The Tragedy of Richard III

I recently purchased the 4 DVD versions of the BBC TV 1980's 'Henry VI/Richard III' series and they have had me spellbound.

I agree withe the general view of other commentators that the excision of the British 'hammy' style does nothing but enhance the powerful sweep of this epic.

In the final play Ron Cook's deliberately paced and under-stated (by comparison with, say, Olivier) performance renders a powerful image of the 'toad'.

I was especially struck by the scene with the 3 women characters where they debate the evils wrought by their various male relatives on them and their offspring.

The last few scenes covering the night before the battle of Bosworth where the stream of ghosts taunting Richard then support Richmond, highlights what a great piece of pro-Tudor propaganda this play is.

I know that my comments are really about the original Shakespeare play but this production made it live for me.

The final scene with Margaret cackling on top of the heap of dead is a masterstroke!

Not easy to follow on from the three part 'Henry VI', two parts of which in my view solid but not great and the third part being very good. And it is hard not to expect a lot, when Richard III is one of Shakespeare's most fascinating characters, and not just as a "villain", and he was also interesting as a historical figure. 'Richard III' may not be among my favourite Shakespeare plays, but it is so easy to seee why it is performed as much as it is and why it is so widely discussed.

'Richard III' is one of the longest in length of the uneven but very interesting (and on the whole a must watch) BBC Television Shakespeare series, excepting the ones that by tradition were in one than one part. So 'Henry IV' and 'Henry VI'. To me, and quite a few others it seems, it is one of the series' best and one of the best and also more faithful and complete versions of 'Richard III'. Worthy of more attention and should be pretty much the version to be shown in schools, if studying the play.

Sure it is not the most visually sumptuous of productions, the productions in the BBC Television Shakespeare were made on a low budget and that was evident in some productions, but most overcame that and still didn't manage to look too bad in the process. 'Richard III' is one of the better examples of that. It still manages to look well designed and atmospheric as well being in good tastes, no questionable touches here. The camera work is very good with enough intimacy, with no gimmicks, chaos or restriction. Didn't feel to me like it was too much of a filmed play.

To me, the staging was compelling and didn't get overly-busy or dull, neither did it feel emotionally cold. There was plenty of movement and there is a lot going on in the quite complex plot, without feeling rushed or over-complicated. The climactic battle of Bosworth field scene was especially well done, the touch at the very end was interesting to say the least and not one to forget in a hurry.

Cannot fault the cast. Ron Cook is as excellent as he was before in the 'Henry VI' three parter, but now with Richard even more interesting and with a much bigger role (from a sizeable supporting role to one of Shakespeare's most fascinating and most talked about lead characters) he is even better. Really liked his understated subtlety, which did stop him from doing into stock villain territory (Richard isn't that really), but he is also suitably malevolent. He does well with the challenges of the physical side of the role, speaking as a scoliosis sufferer myself before my pretty traumatic major spinal surgery. Have spoken a lot about him, slightly unintentional but somewhat appropriate considering the role.

But one mustn't overlook the rest of the cast, and it is the acting that other than Shakespeare's timeless writing that is one of the production's biggest strengths. Standouts being Rowena Cooper's dignified Elizabeth and especially Julia Foster's ruthless Margaret (more interesting and much more juicily written role than in the 'Henry VI' three parter, and by now Foster, who didn't do it for me at first in 'Henry VI' has really grown into the role and made it her own. Brian Protheroe doesn't overdo the bluster thankfully and Paul Jesson is an interesting Clarence. Interesting to see Zoe Wanamaker and Annette Crosbie. Those doing more than one character, intriguing and brave choice, do a great job making each character different from each other which helps not confuse the drama.

In conclusion, wonderful production and the 'Richard III' to learn from if studying it. 10/10

In 1982, the BBC, in their undertaking to produce all of Shakespeare's plays, assembled a company of actors which would take us, in one logical arc, from Henry VI part one right through to Richard III. This is notable in that through all four plays, the principal actors keep their roles (although smaller roles are also undertaken). This gives an unparalleled clarity to the events as you see the chaste Margaret descend to Machiavellian plotting to destroy challengers to her grip on power, and then her downfall as Edward and then Richard take power. It is fitting that she, in a horrific scene at the end of this play, is seen atop a mound of dead. This was, after all, her legacy.

In a simple, but effective, set, with authentic costumes and asides taken directly to camera, this brings your closer to Shakespeare's work than much of the praised films and productions in the past.

If you found Olivier's version just too hammy to bear..... try this one.

I love Shakespeare, both classically performed and the recontextualised adaptations of recent years, but this production, made with a large budget (British television-wise) with a talented director and a superb cast somehow manages to fail spectacularly to bring Shakespeare's classic play to life. I would not envy Jane Howell's task of directing Richard III using the (almost) complete text as a shooting script, but I think she could have approached it in a more imaginative fashion, making better use of television conventions. Save for the close-up and the shot-reverse shot technique, Howell prefers to display what is simply "Filmed Theater", with a set that offers little to a medium as visual as television. The performances, though excellent, don't really come across with the power and passion they no doubt would in the theater, and the end result is a four hour long dirge that does no credit to Shakespeare's sharp and vibrant play.

That period known in the 15th century as the War Of The Roses ended with the reign of Richard III who has come down to us through a well written play and a host of great actors playing one of the great Machiavellian villains of all time. Was Richard really as bad as all that. He was no saint, but he was living in a time when one of the few saints around was Henry VI of Lancaster and he paid as dearly for sainthood as Richard did for villainy.

If you can get over the fact that Ron Cook who plays Richard III bears an uncanny resemblance to Dudley Moore, you will enjoy this BBC production of The Tragedy Of Richard III. Richard III in his time was called 'Crookback' because he was supposedly a hunchback though it never affected him on the battlefield, even his enemies conceded he was quite the man at arms. That was a bit of Tudor propaganda as spun by the court favorite William Shakespeare.

The two roles that really make this production are that of Rowena Cooper as Elizabeth Woodville, the commoner who married Edward IV and bore him the two sons who were killed in the Tower in 1483. She spent a lot of time making sure her generous and indulgent husband took care of his many in-laws. She transforms remarkably as the Queen enjoying privileges to the distraught mother whose sons were taken and murdered, probably on Richard's wishes if not unwritten orders.

One thing that should be clear. This incident with the murder of the child king Edward V and his brother Richard plays more shocking for today's audience than back at the Globe Theater in Shakespeare's day. People had an abundance of kids because the majority of them died before reaching their majority. And child monarchs mean regencies and regencies always mean court politics on steroids and dynastic challenges. People in those time need only look in Scotland to the north which had a series of child monarchs which weakened the realm so totally that it's only remedy was union with England which happened not long after people saw the first production of this play. And the three parts of Henry VI that led up to the events here began with an infant king and the struggles for power which turned into the War Of The Roses.

The other female role that stands out is Margaret Of Anjou, late the Queen consort of Henry VI who singlehandedly for her husband and son kept the Lancastrian claims going. She was and is a controversial figure in English history still. Julia Foster played her in all the stages of her life in the three parts of Henry VI and in Richard III. Ironically enough this role was eliminated in Laurence Olivier's acclaimed big screen film of this play. But seeing it now that kind of diminishes Olivier's work somewhat. Foster is a bitter figure of passion, grief, and revenge in equal parts as she curses all the new Yorkist royalty and nobility and most especially Richard of Gloucester.

For Richard it was a case of what went around really did come around for him.