Thanks to the BBC's adaptation of Philippa Gregory's
The White Queen,
this summer England has been thrown into Tudor madness! I myself was turned into a
Max Irons fan girl in episode 1, rejoiced at
the return of Princess Leia hair in episode 2, and marveled at
the power of blowing into a bowl of water in episode 3. Since then my weekly reviews have stopped as I had visitors from France and then went to France myself, both of which kept me from my Sunday night viewing pleasure and I've been playing catch-up ever since.
Last night I caught up with episode 6,
Love and Death, on
BBC's iPlayer and I'm hoping to catch up with with the remaining 3 episodes prior to the series finale this Sunday. For those who missed my White Queen reviews, here are 6 things I missed from episodes 4-6;
6.
Warwick goes out with a bang! In episode 3,
The Storm, we saw Warwick (James Frain)
and his trusty lapdog, also known as George (David Oakes), fleeing to France after one of their many revolts failed. In episode 4,
The Bad Queen, Warwick has only one choice left, he must unite with Margaret of Anjou (
Veerle Baetens), the Lancastrian Queen. This alliance gives Warwick immense power, he's practically running the country with
mad King Henry VI (
David Shelley). Unfortunately this is short lived and the mighty Earl of Warwick falls in battle by episode 5,
War at First Hand, after killing off his own horse to prove to his men he would not run away. Truth be told I mourned the death of the horse far more than Warwick.
5.
Isabel and Anne have some serious daddy issues. Who could blame them? In
episode 3, Isabel Neville (
Eleanor Tomlinson) lost her baby while en route to France. In
The Bad Queen, Warwick marries off Anne Neville (
Faye Marsay) to Edward of Lancaster, in order to cement his deal with Margaret of Anjou. One must remember this was the 1400s and a daughter's purpose was to be married off in order to improve her father's position. Still I don't think all 15th century fathers were as ruthless as Lord Warwick. Alas with Warwick dead and gone I don't see these girls' daddy issues resolving any time soon, no matter how much therapy they were to go through.
4.
It's a Boy! Elizabeth (
Rebecca Ferguson) finally gives birth to the son her and Edward IV (Max Irons) have been longing for! Everybody celebrate for there is now an heir to the Yorkist throne! The problem is the birth takes place while Elizabeth and her family are seeking sanctuary at Westminster Abbey, not exactly the most royal of births. This baby boy was in fact Edward V, one of the two princes in the Tower (of London).. but more on that later.
3.
Lady Margaret, a York? War at First Hand begins with King Henry VI on the throne and Margaret Beaufort (
Amanda Hale) brings her son, Henry Tudor, to receive his blessing. The Yorks aren't willing to go down without a fight and both sides begin assembly armies with Margaret's husband joining the Yorks! He is seriously wounded in battle and dies shortly after but not before telling Margaret to make peace with York. Instead, Margaret writes to Jasper Tudor, a man whom she has long harboured romantic feelings for. However she is rejected and only then does she see the need to make peace with York by re-marrying to one of Edward IV's closest advisers, Thomas Stanley (Rupert Graves).
2. Richard + Anne Forever. Throughout the whole of The White Queen there has been sexual tension between the two. Who could forget the excited look on Anne's face when she thought her father was arranging for her to marry Richard (Aneurin Barnard)? Or the dismayed look when Richard discovered Anne had been married off to Edward of Lancaster? With Edward VI back in power, poor Anne is considered a traitor by some and is locked away by George, who seeks to control her and her inheritance. Even Isabel sides with George and helps to keep Anne imprisoned. Enter Anne's knight-in-shining-armour, Richard, who whisks her away under cover of darkness and marries her. In yo' face George!
1. Edward - how could you?! My first disappointment with Edward IV (Max Irons) occurred at the end of War at First Hand, when Edward and his brothers smothered King Henry VI with a pillow. In episode 6, Love and Death, I was even further disappointed by his actions after he takes up with a new mistress, Jane Shore. Now I realise in reality Edward IV was not a faithful husband to Elizabeth Woodville. He is known to have had numerous mistresses but I'm not hoping for reality in The White Queen. Elizabeth is left heartbroken after finding Edward and Jane Shore in bed together and remains hurt, especially after learning that the evening before her confinement he is off canoodling the other woman. It takes the death of their baby son and Elizabeth's mother, Jacquetta (Janet McTeer) to bring the two together. Still, if I were Elizabeth I wouldn't take Edward's excuse of "you know I wouldn't be a faithful husband but I love you so much" very well.
Q: What have you thought of The White Queen? Are you still watching?
Erin x
I have LOVED The White Queen! I'm a huge historical fiction fan and have read almost all of Phillipa Gregory's books so when I found out about this mini-series, I was beyond excited! Miraculously, I even got my husband to watch it with me. Now we're sad that it's all over :(
P.S. Max Irons is a babe.