New Historical Drama for 2017 by Katherine Clements

With the proliferation of historical drama now available on our small screens, you might think we’d be suffering from costume overload. But dramatists and filmmakers are still turning to the past for inspiration and viewers continue to lap it up (good news for us History Girls!). In 2017 we can expect the return of several lavish TV productions, The Last Kingdom, Peaky Blinders, The Crown, Versailles and Poldark to name a few, plus several promising offerings from across the pond that will doubtless make their way onto Netflix and Amazon. Here are a few that I’ll be adding to my watch list this year.

Taboo
Stephen Knight, creator of Peaky Blinders, has made quite a name for himself as the go-to man for period pieces with an alternative slant. This new series is the brainchild and long-cherished project of Tom Hardy and his dad, Chips. After previous successful collaborations, Knight must have seemed an obvious choice to pen Hardy’s creative vision. Set in London in 1814, Taboo centres on James Delaney, played by Hardy, who returns to England from Africa following his father’s mysterious death, only to find himself mired in conspiracy and intrigue. It’s a dark, visceral take on the 18th century, the machinations of the East India Company and the burgeoning British Empire. This one is right up my street. Currently airing on FX in the US and BBC1 in the UK.

The Halcyon
Described as ‘Downton in a hotel’ this is ITV’s latest attempt to fill the gap left by the departure of Julian Fellowes and the Crawley family. The Halcyon is set in a glamorous five star hotel at the centre of London society during the Second World War. Beginning in 1940, we’re promised intrigue, politics, romance, gorgeous sets and a period soundtrack (with original songs supplied by Jamie Callum). There’s some excellent acting talent to prop it up too. Olivia Williams and Steven Mackintosh usually raise the bar of anything they’re in. I haven’t watched yet but early reviews are good and I’m sure I’ll drool over the costumes.

Harlots
Harlots follows the fortunes of two rival brothel owners in 18th century London. With a great cast (Samantha Morton and Lesley Manville play the madams in question) this show promises a female perspective on the oldest trade, and boasts an all-female writing and producing team. The series takes its inspiration from 'Harris’s List of Covent Garden Ladies,' the popular Georgian directory of prostitutes published from 1757-95, with the drama apparently based on the stories of real women. It’s a great premise and I hope it’ll deliver, though judging by the trailer, I have my doubts. It’ll be streaming on Hulu and airing on ITV Encore in the UK from 29 March.

Alias Grace
Based on the Margaret Atwood novel of the same name, this show dramatises the real life case of Grace Marks, an Irish immigrant in Canada who, along with stable hand James McDermott, was convicted of the brutal murder of their employer, Thomas Kinnear, and his housekeeper, Nancy Montgomery, in 1843. James was hanged while Grace was sentenced to life imprisonment, becoming one of the most enigmatic and notorious women of the 1840s. With such great material, some big names involved, and a Netflix budget, this one should be good. Broadcasting in Canada on CBC and streaming globally on Netflix sometime later this year.

Jamestown
Set in 1619, Jamestown follows the first English settlers as they establish a community in the New World. As with Harlots above, the tale will be told, at least in part, from a female perspective, by 'three spirited women from England'. Written by Bill Gallagher and produced by the people behind Downton Abbey, the teaser trailer doesn’t give much away, but I’m predicting a smattering of ripped bodices and some accusations of witchcraft, along the lines of the ill-fated Jimmy McGovern show Banished. I hope I’m wrong. It’ll premier on Sky 1 but there’s no release date yet.

The White Princess
The BBC chose not to option this follow up to Philippa Gregory’s The White Queen, but US channel Starz went ahead anyway, with some of the same production team and Gregory on board as Executive Producer. The White Princess concludes the story of the Wars of the Roses and charts the rise of the House of Tudor through the marriage between Princess Elizabeth of York and King Henry Tudor. The reception to The White Queen was lukewarm and it’s unclear right now when this’ll come to air, or which service might pick it up outside the US, but it was filmed in the UK in 2016 so we can expect it at some point this year.

