Calling all Tudorphiles!

I got Showtime last night and caught the third episode of season 2 of The Tudor's last night. I had seen an episode of the first part of the series last season and got intruigued.

Here is the show website which is quite cool btw:
http://www.sho.com/site/tudors/home.do

I saw the episode where King Henry (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers) marries Anne Boelyn and I must say I was not disappointed. Jonathan is by far the sexiest King Henry the eighth I have ever seen cast...I am talking molten sexualty that exudes from his pores.... Combine that with the amazing costumes, sets, and Peter O'Toole and you really can't lose with this production IMO...

I am hooked!

I've been watching it since last season. I have Showtime On Demand which has the episodes one week in advance so I saw Chapter 5 this morning.

Last year, they had Sam Neill as Cardinal Wolsey and he was incredible. I also liked Maria Doyle Kennedy as Queen Katharine.

LOL! I looked at the title and my gutter 3rd-grader brain saw Turdophiles.

Unfortunately I do not have cable Tv, so I can't watch, but delighted you set up the thread.

We don't have Showtime either, but I wouldn't watch anyway. I just cannot get into period shows like that. Or the movies. Never could JRM is a pig. Sorry, but his attitude toward women and relationships makes me want to smack him

From everything I've ever read about him, Henry VIII was considered quite the medieval hottie. He did get fat and bloated in his middle years due to an injury that didn't allow him to exercise.

Badger, glad to hear you are a fellow Tudorphile! I saw episode 3 tonight so I am catching up quickly! I am only two behind you now! I will see episode 4 tomorrow night!

Sorry you don't get Showtime Frazz...you would love some of the actors in this production. I just had to get Showtime for this series and Dexter.

FC... oh well...understand the period stuff is not for everyone. As for Jonathan? I could really careless what any actor does off camera, as long as I am thoroughly entertained and they are putting out quality performances...that is really all that matters to me. Now if they are child abusers, psychopaths, or nutjobs well that is another story.

I guess I kind of expect many actors are players, ego maniacs, and do lots of things I probably don't approve or agree with, no offense Frazz!
At the end of the day, if they are charismatic and make me like them on screen, that is what I am paying them to do...and nothing more.

Ordinarily I am like that too, except in the case of say Tom Cruise, but when I saw an interview with JRM after his rehab stay and implied women are here for men's pleasure and no man should be expected to be faithful to his wife/girlfriend and she better understand that - well just YUCK! Women are JUST here to pleasure men?? Well alrighty then See, that was just too much for me. I do not appreciate men who think that way, and certainly not those that come right out and say it! To a woman interviewer! Sadly, yes it did color the way I see him (I loved him as Elvis) and I really can't watch him and not think of that interview.

I feel the same about Colin Farrell (I think that is how you spell it) in that he cannot get through one single sentence in an interview without saying the f-word 20 times He would be being interviewed by classy women like Mary Hart and Barbara Walters and couldn't answer one question without F's or MF's. So incredible disrespectful and tacky.

I just can't get into period films, Gladiator movies, Westerns and not really war pictures either. Though Sand Pebbles is one of my all times fave films - but that is probably because of Steve McQueen.

I love period pieces ! I loved the Jane Austen masterpiece series on PBS just lately. I love Pride and Prejudice so much that my son is named for a certain actor that portrayed Mr. Darcy to perfection.
The costumes in tHe tudors are to die for , aren't they? I think JRM does a great job with Henry. Although Henry was really 6"2 with beautiful red gold hair. And like Badger said he was not fat until middle aged. As a young man he was extremely atheltic . He was injured diuring a jousting accident and his leg troubled him the rest of his days. He was not able to exercise properly. It is also believed that he was diabetic. Henry did not fall in love with Anne until his forties ans she was in her twenties. Anne also had an extra pinky finger that she covered with a sleeve. She was very intelligent and was influential in exposing Henry to different religions. Ok are you bored yet? But I am not going to be able to watch S2My family is until DVD release which is the way I watched last time. My family is Scottish and english and I first became interested because my family was related to Robert the Bruce and I started reading and could not quit. But anyway as you can tell The tudors is one if my favorite subjects.

