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I, Claudius (TV series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| I, Claudius | |
|---|---|
 Cover of I, Claudius DVD |
|
| Format | Period drama |
| Starring | Derek Jacobi Siân Phillips Brian Blessed John Hurt |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 50+ minutes per ep |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | BBC One |
| Original run | 20 September 1976 – 6 December 1976 (subsequently repeated) |
I, Claudius was a 1976 BBC Television adaptation of Robert Graves's I, Claudius and Claudius the God. Written by Jack Pulman, it proved one of the corporation's most successful drama serials of all time. It also provided popular initial exposure for several actors who would eventually become well known like Derek Jacobi, Patrick Stewart, John Rhys-Davies and John Hurt.
Contents |
Each episode (with the exception of number ten) uses the framing device of showing the aged Claudius as he is writing his memoirs and reminiscing to himself about the events that he has witnessed.
A Touch of Murder - Several years after the defeat of Mark Antony the Emperor Augustus has begun to favor his nephew Marcellus over Agrippa. Agrippa withdraws from Rome as a muted protest (though he does not admit that this is the reason). Livia wants to prevent the return of the Republic and have her son Tiberius become Augustus' heir. Marcellus' slight chill becomes something more deadly under Livia's care. Upon his death Augustus is forced to bring Agrippa back to Rome. Agrippa demands that he be brought closer to the imperial family by being wed to Marcellus' widow Julia. Augustus agrees and this infuriates Livia who had planned that she would be married to Tiberius.
Family Affairs - Nine years have passed. Agrippa is dead and Tiberius has been forced to marry Julia, whom he loathes. Tiberius' brother Drusus (who favors a return to the Republic) commands the legions which are being sent to deal with the rebellious Germans. A fall from his horse leaves his leg smashed. Under the care of Livia's doctor his condition worsens and he dies in the presence of his wife Antonia and their recently born son Claudius. Back in Rome Augustus is looking forward to sharing some of the burdens of power with Agrippa and Julia's sons Lucius and Gaius when they come of age. Livia promises to take special care of them.
Waiting in the Wings - Gaius has died and Tiberius has been banished to Rhodes for his mistreatment of Julia. One day in the garden the young Claudius catches a wolf cub dropped from an eagle's claws. This leads a seer to predict that Claudius will protect Rome in an hour of need. Livia tricks Lucius into revealing Julia's infidelities and a grief-stricken Augustus banishes her from Rome. The death of Lucius in a boating accident ends Tiberius' exile and he returns to Rome to be named, along with Postumus, as co-heir to Augustus' throne.
What Shall We Do About Claudius? - Three Roman legions have been massacred in Germania at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. Tiberius and Germanicus are dispatched to exact revenge. While Claudius is in the library researching his family's history he is advised by Pollio that, if he wants to live a long life, he should play up his infirmities to enhance his place in his family as a harmless fool. Augustus has determined that Postumus will succeed him as Emperor. Livia overhears this and concocts a plot with Livilla to frame Postumus for rape. Before Postumus is banished, he tells Claudius of all the people whom Livia has killed and reiterates the advice that Claudius should continue to play the fool.
Poison is Queen - Germanicus has defeated the Germans and returns to Rome in triumph. Claudius tells him of Postumus' suspicions and Germanicus passes this information on to Augustus. On a trip to Corsica, Augustus stops to see Postumus and comes to believe his stories. Upon his return Augustus changes his will in favor of Postumus. Livia learns of this and, soon after, Augustus falls ill. He recovers slightly when he begins to eat only food that he has grown and picked by hand. On his deathbed, Livia explains that he should have listened to her more since, as a Claudian, she wants what is best for the Empire. Sejanus is dispatched to kill Postumus and as Tiberius prepares to take over as Emperor Livia warns him that he shouldn't touch the figs.
Some Justice - Tiberius, with Sejanus' help, is ruling with an iron hand. Only Germanicus is preventing total tyranny. Germanicus dies in Syria under mysterious circumstances. His wife Agrippina accuses Piso and his wife Plancina of complicity in Germanicus' death. They are tried in the Senate to avert any subordination of the courts. Martina, the poisoner, reveals to Livia that Germanicus' own son, Caligula aided her in bringing about his death. When the weight of the trial goes against him Piso threatens to read a letter wherein both Tiberius and Livia give approval for his murder of Germanicus. Livia convinces Plancina to try to talk Piso into committing suicide. When he balks at this idea Plancina stabs him and this brings the trial to an end. Agrippina and her friends have to be satisfied that at least "some justice" was done.
Queen of Heaven - Tiberius now only lives for his perversions, in which Caligula is only too happy to join. Sejanus oversees continual treason trials which are stripping Rome of her best citizens. He is also sleeping with Livilla. She has become so enamored of him that she poisons her husband Castor so that she can remarry. Meanwhile, Sejanus forces Claudius to marry his adopted sister Aelia. On her birthday Livia has a long conversation with Claudius in which she confesses all of her misdeeds and her fear that they will keep her locked in hell for eternity. She reveals to Claudius that an unpublished Sibylline prophecy claims that he will become Emperor. On her deathbed she makes him promise to make her a Goddess when the time comes.
