| Wolf Hall | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Historical drama |
| Based on | Wolf Hall andBring Up the Bodies byHilary Mantel |
| Written by | Peter Straughan |
| Directed by | Peter Kosminsky |
| Starring | |
| Composers | Original music by Debbie Wiseman Tudor music by Claire van Kampen |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 12 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Colin Callender |
| Producer | Mark Pybus |
| Cinematography | Gavin Finney |
| Running time | 60–65 minutes |
| Production companies | Company Pictures Playground Entertainment |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC Two |
| Release | 21 January (2015-01-21) – 25 February 2015 (2015-02-25) |
| Network | BBC One |
| Release | 10 November (2024-11-10) – 15 December 2024 (2024-12-15) |
Wolf Hall is a British television series adaptation of the book trilogy of the same name byHilary Mantel, a fictionalised biography documenting the life ofThomas Cromwell.
The six-part first series, based on the novelsWolf Hall[1] andBring Up the Bodies,[2] was initially broadcast onBBC Two in January 2015. It documented the rapid rise to power of Thomas Cromwell in the court ofHenry VIII, through the death of SirThomas More, to Cromwell's success in freeing the king of his marriage toAnne Boleyn. It was first broadcast abroad in April 2015 in the United States onPBS and in Australia onBBC First. The first series was a critical success and received eight nominations at the67th Primetime Emmy Awards and three nominations at the73rd Golden Globe Awards, winning forBest Miniseries or Television Film.
Thesecond series, adapted fromThe Mirror & the Light, the final novel in the trilogy, featuredMark Rylance, directorPeter Kosminsky, and writerPeter Straughan returning;[3] it was filmed between November 2023 and April 2024 and was first broadcast on 10 November 2024.[4]
The series centres on the character ofThomas Cromwell, a lawyer who has risen from humble beginnings. The action in Series 1 opens at a point in Cromwell's career where his master, CardinalThomas Wolsey, is about to fall from power because of his failure to secure a marriage annulment for KingHenry VIII of England.[5] It proceeds through Cromwell's own rise to political power, and ends with the execution ofAnne Boleyn.[6] Series 2 picks up after Anne's execution, following Cromwell's continued rise and Henry's marriage to his third and fourth queens,Jane Seymour andAnne of Cleves, the latter of which will ultimately lead to Cromwell's fall from power and execution.
On 23 August 2012, BBC Two announced several new commissions, one of which wasWolf Hall.[14] According toThe Guardian£7 million was to be spent on the adaptation.[15] BBC Two controllerJanice Hadlow said it was "very fortunate to have the rights" to the two novels and calledWolf Hall "a great contemporary novel".[16][17]
Peter Kosminsky, the director of the series, said: "This is a first for me. But it is an intensely political piece. It is about the politics of despotism, and how you function around an absolute ruler. I have a sense that Hilary Mantel wanted that immediacy. ... When I saw Peter Straughan's script, only a first draft, I couldn't believe what I was reading. It was the best draft I had ever seen. He had managed to distil 1,000 pages of the novels into six hours, using prose so sensitively. He's a theatre writer by trade."[15]
The drama series features 102 characters and Kosminsky began casting the other parts in October 2013. Although originally set to film in Belgium,[18] most of the filming took place on location at some of the finest British medieval and Tudor houses and buildings, includingBerkeley Castle,Gloucester Cathedral andHorton Court in Gloucestershire,Dover Castle andPenshurst Place in Kent,Broughton Castle andChastleton House in Oxfordshire,Wells Cathedral,Barrington Court,Cothay Manor andMontacute House in Somerset,Stanway House in Gloucestershire, andSherborne School in Dorset,Bristol Cathedral in Bristol,St Donat's Castle in the Vale of Glamorgan,Hospital of St Cross in Hampshire, andGreat Chalfield Manor andLacock Abbey in Wiltshire.[19][20] In all, 28 locations were used, mostly in the south-west of England.[21] The series was filmed from May to July 2014. The series, which was made in association with Masterpiece Entertainment andPlayground Entertainment,[22] consists of six episodes and was broadcast on BBC Two in the UK from 21 January 2015.
The Guardian speculated that the BBC's hiring of Kosminsky with Straughan showed they wanted "a darker and grittier take on British history" than more fanciful programmes such asThe Tudors orThe White Queen.[15] Mantel called Straughan's scripts a "miracle of elegant compression and I believe with such a strong team the original material can only be enhanced".[15]
Kosminsky determined to undertake much of the interior filming by candlelight; this led some of the actors to collide with the scenery and raised concerns about the risk of fires.[23]Wolf Hall was filmed in two locations inKent:Dover Castle doubled for the Tower of London, and the Long Gallery, Tapestry Room, and Queen Elizabeth Room atPenshurst Place were used as specific rooms in Whitehall (York Place), which was Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII's residence. The Long Gallery doubled as Anne Boleyn's chamber.[24] Some scenes were filmed atStanway House inGloucestershire.[25]
The series' executive producer,Colin Callender, stated in February 2015 that he hoped that the BBC would commission an extension of the series based on the final novel in Mantel's trilogy,The Mirror & the Light, which was published in 2020.[26] Callender said that lead performers Mark Rylance and Damian Lewis were "eager" to return.[26]
A second series ofWolf Hall was confirmed on 27 May 2019,[27] officially announced asWolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, and began filming on 24 November 2023 with Mark Rylance, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Damian Lewis, Jonathan Pryce, Kate Phillips and Lilit Lesser all reprising their roles from the previous series.