Aerwin, Oo-o I love the Henry VIII trivia! Henry was a tall one eh? Jonathan does'nt seem that tall to me on screen and is not really all that muscular looking, but slim and fit-which works, but I always pictured Henry as more muscular and yes, tall.

Anne had an extra finger? I bet people accused her of being a witch too as well as a traitor.

So should we do spoilers so we don't ruin the upcoming episodes for you Aerwin?

Oh I don't mind. I pretty much know what is going to happen. it won't stop me from watching. The show is not entirely historically accurate , but who cares. I think JRM may not look like Henry but he seems to have captured his personality. if you like The tudors you may want to see both of Cate Balchett's Elizabeth movies. They are wonderful. She was Henry and Anne's daughter . He diswoned her at one point and she turned out to be one of the greatest and beloved ruler of all time.

Did anyone watch the season finale? OMG, it was powerful, and beautiful.

I don't even know if I can even verbalize it. If anyone is into it and has'nt seen it yet, I don't want to spoil it for you...not that you don't know what happenned. But, I really think the final show is going to bring in some major kudos and awards just for the pure artistic beauty and outstanding acting that went on.

Bellisima!

I thought both episodes 9 and 10 were incredible. Natalie Dormer, who I didn't care much for in Season 1, was excellent in the last two shows especially. I really hope she gets some recognition come awards time.

I can't wait to see more of Princess Mary either because I think the actress who plays her has also been very very good. She did a great job of portraying someone that absolutely believed that no matter what anyone said or what indignities she had to endure, that she was her father's rightful heir and a princess, but at the same time showing that underneath it all was a scared teenager. And let's just hope Clay doesn't look to Pimp Daddy Boleyn as a role model for fatherhood. LOL!

FWIW, they used an earlier episode for Emmy consideration - I think either the fourth or fifth episode. I think they put up everyone who's in the opening credits for Emmy consideration including Peter O'Toole for Best Guest Actor.

My favorite character this season though was Mark Smeaton who I thought was the hottest and sexiest guy on the show. And he had the world's best shit-eating grin. The scenes where he seduced Anne Boleyn's brother were really hot too. It was awful seeing him get tortured in Episode 9. By the time they dragged him to the chopping block, you really wanted him out of his misery.

What's really going to be interesting is how they deal with the aging Henry. Is Jonathan Rhys Myers going to pull a Robert De Niro and gain weight or will they go with a fat suit?

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Natalie Dormer, who I didn't care much for in Season 1, was excellent in the last two shows especially. I really hope she gets some recognition come awards time.

I can't wait to see more of Princess Mary either because I think the actress who plays her has also been very very good. She did a great job of portraying someone that absolutely believed that no matter what anyone said or what indignities she had to endure, that she was her father's rightful heir and a princess, but at the same time showing that underneath it all was a scared teenager.

Badger, ITA! I also did'nt care much for Natalie Dormer at first, but she definitely grew on me, and by the end I thought her acting was top notch. I think she was cast perfectly in the role because she captured the essense of Anne's egotistical and manipulative nature, and in the end her strength and humility came to the forefront.

I also enjoyed many others in the cast, Princess Mary included. Mark Smeaton was simply charming in his role, and it also was painful for me when he was so brutally tortured until he met his end.

I also am very curious how they will handle the aging of Jonathan Rhys Meyers for the role...he looks so young... and so dashing!
I am so in love with the set and costume design as well as the screenplay, and directing.

I am sad to see it end. That is my personal judge of a show that really has me hooked! This one will go down as one of my favorites of all time...it is that good! Right up there with Sex and the City and Six Feet Under!

I cannot wait for S2!!I will get it on DVD. Were the costumes spectcular? I wonder how they are going to age JRM.Henry was already in 40's when he met Ann,so I wonder if they are going to change him much at all. Physically he does not look like him. You know I love reading about The Thudors , always have. I used to think Ann was a shrew but the more I read about her the more I respect her intelligence and symphatize wqith her. She was after all Mother of one of the greatest rulers of Great Britian. Oh what is the actress like playing Jane Seymour?

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Henry was already in 40's when he met Ann,so I wonder if they are going to change him much at all. Physically he does not look like him.

Yes, he seems a bit young and not the Henry type physically for the role, but I do appreciate his fineness! And his acting totally makes him believable!

