Categories Print Media Wolf Hall

Damian Lewis Spotted Enjoying a Pint While On Break From Filming Wolf Hall

A Royal Toast

by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com  | January 16, 2024

Damian was spotted enjoying a pint with co-star Thomas Brodie-Sangster at The New Inn in West Coker, South Somerset last week while on break from filming Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light nearby.

The BBC drama recently returned to Montacute House, which has been closed to the public from Tuesday, January 2 through Friday, January 19, 2024 to allow camera crews to prepare some scenes for filming.  The 16th-century Elizabethan mansion and gardens is near Yeovil, which are owned by the National Trust. Motacute House is used to represent Greenwich Palace and its grand exterior makes for an stunning background for the drama’s key scenes. Both Damian (playing Henry VIII) and Thomas (playing Rafe Sadler) have been spotted at the stunning National Trust property as filming nears completion.

Source: Somerset Live

Categories Print Media Wolf Hall

‘Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light’ Casting News

Casting Announcement

by Staff | PBS.org  | December 4, 2023

Harriet Walter and Timothy Spall

Masterpiece PBS and the BBC have announced the remaining casting for Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, based on the final novel in Hilary Mantel’s multi award-winning trilogy. As previously announced, Mark Rylance, Damian Lewis, Jonathan Pryce, Kate Phillips and Lilit Lesser will all return for the six-part series, now filming across England and Wales.

Announced today, Harriet Walter (Killing Eve, Succession) joins the cast to play Lady Margaret Pole, with Timothy Spall (Mr Turner, Spencer) as the Duke of Norfolk.

Continue reading ‘Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light’ Casting News

Categories Print Media Wolf Hall

‘Wolf Hall’ Sequel With Damian Lewis, Mark Rylance Sets Production Start for PBS, BBC

The Final Novel in Hilary Mantel’s Historical Trilogy

by Rick Porter | Hollywood Reporter | November 20, 2023

UPDATE 11/27/23: According to the Daily Mail, some initial filming took place Saturday, November 25, 2023 in Bristol. Filming on location photos can be viewed in our Gallery here.

After eight years, PBS is making a return to Wolf Hall. The public broadcaster will air a sequel to its Emmy-nominated miniseries, with Mark Rylance and Damian Lewis reprising their roles as Thomas Cromwell and English King Henry VIII. The series, based on the final book in author Hilary Mantel‘s trilogy, The Mirror and the Light, is scheduled to begin production soon. It will air under PBS’ Masterpiece banner in the United States and on the BBC in the U.K. Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light currently has no release date.

The new season follows Thomas Cromwell as he navigates the aftermath of Anne Boleyn’s execution, facing moral dilemmas and multiple enemies. Cromwell somehow manages to escape the bloodshed unscathed. Although he can continue amassing power and influence, the whole display assures that nobody is truly safe in the King’s court. Cromwell is in particular trouble with no powerful family behind him and only the wits that got him there. The season will follow the moral dilemmas he faces as he tries to keep his head on his shoulders while still trying to do the right thing and steer England toward the future. Unfortunately for him, things are even more complicated than that with rebellion within the country’s borders, traitors abroad, and an invasion on the horizon. All the while, Cromwell’s fortunes are running out as he’s earned no small number of enemies who wish to see his demise.

Continue reading ‘Wolf Hall’ Sequel With Damian Lewis, Mark Rylance Sets Production Start for PBS, BBC

Categories Poll Print Media Wolf Hall

The 20 Best TV Shows Based on Books

Wolf Hall: A Marvel of Elegance and Emotion

by Staff | TVLine | March 30, 2023

What do these titles all have in common other than being highly-rated, successful shows? They and many more shows were adapted from bestselling novels within the last decade. Whether you love them or hate them, book-to-TV adaptations are here to stay. The TVLine team felt it was perfect to conjure up a list of the top TV programs based on books. We have rounded up 20 of the best shows from the last decade that were adapted from books:

Continue reading The 20 Best TV Shows Based on Books

Categories Print Media Wolf Hall

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.

Continue reading Underrated British TV Shows You Need To Watch

Categories Fashion and Style Print Media Wolf Hall

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.”

Continue reading Bulging Codpieces and Multi-Colored Tights

Categories Print Media Wolf Hall

5 Tempting Tudor Dramas to Watch Right Now

Wolf Hall: Happy Birthday Henry VIII

by Katy Kostakis | Paste Magazine | June 29, 2022

Divorced, beheaded, died. Divorced, beheaded, survived. Gloriana. The Virgin Queen. Bloody Mary.

