The Six Wives of Henry VIII (TV Series 1970)

The Six Wives of Henry VIII is a series of six television plays produced by the BBC and first transmitted between 1 January and 5 February 1970. Each of the six plays focuses on a single wife, often from their perspective, and was written by a different dramatist. The series was produced by Mark Shivas and Ronald Travers and directed by Naomi Capon and John Glenister. Click on CC for optional English subtitles. Episode 1: Spanish Princess Catherine's brief marriage to Arthur, Prince of Wales, ends with his early death. Over the next few years, Catherine faces financial difficulties, and arrangements for her to marry Prince Henry are undecided. When King Henry VII dies, Henry VIII chooses Catherine as his wife, as his father requested. After a short scene of Catherine and Henry mourning their infant son's death (their second loss after a stillbirth), the programme jumps years ahead to when Henry falls in love with Lady Anne Boleyn. Cast & Characters: Keith Michell as Henry VIII Wolfe Morris as Thomas Cromwell Annette Crosbie as Catherine of Aragon Dorothy Tutin as Anne Boleyn Anne Stallybrass as Jane Seymour Elvi Hale as Anne of Cleves Angela Pleasence as Catherine Howard Rosalie Crutchley as Catherine Parr Patrick Troughton as the Duke of Norfolk Bernard Hepton as Archbishop Thomas Cranmer Sheila Burrell as Lady Rochford Basil Dignam as Bishop Gardiner John Woodnutt as Henry VII Valentine Palmer as Lord Willoughby Mollie Sugden as Lotte, handmaid to Anne of Cleves Robert James as Robert Barnes Catherine Lacey as Dowager Duchess of Norfolk Howard Goorney as Will Sommers, court fool to Henry VIII Episode 2: https://rumble.com/v70pyck-the-six-wives-of-henry-viii-tv-series-1970-anne-boleyn-episode-2.html

Episode 2: Anne's rise having been shown in the preceding episode, the focus is primarily on her downfall, documenting her disintegrating marriage to Henry amid two miscarriages and the king's infidelities. Anne's brother, George Boleyn, Viscount Rochford (with whom she is eventually accused of committing incest), is shown anxiously trying to advise and counsel her to be more prudent and cautious in her conduct with the king. Anne's continual berating Henry for his affairs elicits threats from him in return. Anne's final failure to give Henry a son seals her doom, and she is tried, convicted on the basis of false evidence, and beheaded. Episode 3: https://rumble.com/v70pzk6-the-six-wives-of-henry-viii-tv-series-1970-jane-seymour-episode-3.html

Episode 3: After a long and difficult labour, Queen Jane gives birth to Prince Edward, (the future Edward VI). When she is taken to her son's christening, she is in pain and near death; while in her sickbed, the events of her life flash before her in a feverish dream. Henry, still married to Queen Anne, falls in love with Jane. Her relations (and some of Henry's councillors like Thomas Cromwell, Bishop Stephen Gardiner and others), plot Anne Boleyn's downfall and Jane's ascension to queen. Days after Anne's execution, Henry and Jane are married. Episode 4: https://rumble.com/v70qcxq-the-six-wives-of-henry-viii-tv-series-1970-anne-of-cleves-episode-4.html

Episode 4: With three dead wives and only one legitimate son, Henry's councillors urge him to marry again and further secure the succession. Thomas Cromwell proposes an alliance with Protestant Cleves (now part of modern Germany), so he considers the Duke of Cleves' two sisters, Anne and Amelia. He sends artist Hans Holbein, who paints both girls. Based on the portrait and good reports of her, Henry chooses Anne. When she reaches England, Henry, wishing to surprise her, arrives in disguise. As he is unannounced, Anne is frightened and then horrified upon realising that the obese and bawdy "messenger" is really her betrothed. Henry, rattled by her reaction, declares her ugly and attempts to nullify the marriage contract, but this proves impossible and the wedding proceeds with two unwilling participants. When the time comes to consummate their union, Anne sees a possible escape from the marriage by stalling the already unenthusiastic king.

Episode 5: The Duke of Norfolk visits his elderly mother to see if one of his nieces would be a suitable enticement for King Henry. His ambition is clear: he wants a Howard on the throne of England. We see Catherine Howard, a pretty and foolhardy teenager, who confides in her cousin, Anne Carey, that she had sexual relations with a young man named Francis Dereham the previous summer. Her governess, Lady Rochford (the former sister-in-law of the late queen Anne Boleyn), takes her to the duke, who informs her that she will be the next queen of England. She states her concerns arising from Anne Boleyn's fate, but her uncle assures her all will be well if she follows his instructions and does not show fear or timidity when addressing the king. Norfolk is unaware of his niece's sexual past, as Catherine claims she is a virgin. She meets King Henry, who is now in ill-health with a perpetual ulcer on his leg. She flirts with and charms the king, who is immediately taken with her. They are married, but on their wedding night Henry's impotence is revealed. Episode 6: https://rumble.com/v70qhig-the-six-wives-of-henry-viii-tv-series-1970-catherine-parr-episode-6.html

Episode 6: Catherine Parr, the recently widowed Lady Latimer, is summoned before the king. Though only in his 50s, Henry looks older, is morbidly obese, sick and lonely. He takes to the mature twice-widowed lady, and her honesty and calmness entice him. She declines his marriage offer. However, the ambitious Edward and Thomas Seymour (brothers of the late Queen, Jane Seymour) urge her to accept Henry's proposal. Thomas, even though he and Catherine share romantic feelings, is especially eager that she should marry Henry. Archbishop Cranmer also encourages the devoutly Protestant Catherine to marry the king. Catherine soon becomes queen of England; her natural maternal instinct is put into practice with the king's children, Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward. However, Catholic Bishop Gardiner dislikes Catherine's religious views. He plots her downfall and questions her ladies.