subject of great speculation. Netflix royal drama factchecked royal fans are excited for the return of the crown to netflix in november but how accurate were the first two seasons of the royal drama. Everything wrong with elizabeth 1998 history in the. Neither of them married a cadaverously disgusting, ancient portuguese king and murdered him. Instead, we have a twohour drama in which elizabeth is the only protestant in england and robert dudley a traitor in the pay of. It is a very entertaining account of the reign of englands queen elizabeth i, and a very good program in every respect. Henry v works as both modern film and historical drama. Unsurprisingly, the sequel is just as inaccurate as its predecessor. Seeing as i have neither the time nor the space to list all of the inaccuracies, heres a brief list of the major issues.
Suzannah lipscomb, elizabeth i which was shown on channel 5. Costume designer elizabeth waller created stunningly historically accurate outfits for this entire miniseries, so of course what she put mary queen of scots in looks perfect. By her death in 1603, england had become a major world power in every respect, and queen elizabeth i passed into history as one of englands greatest monarchs. Sometimes dramatic films must sacrifice historical accuracy to present the greater truth about a person or a time period or simply to make a satisfying story. Glenda jackson is majestic in the sixvideo miniseries from the bbc, elizabeth r. This is the question i get asked the most, so i felt i had to include it. Why elizabeth is a royal mess movie history youtube.
The first instalment of bbc ones gunpowder, a threepart retelling of the infamous 1605 catholic plot to blow up the house of lords, and, in. Historically, henry and catherine had 10 children together in the span of 12 years. Historical inaccuracies in the showtime television series. The miniseries doesnt stint on the russian empresss legendary sexual appetites, while. The film starts historically with elizabeth rewarding essexs colleagues. The shows website also has a huge disclaimer on it, saying, sons of liberty is historical fiction, not a documentary. Historically this movie appears to be completely accurate in its factual representations, something that cannot be said for elizabeth and essex bette davis or.
891 422 1484 229 765 1251 56 413 498 1469 1061 533 891 683 1462 1014 1342 1467 1441 668 1261 1325 1474 423 965 169 399 1246 5 666 696 747 1236 649 1409 1171 1498 1062 8 838 254 565 536 859 847 460 17