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.

Continue reading 5 Tempting Tudor Dramas to Watch Right Now

Categories Print Media Wolf Hall

Hilary Mantel Hopeful Damian and Mark Rylance Will Return to Their Wolf Hall Roles

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”.

Continue reading Hilary Mantel Hopeful Damian and Mark Rylance Will Return to Their Wolf Hall Roles

Categories Wolf Hall

Wolf Hall on PBS in Tri-State Area – March 5, 2018

Henry is Back on Masterpiece 

by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | March 5, 2018

Attention fans who are in the tri-state viewing area, which includes New York metropolitan , New Jersey and Connecticut: Wolf Hall will air on PBS Masterpiece Channel 13 beginning this Sunday, March 11, 2018 so set your DVR and calendar reminders.

Source: BBC/PBS

Here is Channel 13’s Wolf Hall schedule:

Sunday, March 11
9:00 pm (EST) – Episode One “Three Card Trick”
10:10 pm (EST) – Episode Two “Entirely Beloved”
11:15 pm (EST) – Episode Three “Anna Regina”

Sunday, March 18
9:00 pm (EST) – Episode Four “The Devil’s Spit”
10:05 pm (EST) – Episode Five “Crows”
11:10 pm (EST) – Episode Six “Master of Phantoms”

For more information about your local viewing area, please visit PBS.org.

Categories Birthday Messages Site

Happy Birthday Damian! – February 11, 2018

Happy 47th Birthday Damian!

by Gingersnap | damian-lewis.com | February 11, 2018

Today Damian Lewis turns 47-years-old and we would like to wish him the happiest of birthday celebrations on this very special day.  We compiled a few birthday cards from some of the fans here and as you head over to Fan Fun with Damian Lewis to celebrate his birthday with other fans, here are some historical facts that occurred on February 11, 1971:

February 11, 1971 was a Thursday and it was the 42nd day of the year
Number One Movie: Love Story
Number One Novel for 1971: Wheels by Arthur Hailey
Number One Pop Song: One Bad Apple by The Osmonds
World Population: 3,766,222,222
Price of Gold: $38.74/ounce
Dow Jones: 883.43
Price of a New Car: $3,664
Gallon of Gas: $0.36
Loaf of Bread: $0.25
There are 323 days left in the year

Continue reading Happy Birthday Damian! – February 11, 2018

Categories Awards Media Nomination Print Media Wolf Hall

Damian Lewis Nominated for a Golden Globe: Wolf Hall – Dec 10, 2015

Damian Lewis Nominated for a Golden Globe: Wolf Hall

by Damianista – Fan Fun with Damian Lewis – December 10, 2015

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Damian Lewis has just received a Golden Globe nomination for his fantastic portrayal of Henry VIII in Wolf Hall. 

Wolf Hall has received 3 Golden Globe nominations — Best TV Mini Series or Movie, Best Actor in a Mini Series or TV Movie (Mark Rylance), and Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Mini Series or TV Movie (Damian Lewis).  Congratulations to everyone involved in the making of one of the best, if not the best, mini-series that ever happened to TV.

A little note about the Golden Globe Awards: The awards, given by the 93 members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), recognize excellence in film and television. Damian has got a nod in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television category. The other nominees are Alan Cumming (The Good Wife), Ben Mendelsohn (Blood Line), Tobias Menzies (Game of Thrones) and Christian Slater (Mr. Robot).

Continue reading Damian Lewis Nominated for a Golden Globe: Wolf Hall – Dec 10, 2015

Categories Awards Media Nomination Print Media Wolf Hall

Damian Lewis Nominated for Satellite Award: Wolf Hall – Dec 6, 2015

Damian Lewis Nominated for Satellite Award: Wolf Hall

by Damianista – Fan Fun with Damian Lewis – December 6, 2015

Damian Lewis and his Wolf Hall co-star Mark Rylance are both nominated for a Satellite Award by the International Press Academy in the same category, Best Actor in a Miniseries or a Motion Picture Made for Television.  Damian’s top performance in a top production is top of the line!

Henry is a man whose, in Damian Lewis’ words, “…ability to love and then to simply discard is sociopathic.”

Henry’s various moods were perfectly demonstrated in Damian’s top notch performance.  We give you the many facades of Henry VIII in Wolf Hall:

Continue reading Damian Lewis Nominated for Satellite Award: Wolf Hall – Dec 6, 2015