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When Henry Visited Thomas
by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | August 30, 2022
Well look what we have here – a mini Wolf Hall reunion perhaps? On August 3, 2022 Damian was spotted in the audience of the play Jerusalem starring Mark Rylance.
Jerusalem, a play by Jez Butterworth, returned to the Apollo in the West End in London from April 16 until August 6, 2022 and it seems Damian saw the production just in the nick of time. Surely Damian chatted up his old pal backstage. What could those two possibly be discussing? We can only hope Wolf Hall was a topic of conversation!
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Underrated British TV Shows You Need To Watch
Wolf Hall
by Richard Chachowski | Looper | July 20, 2022
On the surface, one might immediately think that British television is very similar to any American TV program you can find on cable or currently streaming. However, as anyone who’s seen a decent amount of British and American series can tell you, the two couldn’t be further apart.
Known for their strong surrealistic elements, dry wit, and dramatically small number of episodes compared to American TV series, British TV shows are practically a genre unto themselves. Whether they encompass historical dramas, absurdist comedies, or sitcoms set in World War II, you know without question when you’re tuning into a TV show from across the pond, judging from its sense of humor and content alone.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on Bulging Codpieces and Multi-Colored Tights
Renaissance Men’s Fashion Today
by Maria H. Loh | Art News | June 29, 2022
Certain men’s fashions have always been controversial. In 2014, Mark Rylance, a star of the BBC’s popular sixteenth-century TV drama Wolf Hall, told reporters that he thought “the codpieces are too small.” The actor, who played chief minister Thomas Cromwell, protagonist of the Hilary Mantel best seller on which the series was based, speculated that the sartorial edit was perhaps a directive from the show’s American producers, who feared that historically accurate codpieces might shock their transatlantic viewers. Indeed, if you look at any number of Renaissance portraits of Henry VIII, you might be immediately taken aback by the elaborate mound of shimmering white silk that bursts forth and rises up conspicuously between the king’s legs. Damian Lewis, who had the monarch’s role in the show, explained to the Los Angeles Times that these unusual attachments were,
“… a symbol of your virility, your derring-do, your sense of adventure. They were encouraged, it was a fashion, and Henry liked them.”
Just reading those words can instantly bring your mind to one of the most famous, scandalous, and formidable families to ever rule a nation. The powerful Tudor dynasty has long mesmerized and enthralled all who have come across their stories during history lessons. From the king who nabbed his crown against the odds to a long-awaited male heir who didn’t live past the age of 15, to the queen who defied all expectations and ruled for 45 years, their collective reign over England from 1485 to 1603 was chock full of warfare, religious reform, and treachery at a time where fealty, obedience, and adhering to the tenets of one’s social station literally meant life or death.
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Be Mine
by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | February 14, 2022
Cookie Gingersnap made during the ’51 Birthday Cakes for Damian Lewis’ bakeoff 😉
Happy Valentine’s Day to all the fandom! Hope you’re surrounded by loved ones and treat yourself to a dessert today! Might we tempt you with some poetry? Listen to Damian Lewis read She Walks in Beauty on The Love Book poetry app. You can read, listen, even record your own poem and share it with a loved one – send a recording to a grandparent, friend, lover or mother. There are many poems with over seventy read aloud by Damian, Helen McCrory, Tom Hiddleston, Helena Bonham Carter, Emma Watson and Gina Bellman. Download the interactive app from the Apple Store for iOS and Android devices.
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Written By GingersnapComments Off on 10 Most Underrated TV Drama Actors
Bobby and Wendy
by Christine Persaud | ScreenRant | January 5, 2022
It seems the same names often get recognized for their roles in drama series, but there are other actors who are deserving of praise.
Every year during awards season, there are top actors who are praised for their performances in some of the biggest shows. Oftentimes, the same names appear, or during the run of a top show, the leads get their deserving accolades. Think Bryan Cranston during the Breaking Bad era, Claire Danes when Homeland was the drama du jour, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ impressive domination of the Best Actress in a Comedy category through Veep‘s entire run.
