Secrets Of The Six Wives - General Discussion

[okerry]

On 2/11/2017 at 1:19 AM, Blergh said:

Re Catherine Howard's premarital history: Considering that Henry had ALREADY married four wives and had an untold number of encounters with other women, I find it next to impossible to believe that he wouldn't have known she wasn't a virgin on their wedding night. Yes, it's probable that she had had stuff happen when she was a child against her will but perhaps the molesters didn't technically go all the way with her. Then, too,it's also possible that Henry himself was so enthralled at the thought of having this attractive teen being his alone for the rest of his life that he was willing to not split hairs during the honeymoon.

I saw at least one depiction of Catherine Howard's marriage to Henry - might have been the old PBS series back in the early '70s - which implied that due to his poor health old Henry was quite impotent by then, and so this was (supposedly) another factor in why Catherine sought a lover.

[iMonrey]

I guess I learned one thing, that "Chamberlain" is derived from being distinguished enough to be allowed inside the royal bed chamber. Aside from that, there wasn't much to be gleaned from this episode. Not nearly as interesting as the royal wardrobe one.

[Quilt Fairy]

3 hours ago, okerry said:

I saw at least one depiction of Catherine Howard's marriage to Henry - might have been the old PBS series back in the early '70s - which implied that due to his poor health old Henry was quite impotent by then, and so this was (supposedly) another factor in why Catherine sought a lover.

I remember that, too, but she didn't take one just to have a lover, she took a lover because her family reminded her constantly that she must have a child.

[maraleia]

Except for how elaborate the beds were and the fact that they were moved to different locations in the past. I still love Lucy's take on things and hope to see more of her specials.

[Driad]

Lucy said the reason that portraits of people in bed often look as if they are sitting up is partly because a mattress rested on a rope mesh that sagged. Puzzled me because I have toured historic houses in which the guides have explained that the ropes had to be tightened frequently, and showed us the tool that was used to do it. One would think royals would expect to be able to sleep tight (the origin of the phrase, AIUI).

[Quilt Fairy]

On ‎2‎/‎22‎/‎2017 at 4:20 PM, maraleia said:

I still love Lucy's take on things and hope to see more of her specials.

I caught her series on the Russian Tsars on Netflix and really enjoyed it.  Other than Nicholas and Alexandra, I didn't know any of the history of the earlier Romanovs.

[b2H]

There was another similar program on NJ Public TV last night about the Castles of Henry VIII.  This one focused on Hampton Court.

http://www.hamptoncourt.org.uk/

Had I been able to stay awake for the whole thing, it was pretty interesting how Henry designed so much of this around whomever it was he was married to at the time.

[movingtargetgal]

On 2/12/2017 at 1:58 PM, ChelleGame said:

 

This was great. I have a soft spot for Anne.  Anne of a Thousand Days and a sympathetic novel that made me cry as a teenager made her a favorite. Forgot about it then I visited Hever Castle a few years ago and saw the letter she wrote to Henry from the Tower before she was executed. Tudor History is my favorite time period so I never quite get tired of all this no matter how many times I hear it.

 

The movie version of Anne of a Thousand Days will be on TCM on Tuesday evening at 10:15pm.  It has always been one of my favorite movies.  The final scene between Anne and Henry in the tower is amazing.  Henry begged Anne to agree to a divorce so he could spare her life.  She refuses because a divorce would have made Elizabeth a bastard and could never become Queen.  Even though she was innocent she played a mind game on Henry and told him she had been with half his court and servants and that he would always wonder who she was with and if they were "better men" than he.   Henry slaps her really hard and she does not even blink.  It showed that although she lost her head, it was not for nothing.  Elizabeth became the most powerful of the Tudor monarchs.

Genevieve Bujold was brilliant.  I have heard that Elizabeth Taylor was on the set visiting Richard Burton when this scene was filmed.  

Edited March 4, 2017 by movingtargetgal

[AZChristian]

Thanks for the "heads up" on the movie.  It's on Tuesday night on our Cox feed in Arizona . . . I've set it to record in case I forget.  

[Brattinella]

1 hour ago, movingtargetgal said:

The movie version of Anne of a Thousand Days will be on TCM on Wednesday evening at 10:15pm.  It has always been one of my favorite movies.  The final scene between Anne and Henry in the tower is amazing.  Henry begged Anne to agree to a divorce so he could spare her life.  She refuses because a divorce would have made Elizabeth a bastard and could never become Queen.  Even though she was innocent she played a mind game on Henry and told him she had been with half his court and servants and that he would always wonder who she was with and if they were "better men" than he.   Henry slaps her really hard and she does not even blink.  It showed that although she lost her head, it was not for nothing.  Elizabeth became the most powerful of the Tudor monarchs.

Genevieve Bujold was brilliant.  I have heard that Elizabeth Taylor was on the set visiting Richard Burton when this scene was filmed.  

Thank you for the memory!  What a scene that was!  Bujold and Burton were delicious.

[movingtargetgal]

14 minutes ago, Brattinella said:

he movie version of Anne of a Thousand Days will be on TCM on Wednesday evening at 10:15pm.

I was wrong it will air on Tuesday evening.   Sorry about that, my eyes are aging as I type this post.  I hate getting old.

[ChelleGame]

1 hour ago, movingtargetgal said:

The movie version of Anne of a Thousand Days will be on TCM on Tuesday evening at 10:15pm.  It has always been one of my favorite movies.  The final scene between Anne and Henry in the tower is amazing.  Henry begged Anne to agree to a divorce so he could spare her life.  She refuses because a divorce would have made Elizabeth a bastard and could never become Queen.  Even though she was innocent she played a mind game on Henry and told him she had been with half his court and servants and that he would always wonder who she was with and if they were "better men" than he.   Henry slaps her really hard and she does not even blink.  It showed that although she lost her head, it was not for nothing.  Elizabeth became the most powerful of the Tudor monarchs.

Genevieve Bujold was brilliant.  I have heard that Elizabeth Taylor was on the set visiting Richard Burton when this scene was filmed.  

I ended up ordering the DVD so I could watch with my nieces.  This thread made me remember how much I loved that movie. Boy does it hold up. So much.  Wish I could remember the name of that long ago novel.

Thanks for posting the info!

[Scarlett45]

On 2/6/2017 at 3:04 PM, maraleia said:

Check out Lucy Worsley's Empire of the Tsars. She journey's to Russia to explore the Romanov dynasty. It's on Netflix.

I could tell she had something going on with her speech because we have some notable American's with Spasmodic dysphonia which is a voice disorder characterized by involuntary movements or spasms of one or more muscles of the larynx (vocal folds or voice box) during speech. They are Sen Susan Collins of Maine, Robert Kennedy Jr and NPR's Diane Rehm among others.

Thank you so much for this. I found her other series on YouTube. 

[Sandman]

On 2/12/2017 at 1:58 PM, ChelleGame said:

My favorite Tudor collectible, that I got years ago, are nesting dolls of Henry and all six wives. Catherine Howard is the smallest one so she got short shift from the doll maker too.

Is it just me, or does the idea of nesting dolls give an unfortunate implication that Eight ... ate them? Divorced, beheaded, died ... gulp?

"No wonder that guy was so fat!" ::rimshot:: [/cheap comedian voice]

I'll see myself to the Tower now.