Britannia
Penned by Jez Butterworth, Britannia charts the Roman invasion of what would become Great Britain in 43 A.D. and the rise of iconic female warrior Boudicca. According to the Radio Times, ‘in this dramatisation, the Celtic lands the Romans invade are ruled by warrior women and powerful druids who claim to channel the forces of the underworld.’ With a great cast – David Morrissey, Zoe Wanamaker and Kelly Reilly all feature – and an unusual period setting, this one will be worth a look. It’s unconfirmed when or where this Sky/Amazon co-production will air but it’s slated for some time in 2017.

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The Quiet Achievers of History, by Gillian Polack

The silent partner of most of the political discussions rampaging around the interweb is the public sector. The public service is a strong part of any country’s work. It’s not as colourful as the politics and people who make the history books, but it’s what keeps everything together. I’m thinking about it in this new year of ours, for one of the main reasons we got through 2016 in as good condition as we did was many people working hard behind the scenes, to turn grand declarations into achievable goals and to keep the wheels of government rolling.

I love telling my students that a country without an effective public sector is a country in George RR Martin’s universe. It’s impossible. It falls apart.

When we think of falling apart in the Middle Ages, we think of the epic arguments between Stephen and Matilda. We think of Sharon Penman’s story of the period that was so very nasty for ordinary people that it was described as “When Christ and his Saints slept.” Yet... the public sector was active throughout that time. Not as active as it had been. Not as active as it would be. Justice was limited. Taxation was complicated. But the workers were still there, holding the country together so that when Henry came to the throne, there was still a throne to come to. 

It’s much harder to pull together a country that doesn’t have a viable public sector. By ‘much harder’, of course, I mean ‘next to impossible’.

It’s the quiet dudes who work behind the scenes to keep the correspondence flowing and the paperwork done who make our historical happy endings possible. We don’t often see them in our fiction, but they’re there, working. 

An occasional person appears in detective fiction, because the shape of the detective story lends itself to regular workers just doing their job. It doesn’t lend itself so well to fiction that describe bloody battles and cries of hate and love and challenge. That would be like a waiter butting into the last moments of a marriage by asking “And would you like to order dessert?”

The thing about the quiet work that keeps a country running is, history-wise, it’s only boring if you don’t know where to look. Or maybe if you don’t know how to look. 

So many of the really colourful stories novelists tell have just a bit of the public service in them, for instance. “Who will rid me of this troublesome priest?” is not nearly as interesting if we don’t know what happened next. Henry’s sublimely dramatic penitence isn’t just an exercise in self-abnegation: it links the murderous actions of four wayward knights back to the normal world, making sure that there is responsibility and that it is taken.

It’s a different kind of story, though. It’s the story of the quiet drama involved in getting the meal to the table, rather than the glamorous drama of the couple arguing their marriage into oblivion over a fine meal. It’s the story of the woman creating a beautiful dessert doing it through the veil of a migraine because she’s worked too long without a break and her life, too, is falling to pieces. Her life isn’t public, so no-one knows that it’s the reason the line of strawberry sauce is wobbly.

That strawberry sauce...

What happens if we translate that anecdote to the Middle Ages?

The historical novel might be about the amazing team of scribes that got out all the copies of the Magna Carta to everyone who needed one. It might be about how their private lives suffered while the barons announced “Look how clever we are.”

The historical novel might be about making sure that horses were shod for royal use during a major campaign. A loose shoe in battle could kill a king.

The historical novel might follow the public servants who handles the paperwork for London imports. Sounds boring? It wasn’t. Think of smugglers and international intrigue. But there are no important people involved? There are. The public service mixed with the good and great all the time. Name-dropping is easy. Chaucer, for instance, was heavily involved in that kind of activity, and from Chaucer, it was one step to royalty. A sexy step, too, given who he married.

 

I’m talking about the many people who keep countries going today. These quiet and industrious souls have always been with us. They’ve always had stories to tell, too. It’s a matter of cultural preference that we seldom tell these stories. The stories themselves are amazing.

