King Henry V111th was the last absolute monarch of England.His reign is often considered as more or less one of terror with not even the highest in the land safe from his fearful wrath and its symbol - the axe.And yet the two most powerful commoners in the land were,successively,the son of a country butcher and the son of a Putney blacksmith. In the enlightened,liberal,free - thinking 21st century the most powerful commoner in the land is an Old Etonian and former member of an elitist club at an elitist university. It seems we have progressed from a Tudor meritocracy to a New Elizabethan era of privilege and preference in 500 bloody years of struggle,revolt,civil war and political posturing. In Wolsey and Cromwell's day it was easier for a poor man to improve himself by the use of his wit and intelligence. And ruthlessness,of course. In "Wolf Hall",all these qualities are gradually revealed by Thomas Cromwell as portrayed by Mr M.Rylance,an actor in whose face subtlety takes on a whole new meaning. Behind the calm exterior a keen brain is all the while reckoning the odds,from playing "Find the Lady" with his mentor Cardinal Wolsey to a show of dumb insolence towards Mistress Boleyn at a time when she was at her most powerful. At the end of the first episode he gainsays the king in a display of moral courage which Henry is forced to grudgingly admire. This is the one great production the present BBC has always had in it but has until now lacked the raw material to match its talent roster. With Miss H.Mantel's two epic novels set in and around the Tudor Court safely in the bag all that remained was for the Corporation to do what it was once world - famous for; make the very best drama it possibly could and in this it has succeeded admirably. As beautiful to look at as it is to listen to,well - chosen settings often lit like a Holbein come to life and not relying on over - familiar actors trotting out their usual schtick,"Wolf Hall" looks set to restore the reputation of our national broadcaster and ensure its independent future.
Review of Wolf Hall
