Sign in to wikis by wetpaint

Sign in or

For Tudors Fans:
The Tudor Times

Location: CHARACTERS - Season 4

Discussion: Portrayals you really DID like

Category: Discussion Forum / The Actors

Report thread
Watch thread
Share this

MsSquirrly	Portrayals you really DID like Aug 1 2010, 10:43 AM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 1 2010, 11:13 AM EDT Now that the series is over, which historical characters did you really like the way they were portrayed? My list would be: -Maria Doyle Kennedy for the way she portrayed Katherine of Aragon with strength, dignity and deep sadness. -Sam Neil for the way he portrayed Wolsey with the slyness and desperation of a great man trying to hold on to his position and the frustration of losing his control. -Bosco Hogan who gave a great performance as Bishop Fisher. His scaffold speech brought me to tears. -Jeremy Northam's portrayal of Thomas More was sheer genius. He made him human. -Natalie Dormer's performance of Anne Boleyn, particularly in season 2 when Hirst gave her character some depth. Great young actress who stole the spotlight in every scene she appeared in. -James Frain as Cromwell who could make you see what he was thinking just by a look on his face. -Finally, Jonathan Rhys Meyers as the King, who I really didn't want to like in the role. He changed my mind. He certainly did exude the charisma and rock star style of a man who was the centre of his universe....and everyone elses. Honourable mentions, David Alpay as Smeaton, Nick Dunning as Thomas Boleyn, Jamie Thomas King as Wyatt, Sarah Bolger as Princess Mary, Peter O'Toole as Pope Paul and Max Brown as Edward Seymour. Post reply Do you find this valuable? Keyword tags: actors Characters performances portrayals The Tudors
QueenAnne30	1. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 2 2010, 4:36 AM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 2 2010, 4:39 AM EDT Anne Boleyn - Natalie Dormer was just perfect for the role. Henry Tudor- we love to hate him. Charles Brandon- cried like a baby when he died, thought henry played him very well. Katherine Howard- suprisingly although in reality she is not one of my favourites on the show she was, maybe it was just the way Tamzin did it. Mary Tudor- finally we see a non bloody Mary. Cromwell, Crammer, Wolsey, and More, all played wonderfully by the actors. Season 3 Elizabeth- the actress was so cute, and for me what i though elizabeth would be like. Edward Tudor- really felt for little ed. Anne Of Cleves. Hounrable mentions: Katherine of Aragon, Mark Smeaten, Wyatt, Tom seymour, Edward seymour, Jane Boleyn, george boleyn ( except for the rape and abuse part). Post reply Do you find this valuable?
emmalane	2. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 2 2010, 11:04 AM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 2 2010, 3:19 PM EDT I agree with MsSquirly regarding Maria Doyle Kennedy as Katherine of Aragon and Jeremy Northam as Thomas More, these two gave great performances and had the advantage of having their characters written with seemingly less variation from historical accuracy than other characters. Others: Alan Van Sprang as Francis Bryan: very much the despicable rogue but I loved him anyway, he could be mercilessly brutal or brutally funny. Henry Czerny as the Duke of Norfolk: he was underused and eliminated after season 1, with most of his historical actions attributed to Brandon, still he was subtle and convincing in his role. David O'Hara as the Earl of Surrey: despite the discrepancy in age between actor/character, the dignity and resignation he showed when condemned was very powerful. And who could forget that final voice over of the poem he had showed Brandon? Joanna King as Jane Boleyn, Lady Rochford: she gave a woman for whom I believe history had little sympathy an interesting range. I think she really just wanted to be treated well and to belong and you could see how her character and actions changed according to which queen she was serving and how she was treated by others at court. Finally I liked the young actress who played the final Elizabeth, she was very guarded with her actions and emotions and I thought that fitting given her place as Anne Boleyn's daughter. It showed some insight into the woman & queen she would become. Post reply Do you find this valuable?
defenderofhistory	3. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 2 2010, 5:04 PM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 2 2010, 5:04 PM EDT Number one is definitely Natalie Dormer as Anne Boleyn! At first I thought nobody could portray Henry but JRM definitely lived up to the expectations. I also liked how they portrayed Elizabeth as in all the series, in the early ones she's so cute then in the others she was so pretty looking with the Tudor hair color and all. Post reply Do you find this valuable?
