Gwyneth Paltrow as Thomas Kent in 'Shakespeare in Love' Gwyneth Paltrow as Thomas Kent in 'Shakespeare in Love'

 

 

 

 

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What's New at Tudor England?

7 October 2003  Look to the right and you'll notice I've joined Amazon.com's honor system for accepting donations to the website.  Here's why - I want to add lots of stuff to my sites.  More articles, images, games, etc  But every time I plan something, two words flash in my mind.... data transfer. 

I've had to change servers practically every year for the last six years to get more data transfer.  More additions to the sites plus many more visitors equals lots of money out of pocket for me.

I don't want to put ads on the pages.  They slow everything down and they're annoying.  But I also want to add lots of stuff to the sites.  So I need some help.  I don't expect visitors to subsidize my work.  I'd just like a little bit of money to help cover the expansion. 

I'd also like to post my Plantagenet Dynasty website.  It's been done for three years but would overwhelm my data transfer limit.  And there's also the interactive games I've made for this site, the animated guide to Tudor England, and - well, lots of stuff.  So if you can help out, no matter how much or how little, please do and accept my sincere thanks.  And click the 'send info' button at Amazon.com to let me know you've donated.  I'd like to thank you personally.

-Marilee

18 August 2003  I recently discovered the 'fanlisting' concept and I think it's a great way to bring Tudor enthusiasts together.  To that end, I've created a Fanlisting page.  Please check the sites out.

I redesigned the Six Wives main page again.  Katharine Parr is the chosen lady.  She deserves her time in the spotlight. 

Jeannette Walls wrote (8/11) that Helena Bonham Carter is considering a remake of Anne of the Thousand Days.  Egads.  I like Carter but why bother?  Just put the original on dvd, please.  It's stood the test of time.

Carter, of course, is playing Anne in an upcoming BBC miniseries about Henry and his six wives.

Three Rivers Press has reissued the Jean Plaidy books on Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard.  The one on Princess Mary Tudor is coming out this fall.  Check your local bookstore or Amazon.com.

And it's that time of the year again....  The time when friends and families find all sorts of excuses to avoid spending the weekend with you.  The Maryland Renaissance Festival is back from August 23 through mid-October.  Once again, I will bully, cajole, and plead with everyone to accompany me.  (I'm just letting them know now - so they can get their excuses ready in time.)

8 August 2003   I moved the Tudor England: Images site to a new address - www.marileecody.com/images.html   Everything seems to be working; if you find any bad links, please let me know.

22 July 2003  Today is the day!  One whole addition to the Tudor England website!  Egads!

Alas, it's just another portrait of Mary, queen of Scots, a miniature c1575.  Check it out.  I'll add it to the MaryqoS images site soon.

6 June  The BBC has a website about their adaptation of The Other Boleyn Girl, starring Jodhi May as Anne and Natasha McElhone as Mary.  There are production images as well as a screensaver. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/boleyn.shtml

16 May  I wanted to share some dvd news with everyone - La Reine Margot (Queen Margot) will be available on dvd on 7 July 2003, at least according to Best Buy.  If you've visited the Tudor Films page, you know I love this film.  It can be overwrought at times but it's still a must-see for all Tudor / 16th century history enthusiasts.  Virna Lisi is a great Catherine de Medici and Isabelle Adjani plays her daughter, Marguerite de Valois.  The film centers on the St Bartholomew's Day Massacre in 1572.  It's as entertaining as the Alexandre Dumas novel upon which its based.

29 April   Some interesting Media news - according to E! Online, there will be a film version of The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn, possibly starring Sarah Michelle Gellar (of TV's Buffy the Vampire Slayer) as Anne, or her daughter Elizabeth I.

This film, plus the planned Henry and Anne mentioned below, plus the Six Wives miniseries, means a glut of Tudor stuff in the works.  It's 1998 all over again.

I'm currently reading Alison Weir's book on Mary, queen of Scots.  So far, no surprising revelations to report.  I am going to post a review when I finish and return from a quick vacation.

