Philipa Gregory & "The White Queen"

       

A picture taken with Philipa Gregory with her new book coming out today ("The White Princess").

I had the great experience of attending a lecture by bestselling Author, Philipa Gregory.  As most of you know, Philipa Gregory has written many historic fiction novels, a number of which take place around the Tudor era.  She is widely known for her novel "The Other Boleyn Girl".  

Within the last five years or so, P. Gregory has written novels that are referenced as "The Cousins' War", aka "The War of the Roses".  I, recently, completed "The White Queen", which was the first book of her trilogy of "The Cousins' War".  The White Queen is about Elizabeth Woodville.  Woodville's children included the Princes in the Tower & Elizabeth of York.  By the latter, Elizabeth Woodville was the grandmother of Henry VIII, great-grandmother of King Edward VI, Queen Mary I of England & Queen Elizabeth I.  She was the great-great-grandmother of Mary, Queen of Scots.  Through Elizabeth Woodville's daughter, Elizabeth of York, she is the ancestor of every English Monarch since Henry VIII, every Scottish Monarch since James V of Scotland and every British Monarch from James VI & I.  

I am not going to summarize the book.  If you love the Tudor era, this book is for you.  Yes, there are inaccuracies.  Yes, it is a fiction novel.  However, the book sheds some light to the reader what is was like during the "The War of the Roses" (AKA, The Cousins' War).  When we think of the Tudors, most of us think right away of Henry VIII & his wives & Elizabeth I, etc.  However, there is a lot of history of how the Tudors became one of the greatest dynasties in the world.  It all starts from somewhere.  By reading "The White Queen", it helped me understand some history behind the Tudors.  I also learned a lot about the House of York & Lancaster & much about "The Cousins' War". 

I highly recommend reading "The White Queen".  Additionally, at the lecture, we saw an advanced screening of "The White Queen" that will be airing on Starz.  The first episode was very good and followed the book to a tea.  Not only do I recommend reading "The White Queen" but also suggest watching the series, which starts 8/10/13 in the USA.  It has already started in the UK & can most likely be found on YouTube.  

Enjoy!

Your's Truly Will Be Attending The Philippa Gregory Advanced Screening of "The White Queen"

Today, I will be seeing bestselling author Philippa Gregory for an advance screening of the first episode of "The White Queen," a Starz Original series adapted from her current book series The Cousins' War, followed by a discussion about the show and her new novel (The White Princess).

I completed reading "The White Queen", the first of P. Gregory's books about the War of the Roses: AKA The Cousins's War.  In the upcoming weeks, I will be writing my opinion of "The White Queen" & will post my experience of the advance screening.  

Philippa Gregory is an authority on the history of women and their struggle for power. She is the author of over 20 books which explore this theme, including The Other Boleyn Girl. The Starz Original series "The White Queen" (premiering Sat, Aug 10 at 9 pm ET/PT) is adapted from her current book series, The Cousins' War, which follows the blood feud between the houses of York and Lancaster before they gave way to the Tudor dynasty.

*http://www.92y.org/tribeca/tickets/production.aspx?pid=96641&utm_source=92YTRI_HP&utm_medium=Rotator_WhiteQueen&utm_campaign=Tribeca_Talks

The Tudors are close to the current royal family (Quite Fascinating)

The Tudors are closer then we think to the current royal family.  To be honest, I did not even realize there was a link between the Windsors & the Tudors.  But, after much research by V. Catoggio, an English Literature Teacher, the Tudors are still "around us".  It can be very confusing to follow, but here is how:

Elizabeth II is Daughter of George VI
George VI is Son of George V
George V is Son of Edward VII
Edward VII was the Son of Queen Victoria
Queen Victoria was the Daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent & Strathearn
Prince Edward was Son of George III
George III was Son of Fredirick, Prince of Wales
Fredeirck was Son of George II
George II was Son of George I
George I was the Son of, Sophia of Hanover
Sophia of Hanover was the Daughter of,  Elizabeth of Bohemia
Elizabeth of Bohemia was Daughter of James I
James I was the Son of Mary Queen of Scots (MQOS)
MQOS was the Daughter of James V of Scotland
James V of Scotland was the Son of Margaret Tudor
Margaret Tudor was the Daughter of Henry VII Tudor

End Result
Elizabeth II is the GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT Granddaughter of Henry VII TUDOR...

A thought that came to mind, it's ironic that Elizabeth I executed MQOS for treason & that currently MQOS descendant is the Queen of England.

In addition, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge (Son of Prince Charles & Princess Diana), will be the first descendant of Charles II. Here is how:
Charles II was Son of Charles I
Charles I was Son of James I
Charles II had no legitimate heirs, therefore his Brother, James II succeeded him.  
James II was succeeded by his Daughter Mary II who died childless and left her Sister Anne, Queen of Great Britain. 
Anne also died childless.  
Therefore, the line of Charles 1 would be extinct, however his Son, Charles II had several illegitimate children.  

