Screen ‘The Tudors’ Before Its Showtime Premiere
New Historical Series Gives an Old Tale a Modern Spin
HBO’s historical drama Rome may have ended last Sunday after only two years, but rival premium cable channel Showtime aims to keep the genre alive. This Sunday, it debuts The Tudors, a new ten-episode series set at the beginning of the 16th century during the early reign of England’s young Henry VIII. According to Showtime, the series will offer a “rarely dramatized” look at the “tumultuous early years of [the king's] nearly 40-year omnipotent reign (1509-1547) of England.“
The lead role is played by Ireland’s Jonathan Rhys Meyers, a more than capable actor who won a Golden Globe award and Emmy nomination for his portrayal of Elvis Presley in the 2005 CBS miniseries Elvis. His costars include fellow Ireland native Maria Doyle Kennedy as Henry’s first wife Catherine of Aragon; Brit Natalie Dormer as Anne Boleyn, who was to become the king’s infamous second wife, beheaded on charges of adultery, amongst others, while just in her early thirties; and New Zealand’s Sam Neill as Thomas Cardinal Wolsey, an initial confidant of Henry VIII who lost his stature after the king’s request for an annulment of his first marriage to Catherine of Aragon in order to marry Boleyn was not honored forthright.
Showtime is giving anyone with fast Internet access the opportunity to watch the first two episodes of The Tudors in their entirety prior to the series’ premiere next Sunday, April 1. Simply visit the show’s Web site, sit back, and enjoy.
The Tudors premieres Sunday on Showtime at 10pm EST
The Tudors photo courtesy of Showtime