I visited the Folger Shakespeare Library exhibit on Elizabeth I.  It's a nice selection of original letters, engravings, etc, plus a full-length replica gown and the Sieve portrait.  There is also some Mary, queen of Scots stuff.  The exhibition catalog is beautiful but expensive ($40 paperback.)  There are color reproductions of most objects in the exhibit.  Go to the website and visit their shop if you want to order it.

For those of you interested in Doctor Dee, HamiltonBooks.com has The Queen's Conjurer at a steep discount.  They also have The Boy King, MacCulloch's biography of Edward VI, for $6.95.

Some visitors have written in about the Horenbout miniature of Anne Boleyn on her main page and at the Images section.  They have informed me, some kindly and others not, that it isn't Anne and I should take it down.  After half a dozen emails on the topic, let me clear matters up here - it is Anne Boleyn.  The collection which holds it has verified the identity (and they are experts in such matters), plus - and most importantly - the sitter wears a falcon badge necklace.  As most Tudor enthusiasts know, the falcon was Anne's badge.  So squint at the portrait and rest assured. 

As for the argument "It doesn't look like Anne!"....  Well, this is the only verifiable portrait from her lifetime.  The most famous image, at the NPG in London, is actually a copy of an earlier portrait.  And since most later portraits, including the romanticized 18th and 19th century ones, were based upon the NPG copy, their numbers do not necessarily equal accurate representation.

The Tudor Quiz Contest is returning.  This time I'll have a form for visitors to submit their answers and I'll post pictures of the prizes.  Check this page in a few weeks for more information.

 

28 February
Lady Jane is available on dvd - at last.  So now we must wait for Anne of the Thousand Days and Mary Queen of Scots.


25 February

Taking a break from reading A Confederacy of Dunces for the zillionth time (if you're ever low, it's the best literary pick-me-up), to report on some Media News.  Everyone is talking about the ITV Henry VIII mini-series which will start Helena Bonham Carter as Anne Boleyn.  (Thanks to Wendy for passing it along.)  But a while ago, I came across the following snippet, from an internet article about Charlotte Gray -

"[Douglas] Rae is currently working on a number of projects, including The Water Horse, to be shot in Scotland, Henry and Anne, a feature film written by Allan Scott for Film Four about the story of the infamous marriage of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, and Charlie, a feature film written by Ronan Bennett (Lucky Break) on the 1745 campaign by Bonnie Prince Charlie to take over the throne."

According to the always-invaluable IMDB.com, Rae produced Mrs. Brown as well - a sign that he knows the right way to make good historical films.  I'm wondering if this is the long-rumored Cate Blanchett-Russell Crowe project about Anne and Great Harry, only that hasn't been mentioned in at least a year.  A hoax upon unwary Tudor enthusiasts?  Perhaps.

As for the mini-series, Bonham Carter is a fine actress and an old hand at the Tudor era, having played Lady Jane Grey in 1986.  

Now when will that film be released on dvd?

9 February
Updated Tudor Media News with the following information:
The Folger has posted information about their Elizabeth celebration which runs from March 21 to August 2.  There will be a play about Elizabeth written by Maxwell Anderson, who (I think) wrote 'Anne of the Thousand Days.'
link - http://www.folger.edu/develop/QE1-6.asp

Also, Professor John Guy will be presenting the Shakespeare birthday lecture at the Folger on April 28 at 8 pm.  The event is free; his topic will be 'Elizabeth I and Mary, queen of Scots'.
link - http://www.folger.edu/public/lectures/menu.asp#lecture
From the Folger website:
Shakespeare’s Birthday Lecture
Monday, April 28, 2003 at 8 p.m. in the Folger Elizabethan Theatre,
followed by a reception in the Great Hall.
Free.
John Guy speaks on "Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots."
Elizabeth I is one of the legendary personalities of history, but when Mary Queen of Scots, her "loving 'sister' and cousin," returned home from France, the rival queens competed for space and authority in the British Isles. And yet, they had much in common. Leading (male) councillors subverted both their monarchies on gender and religious grounds. This lecture seeks to reassess Elizabeth I using her dealings with Mary and these councillors as a prism.
John Guy, Visiting Fellow of Clare College, University of Cambridge, and Honorary Research Professor of the University of St. Andrews, Scotland, is the author of Politics, Law, and Counsel in Tudor and Early Stuart England (2000) and editor of The Reign of Elizabeth I: Court and Culture in the Last Decade (1995) among numerous other works.