royalfalcon	4. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 2 2010, 5:35 PM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 2 2010, 5:35 PM EDT I have not seen Season 4 yet. We are still waiting for it to be televised here in the U.K. I think that there have been many brilliant performances in every season I have seen so far. I would single out JRM I think he has been terrific, a truly memorable Henry and also Natalie Dormer - the best Anne Boleyn that I have ever seen on the screen. I thought that the chemistry between the two of them was electric. Honourable mention: Sam Neil, Marie Kennedy Doyle, Jeremy Northam, James Frain , Bosco Hogan , Nick Dunning and, of course, Peter O'Toole. - In fact, I think that everybody has played their part in making this a great series. Post reply Do you find this valuable?
gracieloo123	5. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 4 2010, 8:38 AM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 4 2010, 8:38 AM EDT Charles Brandon Thomas Comwell King Henry VIII Princess Mary Archbishop Cranmer Edward and Thomas Seymour Post reply Do you find this valuable?
jrmslady09	6. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 4 2010, 5:27 PM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 4 2010, 5:27 PM EDT JRM- definetly because like most there is the idea of what Henry was like and it was always when he was old and not so much on when he was younger and as he aged it showed how he changed and how he was corrupted by the absolute power that he attained. Natalie Dormer- liked her from the start as she truly had a presence on screen and when she and JRM were on screen together it was like lightning it really worked. Anita Briem/Annabelle Wallis- Even though they used two different actresses they brought in my mind a little more insight not as much as they could defintely gave me a more broad view of Jane Seymour. Charles Brandon- what can be said other than it proved that by portrayal that at least some of tv matched with history especially with the loyalty factor and let's face it ladies Henry good looking guy!! James Frain- He played Cromwell rather well not having ever seen another portrayal he always seem to keep me guessing because he always seem to have a card up his sleeve and deep, dark, dirty little secret to go along with it. Jeremy Northam- He played a wonderful Thomas More above all I found his scaffold speech in season 2 to be both inspiring and heartbreaking. Sarah Bolger- In many ways she made Mary identifiable and it made me understand how she could have easily become the person that she was in her later life but I also am seeing her in a multi-faceted manner. Laoise Murray- I admit at first I didn't get her portryal of Elizabeth but she seems to shape out a look and manner that seems to fit Elizabeth and seems to be true to the way she most likely was. Post reply Do you find this valuable?
Neta07	7. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 4 2010, 5:40 PM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 4 2010, 5:41 PM EDT My List: - Natalie Dormer as Anne Boleyn = just for the simple fact that with previous versions of Anne Boleyn (I have never seen "Anne of a Thousand Days") once she went to the tower you felt that it was the same actress playing a totally different woman, whereas with Natalie you felt she was the same Anne you saw at the French court but more damaged. Also the first time I watched her death (I was by myself) I clapped for Natalie's performance of her. - Joss Stone as Anne of Cleves = Although I hated how her story ended on the show I place the fault on Hirst rather than Joss herself, for me she brought the Queen to life, I felt her conflicting emotions we saw her become a woman with much love and happiness and I felt sorry for her from the outset. - Sarah Bolger as Mary Tudor = she portrayed Mary with much grace, loved how the actress herself focused on what Mary was then rather than what she will become (whereas with Laoise Murray as Elizabeth the actress focused more on what she will become). - Joanne King as Jane Boleyn = The first time I read something on Jane Boleyn I hated her sooooo much for dobbing Anne in and then helping Katherine with her supposed affairs, when watching Joanne play her to my horror I started to like her you saw the reasons behind everything and started to feel sorry for her once I saw season four I started to hate her again for trying to implicate Katherine I loved how the actress made you want to like her but once you liked her she then tried to make you hate her. Honorable Mentions: - Bosco Hogan as John Fisher - James Frain as Cromwell - Peter O'Toole as Pope Paul (but I think regardless is more to the fact that Peter is just an amazing actor) - Maria Doyle Kennedy as Katherine of Aragon - Anthony Brophy as Eustace Chapuys - David Alpay as Mark Smeaton - Steven Waddington as Edward Stafford - Jeremy Northam as Thomas More Post reply Do you find this valuable?
Neta07	8. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 4 2010, 5:54 PM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 4 2010, 5:54 PM EDT Added to my list: - Torrance Coombs as Culpepper = He was just amazing in the role, he gave the character depth and you saw he was dodgy but you still liked the character himself but just not his actions. Other Honourable Mentions: - Kate O'Toole as Lady Salisbury - Jane Brennan as Lady Bryan - Hans Matheson as Thomas Cranmer - Gerard McSorely as Robert Aske - Jonathan Rhys Meyers as King Henry Post reply Do you find this valuable?
