The concept for the series originated in 1959 withPeter Dews, a veteran BBC producer and director, who was inspired by a 1951Anthony Quayle-directed production of theHenriad at theTheatre Royal and a 1953Douglas Seale-directedrepertory cast production of the three parts ofHenry VI at theBirmingham Repertory Theatre and subsequently,The Old Vic.[1] At the time,An Age of Kings was the most conceptually ambitious Shakespeare project ever undertaken, containing over 600 speaking roles, and requiring thirty weeks of rehearsal prior to performance. Each episode cost roughly £4,000. AdapterEric Crozier cut the text of the eight plays into sixty-, seventy-, seventy-five- and eighty-minute episodes, with each episode roughly corresponding to half of each play. The only exception to this was1 Henry VI, which was reduced to a single hour-long episode.[2]
Dews sourced most of his cast from The Old Vic, using many of the same actors who had appeared in Seale's production, although in different roles (Paul Daneman for example, playedHenry VI for Seale, but playedRichard III inAge of Kings). Dews also used actors with whom he had worked while directing undergraduate plays atOxford University. He gave the job of directing to his assistant,Michael Hayes.[2] The initial plan was for the series to be the inaugural production in the BBC's newly builtBBC Television Centre in London, but when the studios opened, the series was not ready, and was instead broadcast from theRiverside Studios inHammersmith.[2] Peter Dews described the set as "a large permanent structure; platforms, steps, corridors, pillars, and gardens, which will house nearly all the plays' action and which will, despite its outward realism, be not very far from Shakespeare's "unworthy scaffold"."[3] The entire production was shot with four cameras running at any given time. For battle scenes, acyclorama was used as a backdrop, obscured with smoke. Almost the entire series was shot in medium and close-ups. All fifteen episodes were broadcast live,[4] though a "telerecording" of the series was also made.[1]
Many of the episodes ended with wordless pseudo-teasers for the following episode. For example, "The Deposing of the King" ends with a shot ofNorthumberland's dagger stabbed intoHenry IV's paperwork, visually alluding to his later rebellion. "Signs of War" ends with a shot of a signpost reading "Agincourt", alluding to the upcoming battle in the following episode. "The Sun in Splendour" ends withGeorge, Duke of Clarence almost falling into a vat of wine, only to be saved by his brother, Richard, who looks deviously at the camera and smiles, alluding to his subsequent murder. "The Dangerous Brother" ends with Richard watching the sleepingPrinces in the Tower before smiling to himself and then blowing out a candle, again alluding to his planned murder. Head of BBC dramaMichael Barry referred to these "teasers" by explaining that "a strengthened purpose is added to the narrative when it is wholly seen, and we are able to look forward to 'what happens next'."[5]
The series was a great success, with an average viewing audience of three million in the UK.The Times hailed the production as "monumental; a landmark in the BBC's Shakespearian tradition."[6] The series won the British Guild of Directors' award for "Excellence in Directing" and thePeabody Award in the US.[7] It led to a follow-up,The Spread of the Eagle, consisting of Shakespeare's Roman plays which did not prove as successful.[8]
After a run on the New York City independent commercial stationWNEW beginning on 10 January 1961, the series was acquired for the United Statespublic television networkNational Educational Television (NET) by theNational Educational Television and Radio Center (NETRC), with financial support from theHumble Oil and Refining Company (the show was the first nationally distributed non-commercial series to receive support from a commercial source).[9] Costing $250,000, Humble Oil not only paid for the national rights but also for all publicity. NETRC promoted the show based on its educational value rather than its entertainment value, referring to it as "an experience in historical and cultural understanding," and stating "insofar as we are able, cultural phenomena peculiar to the time and environment will be [...] explained, and significant themes will be explored wherever appropriate." Shakespeare scholar andEmmy Award-winningFrank Baxter of theUniversity of Southern California provided commentary on the "historical, geographical and genealogical backgrounds of the plays."[9] First airing on 20 October 1961, on the 60 non-commercial TV stations then on the air, it proved a hit with both audiences and critics; theNew York Herald Tribune called it "easily one of the most magnificent efforts of the TV season";The New York Times wrote, "whatever may be said of their ethics, those noblemen make for superb entertainment."[9] As public television's first smash hit, the series led to many other successful British drama imports.[9]
The series was also shown in several other countries, typically to a positive response. For example, in Australia, it was broadcast onABC from October 1961, and was met with positive reviews.[10] In Canada the series started October 1963.[11][12] In West Germany, it was shown onWDR in 1967–1968.[13] In the Netherlands, it was shown onNCRV from January 1966, again meeting with good reviews.[14][15]
Content: a heavily condensed version of1 Henry VI.
Alterations: as this is the only episode in the series which adapts an entire play, truncation is much more liberal here than elsewhere. The most obvious difference is the complete removal ofTalbot, the ostensible protagonist of the play. The characters ofBurgundy andEdmund Mortimer have also been removed, and dialogue is heavily cut from every scene. All of the battle scenes from France have also been removed and the episode concentrates almost entirely on the political disintegration in England.
