Anne Boleyn | |
---|---|
Genre | psychological thriller |
Written by | Eve Hedderwick Turner |
Directed by | Lynsey Miller |
Starring | Jodie Turner-Smith |
Composer | Keaton Henson [1] |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
Production | |
Executive producer | Dan Jones |
Producers |
|
Production company | Fable Pictures |
Original release | |
Network | Channel 5 |
Release | 1 June – 3 June 2021 |
Anne Boleyn is a British three-part psychological thriller television miniseries developed for Channel 5 starring Jodie Turner-Smith in the title role. It was written by Eve Hedderwick Turner and directed by Lynsey Miller with historian Dan Jones as executive producer. [2] [3]
The series is set in Anne Boleyn's final five months prior to her execution by beheading for treason in 1536. [4]
No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date [5] | U.K viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Episode 1" | Lynsey Miller | Eve Hedderwick Turner | 1 June 2021 | 1.44 |
2 | "Episode 2" | Lynsey Miller | Eve Hedderwick Turner | 2 June 2021 | 1.05 |
3 | "Episode 3" | Lynsey Miller | Eve Hedderwick Turner | 3 June 2021 | 1.00 |
Ben Frow of Channel 5 first mentioned the project at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in summer 2020. [6] The three-part "convention-defying" series from Fable Pictures was officially announced in October 2020, with Eve Hedderwick Turner as writer and Lynsey Miller as director. Faye Ward and Hannah Farrell of Fable produced and historian Dan Jones executive produced. The series "sets out to examine Anne Boleyn's life through a feminist lens as she struggles to conceive a boy heir and pushback against the society she was born into." [4] [7]
In October 2020, it was announced with the series that Jodie Turner-Smith would star as Anne Boleyn with Paapa Essiedu, Amanda Burton, Thalissa Teixeira, Barry Ward, and Jamael Westman also set to feature. Mark Stanley joined the cast as Henry VIII in November. [8]
Principal photography took place in Yorkshire over six weeks, finishing in December 2020. [7] Filming locations included Castle Howard in North Yorkshire, Bolton Castle in Wensleydale, Bolton Abbey in Wharfedale, Oakwell Hall in Birstall, St Michael's Church in Emley, Harewood House in Harewood, and Ripley Castle in Ripley. [9] [10]
The first episode premiered in the UK on Channel 5 on 1 June 2021. Sony Pictures Television co-financed the project with Channel 5 and distributed the series internationally. [11] The drama was released in the United States on AMC+ and on Crave in Canada. [12]
Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 53% based on 17 critic reviews, with an average rating of 6.2/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Though the show around her isn't quite up to snuff, there's no denying the pleasure of Jodie Turner-Smith's powerful turn as the one-and-only Anne Boleyn." [13]
The Guardian and The Independent both gave the drama 3 stars out 5. Lucy Mangan of the former said the series "works" but criticised its "silly surplus of metaphors" and portrayal of Henry. [14] Adam White of the latter found the show a "soapy romp" but that it made sense for the story being told. [15] Turner-Smith's performance was widely praised. Beth Webb of Empire called the series a "showcase of Jodie Turner-Smith's resilience as a performer" and mentioned how the "small but well-assembled supporting cast elevates her performance". [16]
There was several criticism of the race swapping historical characters and blackwashing, as some of the actors were black while the characters portrayed were white, such as Boleyn herself, highlighting above all the fact that it is a historical series with real and well-known historical characters as protagonists. [17] The Radio Times described this as "identity-conscious casting" and quoted the actor Mark Stanley: "It was all about this being the right person for the job, rather than what we as a society might perceive as the 'right look' for the job". [18]
Anne Boleyn was Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, as the second wife of King Henry VIII. The circumstances of her marriage and execution, by beheading for treason, made her a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that marked the start of the English Reformation.
Hever Castle is located in the village of Hever, Kent, near Edenbridge, 30 miles (48 km) south-east of London, England. It began as a country house, built in the 13th century. From 1462 to 1539, it was the seat of the Boleyn family.
Philippa Gregory is an English historical novelist who has been publishing since 1987. The best known of her works is The Other Boleyn Girl (2001), which in 2002 won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award from the Romantic Novelists' Association and has been adapted into two films.