But there are some actors who have consistently appeared in some of the highest rated shows or had major roles in specific ones past and present, who don’t get the recognition they so rightfully deserve, and it’s time they receive their moment in the spotlight.
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Certified Royal Drama – Wolf Hall
by Devon Forward | Collider | November 13, 2021
For the days when you just want to watch some certified royal drama. Sometimes real life is even better than fictional drama, which is why so many television shows and movies are based around historical events. Take England, for example. You can’t honestly claim that you’ve never been fascinated by something that’s happened to a king or queen of the country’s past or present, right? Everyone loves to hear about the strong-willed Queen Elizabeth I, King Henry VIII and his six wives, the elegant current monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, and any number of interesting English royals. Luckily, Hollywood feels the same way, and movies and television shows based on stories about English royalty have been made for decades now, with more coming out each year. But which ones are the best?
WOLF HALL
An earlier appearance by Claire Foy as an English royal, this time around she goes back a bit farther into the past to play Anne Boleyn opposite Damian Lewis as King Henry VIII in Wolf Hall. Sure, the story of King Henry VIII’s deadly reign and six wives is well-known, but there’s a reason for that, as his story is one of the most intense and memorable throughout royal history. But what makes this series a bit more unique is that it really focuses on the historical figure of Thomas Cromwell, played by Mark Rylance, a manipulative, charming man who uses his close relationship with King Henry VIII to gain more power for himself. With a target on Anne, attempting to get King Henry VIII away from her influence, Cromwell plays a risky game that might not end in his favor (Spoiler alert: it doesn’t).
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Getting Caught in Damian’s Web
by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | October 31, 2021
Happy Halloween to all our ghoul and goblin fans out there, from all of us at the Fan Fun with Damian Lewis team! You can ‘Trick or Treat’ with us at damian-lewis.com, but don’t forget to grab your cauldron and head over to our sister site Fan Fun with Damian Lewis for more spooky spectacular goodies. We serve all things Damian – all day, every day!
In keeping with the Halloween theme, you can watch Damian on your small screen in the following:
Dreamcatcher (who’s up for lots of killings and blood?!) – stream on Amazon Prime Video
Hearts and Bones (no skeleton bones harmed in the making of this) – stream on Amazon Prime Video
Wolf Hall (who’s up for a beheading, raise your hand!) – stream on Amazon Prime Video
Romeo and Juliet (death by poisoning anyone?) – stream on Amazon Prime Video
Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker (contract killing with an accent) – stream on Amazon Prime Video
Assassin in Love aka The Baker (contract killing…in a cake) – stream on Amazon Prime Video
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Forsyte Saga, Wolf Hall, Poirot, A Touch of Frost, A Spy Among Friends
by Christopher Stevens | Weekend Magazine for Daily Mail | June 25, 2021
Can Britbox really be the British Netflix? It offers classic dramas, star-studded new crime shows and landmark documentary series with a totally British-backed catalogue offering countless programmes from the vaults.
Ranked in the category of ’20 Terrific Shows On Britbox’ is Forsyte Saga and Wolf Hall starring Damian Lewis.
Britbox also offers classic crime series such as Happy Valley, Broadchurch, A Touch of Frost, Agatha Christie’s Poirot and Miss Marple, of which Damian makes two of his earliest television appearances in Poirot and A Touch of Frost: Deep End.
BritBox has a number of original dramas in the pipeline as well. There’s A Spy Among Friends, adapted from Ben Macintyre’s book and starring British titan Damian Lewis, which explores the true story of Kim Philby’s defection to the Soviet Union. A Cold War drama, the six-episode limited series showcases MI6 operative Nicholas Elliot and his friend (and KGB double agent) Philby through the lens of their complex relationship, intertwined with espionage. No word on filming or release date since CoVid pandemic.
BritBox is a subscription streaming service dedicated to the best of British programming past and present. It has a vast selection of archive shows from dramas and documentaries to comedies, soaps and films, and is now producing its own original programmes.