Content:2 Henry VI Acts 1, 2 and Act 3, Scene 1 (up toYork's soliloquy regarding the fact that he now has troops at his disposal and his revelation of his plans to useJack Cade to instigate a popular rebellion).
Alterations: Peter Thump does not kill Thomas Horner during the combat; he compels him to confess by sitting on him, and Horner is promptly arrested.
Content:2 Henry VI from Act 3, Scene 2 onwards (beginning with the murder of theDuke of Gloucester).
Alterations: the murder of Gloucester is shown, whereas in the text, it happens off-stage. The characters of bothGeorge Plantagenet andEdmund Plantagenet are introduced just prior to theFirst Battle of St Albans, whereas in the text, neither character is introduced until3 Henry VI (Edmund in Act 1, Scene 3; George in Act 2, Scene 2). Additionally, Edmund is played by an adult actor, whereas in the text, he is a child.Buckingham is killed on screen. In the text, his fate remains unknown until the opening lines of3 Henry VI, where it is revealed he was killed byEdward.
Content:3 Henry VI Acts 1, 2 and Act 3, Scenes 1 and 2 (up toRichard's soliloquy wherein he vows to attain the crown).
Alterations: the character of Edmund, Earl of Rutland is played by an adult actor, whereas in the text, he is a child. Additionally,Margaret is present during his murder, and we see her wipe his blood on the handkerchief which she later gives to York; in the text, Margaret does not witness the murder. During theBattle of Towton, Richard fights and killsClifford, whereas in the text, they fight, but Clifford flees and is mortally wounded off-stage when hit by an arrow.
Content:3 Henry VI from Act 3, Scene 3 onwards (beginning with Margaret's visit toLouis XI of France).
Alterations: Edward is rescued from his imprisonment by Richard andLord Stafford, whereas in the play, he is rescued by Richard,Lord Hastings andLord Stanley.Warwick is killed during theBattle of Barnet by George, whereas in the text, he is carried onto stage mortally wounded by Edward. Also, the end of the episode differs slightly from the end of the play. After Edward expresses his wish that all conflict has ceased, a large celebration ensues. As the credits roll, Richard and George stand to one side, and George almost slips into a barrel of wine, only to be saved by Richard. As George walks away, Richard muses silently to himself and then smiles deviously at the camera.
Content:Richard III Acts 1, 2 and Act 3, Scene 1 (up to Richard promisingBuckingham the Dukedom of Hereford).
Alterations: the character ofLord Grey is not portrayed asQueen Elizabeth's son, but simply as a kinsman; onlyDorset is her son. In the text, although there is some confusion and overlapping regarding the two characters in the early scenes, in the latter half of the play, they are both depicted as her sons. As the closing credits roll, there is a scene of Richard watching the Princes sleeping; there is no such scene in the text.
Content:Richard III from Act 3, Scene 1 onwards (beginning with Stanley's messenger arriving at Hastings' house).
Alterations: the scrivener's lamentation regarding the illegality of Hasting's execution is presented in the form of a plea as he attempts to convince two citizens to join him and speak out against Richard's actions; in the text, his speech is delivered as a soliloquy. The two priests between whom Richard stands as theLord Mayor urges him to become King are not real priests, but two servants dressed up as priests. As Richard ascends to the throne for the first time, he stumbles, and has Buckingham help him into the chair; there is no such scene in the play. As in most filmed versions up to this point (such as the 1912The Life and Death of King Richard the Third andLaurence Olivier's 1955Richard III), the ghosts appear only to Richard, whereas in the text they appear to both Richard andRichmond.
^abLennox, Patricia (2001). "Henry VI: A Television History in Four Parts". In Pendleton, Thomas A. (ed.).Henry VI: Critical Essays. London: Routledge. p. 237.ISBN9780815338925.
^abcSenter, Al (2009).An Age of Kings: Viewing Notes (booklet included with DVD box-set). London: BBC Video.
^Quoted inSmith, Emma (2007). "Shakespeare Serialized:An Age of Kings". In Shaughnessy, Robert (ed.).The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare and Popular Culture. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 140.ISBN9780521605809.
^Lennox, Patricia (2001). "Henry VI: A Television History in Four Parts". In Pendleton, Thomas A. (ed.).Henry VI: Critical Essays. London: Routledge. p. 238.ISBN9780815338925.
^Quoted inSmith, Emma (2007). "Shakespeare Serialized:An Age of Kings". In Shaughnessy, Robert (ed.).The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare and Popular Culture. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 137.ISBN9780521605809.
^Quoted inSmith, Emma (2007). "Shakespeare Serialized:An Age of Kings". In Shaughnessy, Robert (ed.).The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare and Popular Culture. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 136.ISBN9780521605809.
^Lennox, Patricia (2001). "Henry VI: A Television History in Four Parts". In Pendleton, Thomas A. (ed.).Henry VI: Critical Essays. London: Routledge. p. 239.ISBN9780815338925.
