After the zippy musical version of this Shakespeare play, I was expecting the BBC version to be a more sedate affair. It isn't, and some lively performances and astute staging really give life to this TV version of the play.
The King of Navarre and his three friends plan to devote three years of life study and to abstain from women throughout this period. Needless to say, the arrival of the Princess of France and her friends put a spanner in the works...
Jonathan Kent gives a dignified, quiet presence to the increasing invigorated King, and Mike Gwilym has marvellous fun with the text as Berowne. Maureen Lipman is on good form as the Princess of France, and Paul Jesson and David Warner are the comics of the piece, giving fine performances.
The sets and the lighting for this story are among the finest in the series, and their use gives the right kind of colour and shade to each scene.
Highly watchable Shakespeare.
The King of Navarre and his three friends plan to devote three years of life study and to abstain from women throughout this period. Needless to say, the arrival of the Princess of France and her friends put a spanner in the works...
Jonathan Kent gives a dignified, quiet presence to the increasing invigorated King, and Mike Gwilym has marvellous fun with the text as Berowne. Maureen Lipman is on good form as the Princess of France, and Paul Jesson and David Warner are the comics of the piece, giving fine performances.
The sets and the lighting for this story are among the finest in the series, and their use gives the right kind of colour and shade to each scene.
Highly watchable Shakespeare.