Badger, have you seen Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett yet? We should both watch it and then start a thread about it to help meet our needs for this genre of entertainment!

What about the the actress that plays Jane?

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What about the the actress that plays Jane?

Sorry I meant what is the girl that plays Jane like, what does she look like, etc.

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Badger, have you seen Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett yet? We should both watch it and then start a thread about it to help meet our needs for this genre of entertainment!

I've seen both multiple times. Elizabeth 1 is one of my heroes. Cate Blanchett is fantastic in the role.

I am thinking of renting The Other Bolleyn girl. Has anyone seen it? I've read the book and loved it . It is about Ann and Mary Boleyn.

I've seen Cate Blancett's Elizabeth, but not the sequel. It was all right, but I prefer the HBO mini-series with Helen Mirren.

I'm also really interested in how they plan to age JRM. You know, Henry didn't really start getting fat until he got hurt and wasn't able to get the exercise he had before. Typical athlete syndrome, I guess.

The girl who plays Jane Seymour is a pretty but fairly bland blonde. I think the real Jane was supposed to be rather mousy but then Anne Boleyn was not considered a beauty in her day either. The way she's being portrayed so far is kind of sweet and innocent but with a mind of her own but definitely not a rabble rouser. Like in one scene, she tells Henry she would like him to put Mary back in the line of succession, but she doesn't really argue the point when he tells her they need to worry about the children (sons) they will have and not so much about his offspring from previous relationships.

I really hope Peter O'Toole is back next year. He played Pope Paul III as a cross between Osama Bin Laden and a Mafia don. Brereton almost seemed like a suicide bomber, didn't he?

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I really hope Peter O'Toole is back next year. He played Pope Paul III as a cross between Osama Bin Laden and a Mafia don. Brereton almost seemed like a suicide bomber, didn't he?

How old is Peter O'Toole now? I hope he makes it another year period.

I agree the Jane character on the show is coming off quite bland and passive. Is that the way the real Jane Seymour was according to history?
Aerwin:I cannot even begin to describe how beautiful and correct to the period the costumes are! Would you mind if we posted some photos of some of our favs from the show?Let us know if the Boelyn girls is worth it or not! I am so into period films now I had seriously thought about seeing it too!

This painting of Jane portrays her as quite homely indeed.


Anne looked a bit more comely...and the actress that played her on the show does have a bit of a resemblance.

Luca wrote:

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I really hope Peter O'Toole is back next year. He played Pope Paul III as a cross between Osama Bin Laden and a Mafia don. Brereton almost seemed like a suicide bomber, didn't he?

How old is Peter O'Toole now? I hope he makes it another year period.

Peter O'Toole is in his late seventies - very close to 80. I think he's planning on working until they carry him out in a coffin.

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Peter O'Toole is in his late seventies - very close to 80. I think he's planning on working until they carry him out in a coffin.

Man, he looks every bit of that...bless his heart! He still has great acting skills though and I think it is very cool he got hired for the role! He still commands an audiences' attention doesn't he?

I ADORE Peter O' Toole , I cannot wait to see him portray Pope Paul, one of the most despicable people I've ever read about it. No , I don't mind pics I go to The Tudors website all the time. I do think you should watch both Elizabeth movies. Cate Blanchett doe a terrific job portraying Elizabeth pre monarch and the beginning of her reign in the first one, The Golden Age is good too but Cate is what 30ish? and during that time Elizabeth was 50ish. So for the latter Elizabeth Helen Mirren does indeed do a marvelous ,terrific job. So I suggest both. Do you like to read? If so Alison Weir has a wonderful book The six Wives Of Henry the Eighth and The Children of Henry the Eighth.

Aerwin,Yes, I do like to read! Thanks for the recommendations on the books! Are they biographies or fiction based on history?

I am also going to get a book called "Immortal" which is set in Renaissance Florence, but can't remember the author's name right now.

They are biographies BUT read like a Novel they are so engrossing. She has lots of great books on English History. She also has some works of fiction based on history. I've read all of her books.

I've read Alison Weir's Six Wives of Henry VIII and it really is quite a good book. I don't think she likes Anne Boleyn that much. In her book Anne is basically a bitch that everyone sees through except the King who is besotted with love until she fails to deliver a living son.

I'm just starting the Antonia Fraser version now.