THE TUDORS (2)

Tonight I watched the last two episodes of "The Tudors". I am not sure how many series there were, but they certainly ran for a while.

Tudors (plural) is a bit of a misnomer, since the series really only covered the reign of Henry VIII, and ended with his death. Production executives are doubtless mulling over the possibility of continuing with the reigns of his three children, Edward VI, Mary and Elizabeth I, all of whom died childless. It's a bit of an irony that the dynasty ended in this way, given that Henry himself spent so much of his life desperately trying to create legitimate heirs. Although other monarchs have had six wives (the current King of Swaziland springs to mind), I don't think there has been one in a situation where the monarch is supposed to be monogamous.

I liked the Tudors. As I said earlier, it was a time of great change in England, and it was exciting - if difficult - to follow the many rises and falls (usually ending in execution) of a series of grasping courtiers. My daughter, who gets Danish history in school but not the English version, loved it, and used to watch it with me. If television is what it takes for young people to learn about the past, then I am all for it.

And where is the sequel to Wolf Hall? I am getting impatient.

Walter Blotscher