End Result
Charles II's Son Henry Fitzroy, was the GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT GREAT Grandfather of Diana of Princess of Wales, making William a direct descendant of Charles II.

Quite Fascinating..........
Thank you Mr. Catoggio for your research.  Our site appreciates it very much.

*Wikepedia was very helpful for putting this information altogether *

Tudor Oscars 2013 - A Closer Look!

First & most important,  I want to thank all the followers on the The Tudor Dynasty FaceBook Page that voted & contributed to the Tudor Oscars 2013.  I had such a blast doing this and according to the responses, others did too.  The below provides how many followers voted for each category, some information about the nominees, and of course, my opinion!  Enjoy.....

Best Tudor Movie:

The nominations were Anne of Thousand Days, Elizabeth (the first movie with Cate Blanchett), Elizabeth I (with Helen Mirren), A Man for All Seasons, The Six Wives of Henry VIII, Elizabeth R, Anonymous, The Other Boleyn Girl, Lady Jane, & The Virgin Queen.

92 Facebook followers voted for this category.  The winner was Anne of Thousand Days.  Anne of Thousand Days made its debut in 1969.  It was nominated for an Oscar and won a Golden Globe for best picture for a drama film.

At a very close second, was was Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett.  Elizabeth made its debut in 1998.  It won a BAFTA award (British Academy of Film & Television Arts) for best motion picture and was nominated for an academy award.

Other movies that had quite a few votes were, A Man for All Seasons (made its debut in 1966).  A Man for All Seasons won an academy award for best picture & a BAFTA award for Best British Film.  The Six Wives of Henry VIII aired in 1970 and was nominated for an Emmy, Outstanding Drama Series.  Elizabeth I with Helen Mirren came out in 2005 and won an Emmy for Outstanding Miniseries and a Golden Globe for best television miniseries.  Elizabeth R aired in 1971 and won an Emmy for Outstanding Series.

The Virgin Queen with Anne-Marie Duff came out in 2005, Anonymous 2011, The Other Boleyn Girl in 2008 & Lady Jane in 1986.

I was very pleased to see a movie from 1969, Anne of Thousand Days, win this category.  In fact, I was surprised that Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett did not win.  It comes to show you that older movies are still very well respected and highly watched.  Most of these movies were great, some not so much.  One movie that I find very underrated is, The Virgin Queen with Anne-Marie Duff.  The Virgin Queen was a wonderful version of Elizabeth's life from beginning to end.

Best Actor that played Henry VIII:

The nominations were Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Richard Burton, Keith Mitchell, Ray Winstone, Eric Bana, Sid James, Robert Shaw, & Charles Laughton.

94 Facebook followers voted for this category.  This category was very close between two actors, Jonathan Rhys Meyers & Richard Burton.  By one vote, Jonathan Rhys Meyers won.  Jonathan Rhys Meyers was nominated for a Golden Globe for best actor in a television series.  Richard Burton was nominated for an Academy Award & a Golden Globe for his role as Henry VIII in Anne of the Thousand Days.

Keith Mitchell won an Emmy for best actor in a miniseries or movie & a BAFTA award for best actor.
Robert Shaw was nominated for a Golden Globe & an Academy Award, for best supporting actor.

I have not seen Sid James or Ray Winstone as Henry VIII, so please keep that in mind.  In my own personal view, I believe Keith Mitchell played Henry VIII to the tea.

Best Actress that played Elizabeth I:

The nominations were Cate Blanchett, Quentin Crisp, Helen Mirren, Miranda Richardson, Glenda Jackson, Bette Davis, & Anne-Marie Duff.

67 Facebook followers voted for this category.  Cate Blanchett won by a large margin.  Ms. Blanchett won a BAFTA & a Golden Globe for Best Actress & nominated for an Academy Award, for her role as Elizabeth I.

The closest contenders were Glenda Jackson & Helen Mirren.  Glenda Jackson won an Emmy under the category outstanding lead actress in a drama series & was nominated for a BAFTA award.  Helen Mirren won an Emmy for lead actress in a miniseries or TV movie & a Golden Globe.

Anne-Marie Duff was nominated for a BAFTA award for her role as Elizabeth I.

As I stated above, Anne-Marie Duff in The Virgin Queen is very underrated and I recommend Tudor lovers to watch that film.  Most of the actresses/actors from the above that played Elizabeth I did a phenomenal job.

Best Actress that played Anne Boleyn: 

The nominations were Natalie Dormer, Genevieve Bujold, Natalie Portman, Helena Bonham Carter, Dorothy Tutin, & Merle Oberon.

69 Facebook followers voted for this category.  Natalie Dormer won by a very large margin.  The closest nominee was Genevieve Bujold who won best actress for a Golden Globe for her performance as Anne Boleyn in Anne of the Thousand Days.

I hope you enjoyed both Tudor Oscar posts!