I have added stuff to the site over the last couple of weeks, but time is short - will list all new additions here soon.


9 December
The holidays are such a busy time.  We're all running around like nuts searching for the perfect gift for people who, when you ask what they want, reply, 'Oh, I don't want anything.'  Very helpful, rather like Richard Rich's legal advice to Thomas More.

But I suppose that's why fancy gift soaps shaped like seashells were invented.  

Yes, we're pro-soap here at Tudor England, unlike the actual inhabitants of that era.

I have actually done something at the site -
A new quiz - Queen Mary I.  Enjoy.

I'll be non-websitey for the rest of December.  I have a birthday, which falls on Friday, December 13th this year, so send some good luck (and no black cats) my way and then it's the usual holiday rush.  But I am working on some nice additions so please check back in late January.

Happy Holidays to everyone!


22 October  

I've been redoing the Life in Tudor England site.  

16 October
 Added a Bettes portrait of Elizabeth I to New Tudor Portraits.  
Created a new page called Elizabethan Images to go along with the new, brief version of the Elizabeth I website.  Yes, even the brief biography is five pages long.  I'm still working on the (much) longer version.
Elizabethan Images includes commentary on most of the portraits.

15 October  Two upcoming exhibitions at the Folger Shakespeare Library in DC:
"Thys Boke Is Myne"
November 13, 2002 through March 1, 2003

Explore how bibliophiles, famous and forgotten, have signaled ownership of treasured volumes for five hundred years, drawn from the finest association copies in the Folger collection. Books belonging to writers, collectors, royalty, actors, presidents, and women show the connection between people and their books. Inscriptions, mottoes, manuscript additions, bookplates, book labels, armorials, and binding stamps link texts to their owners from William Caxton to Langston Hughes. The title of the exhibition is taken from a line boldly written by Henry VIII in his schoolboy copy of Cicero.

Elizabeth I, Then and Now
March 21 through August 2, 2003

A blockbuster examination of the reign of Elizabeth I, exactly 400 years after her death, drawn exclusively from the Folger's holdings, which are the largest collection of items by and about Elizabeth in North America. From court entertainments to Elizabeth's Men, all aspects of her sovereignty from foreign ties to inventories of her wardrobe will be displayed. A special section will look at her extensive legacy from the pamphlets, plays and novels of the seventeenth century to the mysteries, movies and merchandise of our own. Among the 85 treasures on display will be the "Sieve" portrait, letters to and from the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth's bible, the Queen's New Year's Gift Roll, and more recent representations, including a Barbie doll and rubber duckie.

The chance to explore the Folger's vast Elizabethan collection shouldn't be missed.  I can't wait to view the Sieve portrait in person.

4 October  Posted my new Katharine Parr biography.  Also added four portraits to New Tudor Portraits, two are rescans and the two others are new - miniatures of Anne Boleyn and Katharine Parr.

3 October  Posted my new Catherine Howard biography.  And now on to Katharine Parr....

27 September  Updated the Tudor England FAQ, adding some questions about the site and the Reformation.

24 September  Updated Tudor Media News.

18 September  Another new quiz - Tudor Films.  I'll post the Mary I quiz in a bit.  I updated the Letters of the Six Wives.... page as well.  I also re-edited the introductions to all the letters.

16 September  Added a new quiz - test your knowledge of Elizabeth I and Mary, queen of Scots.  I also redesigned the Tudor Quizzes main page.

13 September  A kind visitor wrote in to say 'Fire Over England' is available on video so I added it to the Tudor Films page again and also redesigned the page with the new format.  Added some movie pics as well.  It's taking a while but we're getting there....

6 September  Changed the main portrait at the Lady Jane Grey page.  For some reason, I had used my old (and bad) scan of the Delaroche picture.  The new scan is much nicer.  Still working on the redesign - adding the same font to all the main pages, just updated Primary Sources.

3 September  Added to Primary Sources - Elizabeth I's letter to Mary, queen of Scoots in 1586 (just as the trial began at Fotheringhay) and her letter to James VI of Scotland informing him of Mary's execution in 1587.  Click here to read.

