Very good news for Wolf Hall fans

First one was good. I enjoyed The Mirror and the Light a lot less than the previous 2 books though so we'll see if the adaption improves on my opinion of it. I was wondering when this was announced if they'd somehow managed to keep Tom Holland locked on contract to play Gregory Cromwell but looks like its a recast.

My fav-o-rite tv show is 227

I thought Rylance was miscast

The third book was the weakest in the trilogy. I felt like Mantel was really padding things--the progress of Henry VIII's fourth wife, Anne, from her home in Cleves to the English coast seemed to take forever. But I am sure they can cut it down.

The original series was fantastic. I could not get over how fine Claire Foy was as Anne Boleyn.

R3 knew the real Cromwell

I remember enjoying it but can't really remember it because it came out so long ago.

I tend to agree with r4, but I wasn't a huge fan of the second book either. It just seemed like Wolf Hall was a 10, and the next two books were maybe a 7. Still, a 7 is enjoyable enough and hopefully they find a way to make the series better than the book. (also liked her A Place of Greater Safety, about the French Revolution, and wouldn't mind if somebody turned that into a series.)

DEI

Among the newcomers to the cast is Sarah Priddy, a British actress of Bahamian descent who'll take on the part of Lady Margery Seymour, Jane Seymour's mother.

Elsewhere, Seymour’s sister-in-law Anne will be portrayed by mixed-race actress Cecilia Appiah whose CV includes roles in Hijack, The Chelsea Detective and Toast of Tinseltown.

Tudor courtier and poet Thomas Wyatt will be played by Amir El-Masry, an Egyptian-British actor who recently appeared in another BBC drama, Vigil.

According to the Telegraph, there is "no historical evidence that the Seymours had non-white heritage".

The publication also claims the BBC hasn't confirmed if it has adopted a policy for colour-blind casting for the aforementioned roles.

It is on record that several people of African descent were within the English population, including Henry VIII's trumpeter, John Blanke.

One fan fumed on X, formerly Twitter: "Makers of historical dramas -about real people - pride themselves on the authenticity of the costumes, surroundings and manners. But what’s the point, if you then cast actors of ethnicities which would’ve been completely impossible at that time?"

"It should be about realism," another replied before a third hit out: "This is the deliberate distortion of our history - a social engineering step too far. Divisive tactics by an institution captured by a divisive ideology."

"Historical drama loses credibility if casting does not accurately reflect racial profiling of that era. There is no shortage of diversity in modern drama, so leave alone," a fourth raged while another shared a link to the article and said: "Woke gone mad!"

I have tried to read Wolf Hall fifty times, but I keep getting sidetracked. I’m going to try again after reading this thread.

The adaptation was too dark in terms of lighting.

I read the books r5 and Mantel’s Cromwell was more of a bruiser.

R11 has a point. I've watched the series twice and the second time it struck me how unassertive and calm Rylance played Cromwell, a man with a rough background and huge ambition.. But the source material didn't suffer and Rylance is always interesting. I'm excited but 2025 is a hella long time to wait oh well.

The casting of non-white actors as the mother and sister of Jane Seymour, played by an actress who is pale even by English standards, is assinine. Jane Seymour wasn't adopted or a changeling for fuck's sake. They could have made the court ethnically diverse but nooo, it's like they dare us to reveal our festering racism and pettiness if we object to something visually disorienting and improbable. I'm still looking forward to it but 2025 is a hella long time to wait oh well.

^ oops C&P bungled