Littlebrother65	9. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Aug 8 2010, 6:24 PM EDT \| Post edited: Aug 8 2010, 6:24 PM EDT JRM did a good Job as portraying King Henry when he aged and portrayed Henry more like the historical Henry when he said the same lines that King Henry spoke in real life. Sarah Bolger as Princess Mary. Jeremy Northam as Sir Thomas More. In fact Jeremy looked like the real Sir Thomas More. Peter O Toole as Pope Paul III. Peter has always been a good actor ever since his role as Lawrence of Arabia. Natalie Dormer brought Anne Boleyn to life especially in season 2. Her execution was heartbreaking and so was her speech before her execution. Honorable mention to James Frain as Cromwell, David Alpay as Smeaton and Max Brown as Edward Seymour even through he did not look like the real Edward Seymour. Post reply Do you find this valuable?
I'mTheCheesecakeHere	10. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Feb 22 2011, 9:55 AM EST "Now that the series is over, which historical characters did you really like the way they were portrayed? My list would be: -Maria Doyle Kennedy for the way she portrayed Katherine of Aragon with strength, dignity and deep sadness. -Sam Neil for the way he portrayed Wolsey with the slyness and desperation of a great man trying to hold on to his position and the frustration of losing his control. -Bosco Hogan who gave a great performance as Bishop Fisher. His scaffold speech brought me to tears. -Jeremy Northam's portrayal of Thomas More was sheer genius. He made him human. -Natalie Dormer's performance of Anne Boleyn, particularly in season 2 when Hirst gave her character some depth. Great young actress who stole the spotlight in every scene she appeared in. -James Frain as Cromwell who could make you see what he was thinking just by a look on his face. -Finally, Jonathan Rhys Meyers as the King, who I really didn't want to like in the role. He changed my mind. He certainly did exude the charisma and rock star style of a man who was the centre of his universe....and everyone elses. Honourable mentions, David Alpay as Smeaton, Nick Dunning as Thomas Boleyn, Jamie Thomas King as Wyatt, Sarah Bolger as Princess Mary, Peter O'Toole as Pope Paul and Max Brown as Edward Seymour. " Sorry I am in a rush but I will name 5: Katharine of Aragon: She was portrayed with dignity and in my opinion I think they didn't show her proudness. Post reply Do you find this valuable?
I'mTheCheesecakeHere	11. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Feb 22 2011, 9:56 AM EST Thomas Wyatt: All he wanted was Anne and Jamie showed that. He bothered to go to Anne's execution. Anne Boleyn: The execution scene made me cry and if I was there being beheaded I would have suddenly started going crazy. Natalie portrayed Anne accepting her death. Anne of Cleves: I like how they showed that she accepted that she was divorced, (Of course!) how she was still frustrated, and also Joss was good at the accent. Catherine Parr: Joely showed who she was: motherly and kind! Post reply Do you find this valuable?
HeverRose	12. RE: Portrayals you really DID like Feb 22 2011, 2:54 PM EST \| Post edited: Feb 22 2011, 4:11 PM EST There were two types of character portrayals that I particularily enjoyed, each for opposite reasons. First there were the portrayals that I thought really brought the historical personages to life as I always imagined them. These were: Sam Neil as Cardinal Wolsey: a great Wolsey and it was fascinating to watch him disintegrate under the stress of Henry's demands. Jeremy Northam as Thomas More: wonderful humanistic yet annoyingly stubborn portrayal of a complex person. Natalie Dormer: I thought she was exactly like Anne must have been. Even her pointy little face was not unsimilar to the famous portrait of Anne that we all know. Then there were the portrayals against type that redefined these people forever: : JRM as Henry: I will never think of Henry as red haired again. Even though physically there was no corellation, I think he captured the King mentally very well. James Frain as Cromwell: He was nothing like him, but oh so very fascinating and compelling to me. The above were in my mind, examples of very successful casting and portrayals but for different reasons. Post reply 1 out of 1 found this valuable. Do you find this valuable? Do you?

Related Content

(what's this?)

Maria Doyle Kennedy	James Frain	Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Ruta Gedmintas	Henry Cavill	FAN MUSIC Videos of the Tudors
The question of a sequel to the Tudors is answered	When do fictionalized facts matter ?	Edward Seymour
Thomas Seymour	Queen Mary I - Historical profile	Why Thomas Boleyn Survived

JavaScript must be enabled in order for you to contribute to this site.
To start contributing, enable JavaScript by changing your browser options, then try again.

Home