A Queen’s TALE
PBS ‘Masterpiece’ series ‘Victoria’ follows life of monarch
Like many others in England, Daisy Goodwin grew up a fan of Queen Victoria.
So it was dreamlike when she got the opportunity to write a TV series on the royal.
“Since I was a teenager, I was a fan,” she says during a recent interview from England. “I read her diaries, and I was struck with how vivid, fresh and enthusiastic they were. She was a passionate teenager. She kept a diary from the age of 14 until her death.”
The series will have a two-hour premiere at 8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 15, on KNMETV. It is part of PBS’ “Masterpiece.”
It follows Jenna Coleman as the young Queen Victoria at the outset of her epic reign, which set the stage for an era that would be named in her honor.
The stellar cast also includes Rufus Sewell as Lord Melbourne, the British prime minister who was Victoria’s father figure and intimate friend, and Tom Hughes as the handsome, brilliant and awkward Prince Albert,
who stole Victoria’s heart after a rocky start.
Goodwin says capturing history correctly was her main goal.
She says being able to depict what it was like for an ill-educated, emotionally deprived teenager to wake up one morning and find that she is the most powerful woman in the world was intense.
“Imagine what you were like at 18,” she says. “Would any random person be able to handle this stress? I don’t think so. This is where the series starts.”
Goodwin says “Victoria” charts how the new ruler rose to the challenge and weathered a series of crises — some of her own making — without ever losing her youthful charm and innate sense of justice, which made her popular with her subjects.
“In writing the series, I looked to my own life for some inspiration,” she says. “I have a teenager and I would take time to see what our relationship is like. This is what Victoria must have felt like living with her family. With the exception that she was under lock and key.”
In addition to writing the series, Goodwin also worked on the novel “Victoria,” which also tells the story.
She is now working on the second season.
“It’s aired here in England, and audiences really loved it,” she says. “The premiere in the States will be interesting to see. I know that many people have an affinity for the royal family. I’m excited that it’s finding an audience, because Queen Victoria is one of the most intriguing people. I tried to make her as human as possible, and she has plenty of virtues. It’s been quite an honor to write about someone I admire.”