George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford was an English courtier and nobleman who played a prominent role in the politics of the early 1530s as the brother of Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII. George was the maternal uncle of Queen Elizabeth I, although he died long before his niece ascended the throne. Following his father's promotion in the peerage in 1529 to Earl of Wiltshire and Earl of Ormond, he adopted his father's junior title Viscount Rochford as a courtesy title. He was accused of incest with his sister Anne during the period of her trial for high treason, as a result of which both were executed.
In common parlance, the wives of Henry VIII were the six Queens consort of King Henry VIII of England between 1509 and his death in 1547. In legal terms, Henry had only three wives, because three of his marriages were annulled by the Church of England. He was never granted an annulment by the Pope as he desired, for Catherine of Aragon, his first wife. Annulments declare that a true marriage never took place, unlike a divorce, in which a married couple end their union. Along with his six wives, Henry took several mistresses.
The Tudors is a British-Canadian historical fiction television series set primarily in 16th-century England, created and written by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable television channel Showtime. The series was a collaboration among American, British, and Canadian producers, and was filmed mostly in Ireland. While named after the Tudor dynasty as a whole, it is based specifically upon the reign of King Henry VIII.
Henry VIII is a two-part British television serial produced principally by Granada Television for ITV from 12 to 19 October 2003. It chronicles the life of Henry VIII of England from the disintegration of his first marriage to an aging Spanish princess until his death following a stroke in 1547, by which time he had married for the sixth time. Additional production funding was provided by WGBH Boston, Powercorp and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Events from the 1530s in England.
Alison Weir is a British author and public historian. She primarily writes about the history of English royal women and families, in the form of biographies that explore their historical setting. She has also written numerous works of historical fiction.
Lady Margaret Boleyn was an Irish noblewoman, the daughter and co-heiress of Thomas Butler, 7th Earl of Ormond. She married Sir William Boleyn and through her eldest son Sir Thomas Boleyn, was the paternal grandmother of Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII of England, and great-grandmother of Anne and Henry's daughter, Elizabeth I of England.
Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII of England, and Queen of England from 1533 until she was beheaded in 1536 for treason, has inspired or been mentioned in many artistic and cultural works. The following lists cover various media, enduring works of high art, and recent representations in popular culture, film and fiction. The entries represent portrayals that a reader has a reasonable chance of encountering, rather than a complete catalogue.
Mary Boleyn, also known as Lady Mary, was the sister of English queen consort Anne Boleyn, whose family enjoyed considerable influence during the reign of King Henry VIII.
Joanna Vanderham is a Scottish actress. She was nominated for an International Emmy Award for her debut role in the Sky One crime drama The Runaway (2011).
Mark Robert Speight, known professionally as Mark Stanley, is an English actor. He is best known for his roles in Game of Thrones, Dickensian, and as Rob Hepworth in the third series of BBC drama Happy Valley.
Claire Ridgway is a British historian and author of books about the Tudor dynasty, with a particular focus on the life of the Boleyn family. Since 2009 she has run the websites TheAnneBoleynFiles.com and Elizabethfiles.com. In 2014, Claire founded The Tudor Society.
Paapa Kwaakye Essiedu is a British actor. He started his career in 2012 when he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company acting in numerous production including The Merry Wives of Windsor (2012), King Lear (2014), Hamlet (2016), and Romeo and Juliet (2016).
Kiri is a four-part British television crime drama miniseries starring Sarah Lancashire. It aired on Channel 4 from 10 to 31 January 2018.
Jodie Turner-Smith is a British actress. She made her feature film debut in The Neon Demon (2016) and has since acted in Queen & Slim (2019), After Yang (2022), and White Noise (2022). She is also known for her television roles in the TNT series The Last Ship (2017), 2024 Apple TV+ series Bad Monkey, the Syfy series Nightflyers (2018), and for portraying the title role in the Channel 5 series Anne Boleyn (2021). 2024 "Acolyte"
Jamael Anwar Hermitt-Westman is a British actor. He is best known for starring as the title role in the West End production of Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical Hamilton, which earned him a Laurence Olivier Award nomination.
The Lazarus Project is a British science fiction television series created by Joe Barton and starring Paapa Essiedu. The series premiered on 16 June 2022. In August 2022, the show was renewed for a second series, which premiered on 15 November 2023. In March 2024, the show was cancelled after two series.
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