3 September  Added Mary, queen of Scots's last letter to Primary Sources.

2 September  Click here to order Wendy Dunn's novel about Anne Boleyn and Thomas Wyatt.  Once again, congratulations to Wendy.

29 August  Finished my new Anne of Cleves biography.  A bit longer than expected....  I also posted some commentary about the Holbein betrothal portrait.
As I note on the Media page - Amazon.com is offering a two-pack edition of Anne of the Thousand Days and Mary, queen of Scots for about $20.  Throw in Lady Jane for a total of $35.  Who knows when any of the films will be released on dvd.... and given the junk on tv, you can watch a great Tudor film instead.

The Tudor Ghost Story contest is back; click here for more information.  You have to submit your entry by 1 December.

There is some other stuff, but I can't remember.  A Dracula film is distracting me.  I hope everyone had a great August.

20 August  Redesigned the Lady Jane Grey site.    Updated the Tudor Media News page.  Redesigned the Tudor Links page.  Posted the Tudor Films page.  I thought it was posted but the link was misspelled on the main page.  D'oh!, as Homer says.  The Maryland Renaissance Festival starts next Saturday, 24 August.

22 July  Posted the Edward VI and Mary I sites.  Posted the .txt Henry VII biography until I finish the redesign.

17 July  Okay, I've been busy and lazy.  And reading lots of interesting non-Tudor related books.  And running around doing busy/life stuff.  But I thought it was an ideal time to lay off the site since school is out for most visitors and summer is traditionally a time of vacationing and cocktail-drinking and all sorts of non-webby related things.
But I'm back from vacation now and actually working on the site.

I just posted a new bibliography, now with a list of my favorite Tudor books.  I have almost finished redesigning the Edward VI and Mary I pages.

I have created a few animation/slideshows but they take an awfully long time to load if you don't have dsl.  So I'll mull it over, decide what to do.  -M

24 May  I have standardized the format for the new Six Wives of Henry VIII pages.  I have also written my own lengthy biographies for the new pages. Katharine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn have been posted.  I hope you like the new style.

I also redesigned the Henry VIII site.

I've decided to post longer pages rather than have visitors click through a list of contents.  Hopefully, this makes the site easier to navigate.

21 May  This move to a new server is (once again) taking forever. But I am redesigning and adding stuff along the way. There is a new section called Tudor FAQ.  It has answers to all the quick and easy questions about Tudor England. There is a news item at the bottom of the main page - Prince Arthur's grave has been discovered. They'll soon be testing his remains to discover the cause of death. So much for requiescat in pace, eh?

9 May  Where do all these visitors come from?  Once again, I'm going to change servers to increase the amount of data transfer allowed.  I am still redesigning things.  Regular visitors will note the changes in several main pages.

18 April   Added one new quiz; the subject is Lady Jane Grey.

9 April   I'm still working on things.

And it's a late-night process for me, yawning all the way.  My truly heroic intake of snack cakes and sugary drinks is somewhat helpful, though I may end up as round as Bluff King Hal to the left.  Webmasters everywhere make such sacrifices, blindly ignoring their own health and personal attractiveness in a quest to bring more obscure historical knowledge to the masses.  It's like that MTV Diary show, where all the singers say at the beginning, 'You think you know but you have no idea.'  And then they try to convince you that being rich and famous is really a bummer, only you don't think so.  You kind of like the idea of bodyguards and expensive cars and jewelry and a huge mansion in Miami.

Yeah, that probably is awful in a rich and famous sort of way.  I wouldn't know.  I'm a lowly Tudor England webmaster.  But it makes me think of Great Harry, all powerful and 'Off with your head!' and throwing tantrums and lamenting his bad luck with wives, children and ministers.  Meanwhile, most of his subjects were living in huts and starving through the winter.  I suppose it's all a matter of perspective.

And that means the site is probably fine the way it is, but I've decided to torment myself by redesigning it.

My perspective is skewed.  Do me a favor - click here to submit some quiz questions.  I'm running out of ideas.

Many thanks..... -Marilee

 

 

 

 

 

 

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