On 4 April 2024 the BBC announced that filming of the second series had been completed,[28] and revealed details of several roles that had been recast, includingTimothy Spall as the Duke of Norfolk (replacingBernard Hill),Harriet Walter as Lady Margaret Pole (replacingJanet Henfrey), andHarry Melling as Thomas Wriothesley (replacing Joel MacCormack).[29]
| No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date (BBC Two) | U.S. air date[30] | UK viewers (millions) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Three Card Trick" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 21 January 2015 (2015-01-21) | 5 April 2015 | 5.99[31] | |
In 1529, asCardinal Wolsey receives news of his dismissal as Lord Chancellor, his lawyerThomas Cromwell reminisces about how he and Wolsey met and the events leading up to the Cardinal's downfall. | |||||||
| 2 | "Entirely Beloved" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 28 January 2015 (2015-01-28) | 12 April 2015 | 4.46[31] | |
As 1529 draws to a close, Cardinal Wolsey moves to York while Thomas Cromwell attempts to gain support for him from KingHenry VIII andAnne Boleyn and, in the process, gradually wins favour for himself. | |||||||
| 3 | "Anna Regina" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 4 February 2015 (2015-02-04) | 19 April 2015 | 4.13[31] | |
In 1531, King Henry VIII has proposed a bill which will make him the head of the Church in England and allow him to marry Anne Boleyn. However, his plans are met with a series of complications. | |||||||
| 4 | "The Devil's Spit" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 11 February 2015 (2015-02-11) | 26 April 2015 | 4.29[31] | |
In 1533, Anne Boleyn has given birth to a daughter, much to King Henry VIII's disdain. As Anne's paranoia over her inability to produce a son grows, Thomas Cromwell tries to convinceSir Thomas More to show approval for the royal marriage. | |||||||
| 5 | "Crows" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 18 February 2015 (2015-02-18) | 3 May 2015 | 3.72[31] | |
In 1535, King Henry VIII's becoming head of the Church in England has antagonised the Holy Roman Emperor. Meanwhile, Anne Boleyn's failure to produce a male heir leads Henry towardJane Seymour. | |||||||
| 6 | "Master of Phantoms" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 25 February 2015 (2015-02-25) | 10 May 2015 | 3.74[31] | |
TheExeter Conspiracy is in the works. In 1536, King Henry VIII's request that Thomas Cromwell find a way to rid him of Anne Boleyn—a sentiment supported by others who wish for Jane Seymour to take her place—leads to a series of allegations and revelations. | |||||||
| No. in series | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date (BBC One) | U.S. air date | UK viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Wreckage" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 10 November 2024 (2024-11-10) | 23 March 2025 | 4.06 |
| 2 | "Obedience" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 17 November 2024 (2024-11-17) | 30 March 2025 | 3.49 |
| 3 | "Defiance" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 24 November 2024 (2024-11-24) | 6 April 2025 | 3.40 |
| 4 | "Jenneke" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 1 December 2024 (2024-12-01) | 13 April 2025 | 3.23 |
| 5 | "Mirror" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 8 December 2024 (2024-12-08) | 20 April 2025 | 3.25 |
| 6 | "Light" | Peter Kosminsky | Peter Straughan | 15 December 2024 (2024-12-15) | 27 April 2025 | 3.29 |
Critics have been "almost unanimous" in their praise of the initial series, with particular reference to the attention to period detail, the faithful adaptation of the source novels, Kosminsky's direction, and the performances of the leading cast members, particularly Rylance as Cromwell and Foy as Boleyn.[32] Review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes gave the show a 98% rating based on 53 reviews with an average rating of 8.4/10. The website's critical consensus states, "Beautifully filmed and brilliantly acted, Wolf Hall masterfully brings Hilary Mantel's award-winning novels to life."[33] Sam Wollaston inThe Guardian called it "sumptuous, intelligent, event television."[34] Will Dean inThe Independent felt that it did not compare favourably with the stage adaptation of the book, yet he predicted that it would "secure a devoted following."[35] James Walton inThe Daily Telegraph gave the first episode five stars out of five, commenting: "it's hard to see how this one could have been done much better."[36] Mick Adam Noya from the television review show Channel Crossing called Wolf Hall "the best show of 2015".[37]Sophie Gilbert ofThe Atlantic wrote, "Magnificent...a tour de force."[38]
A few dissenting voices found some flaws.The Daily Telegraph alleged that there was a substantial drop in ratings between the first and second episodes, despite all the following episodes holding high and consistent ratings.[39]Simon Schama stated concerns about how the series depicted historical figures.[40]Emily Nussbaum ofThe New Yorker cited "small weaknesses", but wrote "the show's deliberately paced six hours turn out to be riveting, precisely because they are committed, without apology or, often, much explanation, to the esotericism of their subject matter."[41]
The Mirror and the Light generated controversy over the inclusion of non-white actors, a departure from the first series. Colin Callender, the founder ofPlayground Entertainment, the company that produced the series, addressed the "color-blind" casting issue, saying, "The world has changed since the first series. We felt that diverse casting was appropriate and something we should and wanted to do. It's as simple as that."[42] However, the choice drew criticism, including from the journalist and author,Petronella Wyatt, a descendant ofThomas Wyatt who was portrayed in the series by a British actor originally from Egypt. Writing inThe Daily Telegraph, she called the decision "absurd" and said "to portray English aristocrats as black or mixed-race is, conversely, an act of racism, as it suggests that ethnic minorities in Tudor Britain had the doors of society flung open to them, when in fact they led drear and oppressed lives."[43]
The lighting design, which used historically accurate natural light sources (such as candlelight for evening scenes) prompted criticism from some viewers who felt many scenes appeared too dark.[44]
For the5th Critics' Choice Television Awards, the first series received four nominations:Best Limited Series,Mark Rylance forBest Actor,Jonathan Pryce forBest Supporting Actor, andClaire Foy forBest Supporting Actress.[51]