Historical Drama for Autumn Nights by Katherine Clements

For as long as I can remember I’ve loved watching anything with a period setting. Escaping into the past has always been one of my favourite ways to unwind. Watching history – whether original drama or literary adaptation – allows me to witness someone else’s version, and someone else’s vision of history. It’s influenced my writing too. My novels have been described as ‘cinematic’ and ‘visual’. When I write, I see the scene unfolding in my mind’s eye, exactly as if I were watching onscreen.

One of the compensations for October’s colder days and darker evenings is that autumn has become synonymous with the roll out of new big budget costume dramas (BBC’s Poldark and ITV’s Victoria are the best examples this year). There have been some fantastic series over the last few years, such as Wolf Hall, Peaky Blinders and Ripper Street, but when it comes to comfort telly, nothing beats the old favourites. I’ve decided to share mine with you this month – those that still make it into the DVD player whenever I need a fix. So, turn up the heating, settle down with a cup of something hot and escape…

Jane Eyre (BBC TV series, 2006)
There have been many adaptations of this Brontë classic, with many merits, but this is my favourite. The two leads, Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens, bring Jane and Rochester to life with wit, chemistry and just enough menacing darkness to capture the gothic mood of the book without sliding into clichéd melodrama.

A Room with a View (Film, 1985)
This is the film that got me hooked on costume drama and I’ve watched it countless times. The acting is occasionally questionable, but that doesn’t matter. There’s something spellbinding about this adaptation of the E.M Forster novel. Twenty years ago I travelled to Florence, alone and by train, because of this film. I couldn’t afford a room with a view – that one is still on my bucket list.

Pride and Prejudice (BBC TV series, 1995)
Because it rightly deserves its place on just about every ‘best costume drama’ list you’ll find on the Internet. This classic, with Colin Firth as Darcy and Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennett, stands repeated watching and I go back to it regularly, like an old comfort blanket. The definitive adaptation.

The Devil’s Whore (Channel 4 TV series 2008)
This stunning whirlwind tour of the English Civil War has a special place in my heart. The impressive cast is what puts this above others – Peter Capaldi’s Charles I is my favorite portrayal ever – along with dark, gritty production design that suits the story. It’s rich in depth and detail and, for me, improved on second watching. An entertaining romp through the complicated politics of the period.

Sense and Sensibility (Film, 1995)

1995 was clearly the year for Austen adaptations. Emma Thompson’s Oscar winning script and star turns from Kate Winslet, Alan Rickman and others result in a perfectly pitched adaptation. This one wins when I need cheering up. While the BBC series penned by Andrew Davies (2008) is also extremely good, and probably more true to the book, this movie version pips it at the post, but only just.

Brideshead Revisited (Granada TV series, 1981)
Back in the days when TV producers were allowed to make long, meandering series this was a huge ratings hit, and rightly so. With time and space to do justice to Waugh’s languid, sweeping novel, this is one to get lost in.

North and South (BBC TV series, 2004)
Brooding Northern mills. Brooding Richard Armitage. There’s plenty of brooding going on in this adaptation of the Gaskell classic. A forerunner of more recent ‘it’s grim up North’ series like The Village and The Mill, this adaptation is notable for understated performances and strikes a good balance between gritty realism and sentiment.

Bleak House (BBC TV series, 2005)

Another BBC adaptation and another Andrew Davies script. I don’t always get on with Dickens but this one is pure class. An impressive cast makes light work of great dialogue, with memorable performances from the leads (this is where I fell for Gillian Anderson). And the whole is lifted further by stunning production design.

Remains of the Day (Film, 1993)
Another Merchant Ivory classic, based on the Ishiguro novel, it’s the performances from Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson that make this. One for melancholy days under the duvet with a mug of hot chocolate. Pure, heartbreaking quality.

Gosford Park (Film, 2001)
Before Downton Abbey, there was Gosford Park. This sumptuous murder mystery has multi-layered depth, plenty of heart, and a clever, dry wit that Downton lacks. And it looks stunning too. Julian Fellows at his best.

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