BritBox can be watched using smart TVs, Apple and Android devices, Amazon Fire TV and Chromecast and via Amazon Prime Video channels. The regular price is £5.99 ($6.99) a month or £59.99 ($69.99) a year after a seven-day free trial. Visit britbox.co.uk here or britbox.com/us here for details.
Read the rest of the original article at Weekend Magazine for Daily Mail
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Henry and Cromwell
by Rebecca Jones | BBC News | May 20, 2021
Dame Hilary, 68, is a shrewd observer of political drama that spans the ages. “I think what my books have tried to show is that there is no life without politics,” she says.
She has been immersed in Tudor politics for more than 15 years, working on her Wolf Hall trilogy of historical novels about the plots and intrigues at the court of King Henry VIII and the rise and fall of his chief adviser Thomas Cromwell.
Dame Hilary has spent the past year writing the play of The Mirror and the Light herself. She says she wanted to “give it a go”.
But, perhaps surprisingly for a writer of 14 works of fiction and a memoir, she was not sure she could do it on her own.
“Although I’d written plays for radio… I’ve not written a whole stage play by myself. I felt my inexperience,” she admits. “I thought, ‘I need a collaborator.'”
Ben Miles, who starred as Cromwell in the Royal Shakespeare Company productions of Wolf Hall and its sequel Bring up the Bodies, suggested himself as “co-pilot” on the project.
The television adaptation of The Mirror and the Light is on its way too. “It is going ahead. It’s being written now, but delayed by Covid like everything else,” she says.
It is therefore unlikely to be on our screens before 2023. “It’s just a question of patience.” The previous BBC TV adaptation of the first two books – which was entitled Wolf Hall but brought together Wolf Hall and Bring up the Bodies – won two Bafta TV awards, and a Golden Globe.
She says she “would certainly hope” that Sir Mark Rylance, who played Cromwell in the BBC series and Damian Lewis, who appeared as Henry VIII, will be able to return to their roles, although “these are busy people with big schedules and it will all be a question of timing”.
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PBS Wants Damian Back for Wolf Hall
by Peter White | Deadline | January 8, 2021
PBS’ Masterpiece, which has been home to classic British dramas including Downton Abbey, Upstairs, Downstairs,Prime Suspect and the original House of Cards, turns 50 on January 10.
Susanne Simpson, an exec producer on series including Downton Abbey, took over running Masterpiece in November 2019, replacing Rebecca Eaton. She told Deadline that the success of the regal ITV drama, which ran for six seasons and ending in 2015, was a turning point for British dramas in the U.S. and it has now pivoted to ensure that it still has a pipeline of shows.
However, she is hopeful that PBS would be involved in the sequel to BBC’s Wolf Hall. Peter Kosminsky is working on the follow-up to Hilary Mantel’s book series, which published The Mirror and the Light last year, and hopeful of getting the original cast such as Damian Lewis back on board.
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Two for Damian: Wolf Hall and The Forsyte Saga
by Matthew Gilbert | Boston Globe | January 7, 2021
Here are some of my favorite Masterpiece shows, in no particular order. I have restricted the list to those that have aired in the past 25 years, which is why you won’t see the well-known classics, including I, Claudius, The Jewel in the Crown, House of Cards, Elizabeth R, or Prime Suspect.
Wolf Hall (2015)
Based on Hilary Mantel’s Henry VIII novels, the mesmerizing six-parter takes place from the point of view of the King’s most trusted advisor, Thomas Cromwell, played by a quietly sardonic Mark Rylance. This isn’t the bodice-ripping, horse-hopping likes of Showtime’s The Tudors; it’s elegant, downbeat, authentically lit, intensely acted, and clever and relevant when it comes to 16th-century politics. Damian Lewis is Henry, Jonathan Pryce is Cardinal Wolsey, and Claire Foy is Anne Boleyn.
Cookie Gingersnap made during the ’51 Birthday Cakes for Damian Lewis’ bakeoff 😉
