A diverting social history told through a royal prism
ITV has become a royal superfan of late. The channel aired a highly uninformative Duchess of Cornwall documentary last week, while Sunday evening saw one on royal weddings. There’s still a programme about Prince Harry to follow on Thursday but first came The Royal Wives of Windsor (ITV).
This lively two-parter didn’t feature an appearance from Sir John Falstaff, sadly – Shakespeare’s lovable buffoon was always partial to a married woman – but explored how those who had joined the house of Windsor over the last century have fit into the world’s most famous dynasty and, in turn, helped the monarchy refresh and reinvent itself.
The Windsors’ choice of a suitable bride has moved with the times, the film argued, evolving from aristocrats to commoners and now (clutch pearls in horror!) a mixed-race foreigner. Plentiful comparisons were drawn between American divorcees Wallis Simpson and Meghan Markle, 80 years and several worlds apart. More surprising were parallels with Prince Andrew’s former girlfriend Koo Stark, another US actress who came close to joining the clan.
We saw how life as a princess could be less of a fairytale and more of a salutary one – a gilded cage of isolation, privacy-invasion and close protection.
The calibre of talking heads was high. Not just the usual royal correspondents and biographers but the likes of Jeremy Paxman, acerbic historian Simon Schama (describing with relish the Emanuel wedding dress worn by Diana, Princess of Wales as “that astonishingly overblown animated meringue”), journalist Rachel Johnson (who apologised on-camera for calling Meghan Markle “exotic”) and the ever-entertaining Gyles Brandreth.
The archive material was equally enjoyable, from rare footage of the young Queen Mother to corgis splashing about in Balmoral streams. There were evocative Eighties clips of a shy Diana and Sarah Ferguson (“Such fun, too much fun,” said Brandreth). The royal walk down memory lane ended with the Duchess of Cambridge: David Starkey recalled when she was widely known as “Waity Katie”, which I’d somehow completely forgotten.
This frothy film told us little that we didn’t already know. Instead it repackaged familiar material in a way which was accessibly insightful and faintly gossipy. A rewind through social history, as reflected through the royal prism. Just don’t say “toilet” or “pardon”, Meghan. And pour the tea in before the milk.
The five-part adaptation of Wilkie Collins’ classic mystery The Woman in White (BBC One) reached its midway point by ratcheting the creepiness up several notches. Dark corridors were sneaked down. Secret assignations took place. Cups of tea were drugged. Moustaches were twirled.
The secretly skint Sir Percival Glyde (Dougray Scott) tried to lay his dastardly hands on the fortune of new wife Laura (Olivia Vinall) by increasingly foul means. Through screenwriter Fiona Seres, their dysfunctional marriage is rapidly turning into a study of domestic abuse and coercive control.
Meanwhile, Marian (Jessie Buckley) found herself drawn to charismatic Count Fosco (Riccardo Scamarcio) – himself a master manipulator and borderline stalker. One of the most memorable villains in Victorian fiction, Fosco is usually portrayed as older and obese. Broodingly handsome Italian actor Scamarcio resembles a tousle-haired member of One Direction or a young Ian Mcshane – which made his sexual chemistry with Marian all the more plausible.
This adaptation has been criticised in certain quarters for the odd historical inaccuracy with costumes, hairstyles and language (characters do say “OK” with alarming frequency) but the drawbacks of modernisation are outweighed by the contemporary resonance it provides. Besides, this is drama, not documentary. Suspension of disbelief and imaginative immersion is required, rather than pedantic nit-picking and “Why oh why?” letters to Points of View.
The bond between the half-sisters was affectingly portrayed by the excellent Buckley and Vinall. The latter plays a dual role and when she finally came face-to-face with herself, it made for an electric scene.
This version is shaping up to be a compelling psychological thriller. However, the series has been strangely scheduled: it aired on Sunday nights for the past two weeks but is suddenly now on Mondays as well. I fear a few devotees will have missed this episode. Praise be for BBC iplayer.
The Royal Wives of Windsor ★★★ The Woman in White ★★★★