Reign of Terror - Tiberius has retired to Capri. Sejanus has divorced his wife and approaches Tiberius about marrying Livilla. The Emperor refuses but suggests that he could tie himself to the family by marrying her daughter Helen. This infuriates Livilla and she begins to poison her. Sejanus sets his final plans for taking power in motion by conniving in the banishment of Agrippina and her son Nero. He has her other son Drusus arrested. Antonia discovers letters between Sejanus and her daughter implicating them in several deaths including Castor's. Claudius smuggles the evidence to Tiberius who ponders how to topple a man who has acquired so much power. Caligula suggests finding an ambitious man and he knows that Macro is such a man. In the end Rome's streets run red with the blood of Sejanus, his family and followers.
Zeus, by Jove! - Tiberius dies, leaving Caligula and Gemellus as his joint heirs. Claudius' life-long friend Herod has returned to Rome in time for Caligula's ascension. From the start Caligula displays signs of mental instability and soon falls into a coma. When he awakens he reveals that he has become Zeus. Claudius feels that everyone will see that he is mad but Macro ensures that, even if they do acknowledge this, they will do nothing about it. Caligula has Gemellus killed and declares his sister Drusilla his wife and fellow goddess. Antonia, who is disgusted with the depths of depravity that her family and Rome have sunk to, commits suicide. Fearing that his child will become greater than he, Caligula tries to recreate the birth of Athena by cutting the child from her belly and swallowing it whole.
Hail Who? - Claudius is living with the ex-prostitute Calpurnia in meagre circumstances. Caligula has turned the palace into a brothel where he sells the wives of high-ranking Senate members to the highest bidder during sexual orgies. He takes his legions on a campaign to Germany to put down an alleged rebellion and then to the English Channel where he does battle with Neptune. He returns to Rome with sea-shells as "spoils of the sea" as an indication of his victory against the God. Later he makes his horse Incitatus a senator and forces Claudius to marry Messalina. Plots to assassinate Caligula begin to form and they coalesce around Cassius a leading general whom the Emperor continually mocks. The plotters strike during the games held to celebrate Augustus. They also kill Caligula's sister and wife Caesonia and their daughter Julia Drusilla. While the Praetorian Guard are looting and killing in the palace they come upon Claudius and decide to make him Emperor.
Fool's Luck - The leaders of the guard and Herod convince Claudius that he should take up the Imperial crown and he in turn convinces the Senate, in part so that all can keep their heads, of the same. Cassius is condemned to death but the other conspirators against Caligula are set free and Livia is finally made a goddess. After successfully bearing Claudius children Messalina convinces him to share the burdens of power with her. As Herod will soon be leaving to take control of the lands in the East that Claudius has granted him, Messalina suggests that Appius Silanus, a Senator, be brought in to assist her husband. Later her mother Domitia and Silanus marry. Before Herod leaves he warns Claudius that, as Emperor, Claudius must trust no one, not his advisors, not his wife, not even Herod himself. Messalina attempts to seduce Silanus and tells him that Claudius approves. Silanus then attempts to kill Claudius in the hopes of ending the line of depraved rulers. Messalina, with her mother's help, convinces Claudius of her innocence and Silanus is put to death.
A God in Colchester - Claudius is leading his troops in an invasion of Britain. Messalina's sexual excesses lead her to challenge the well-known prostitute Scilla to a contest to see who can take the most men in an evening; the Empress wins easily. Claudius returns in triumph having subdued the Britons. He learns that Herod has organized a rebellion in the eastern provinces against his rule. Herod believes that he is the "King of the Jews" whose coming had been predicted, however, he dies before completing his plans. Messalina now takes Gaius Silius as her lover. Eventually they divorce their respective spouses and marry thinking that Rome will rally around them and proclaim them rulers. Forced to act, Claudius' servants Pallas and Narcissus enlist Calpurnia to tell the Emperor the truth. In the end he believes them and the conspirators are arrested and killed. As Claudius is mourning the fact that all whom he cared for are gone he learns the news that the Britons have dedicated a temple to him in Colchester making him a god.
Old King Log - In ruling Rome benevolently Claudius has reconciled the populace to having an Emperor. He has come to feel that this was a mistake. Deciding that things must get much worse so that Rome will come to hate its ruling family, overthrow it, and restore the Republic, he decides that he must "let all the poisons that lurk in the mud hatch out". To this end he marries his niece Agrippinilla and adopts her son Nero making him co-heir with his son Britannicus. While Claudius knows that he can't fight the prophecy that Nero will become the next ruler of Rome he still tries to protect Britannicus so that he may take over later, but his son's obstinancy foils his plans. Ready for his end, Claudius eats the poisoned mushrooms from his wife's fork with relish. In searching through his papers looking for his will Agrippinilla and Nero come upon Claudius' history of his family and they burn it. Lying on his bier Claudius and the Sibyl have a good laugh over the fact that he buried a copy of the history to be found in about 1900 years.
The series was produced by Joan Sullivan and Martin Lisemore, and directed by Herbert Wise in the studios at the BBC White City. Production was delayed because of complex negotiations between the BBC and the copyright holders of the aborted film version. This did however give the scriptwriter Jack Pulman more time to fine-tune his script.
Wilfred Josephs provided the title music. The incidental music for each episode was performed by David Wulstan and the Clerkes of Oxford ensemble.
Among other awards, the series won three BAFTAs in 1977 (Derek Jacobi, Best Actor (TV); Siân Phillips, Best Actress (TV); Tim Harvey, Best Design (TV)).
The series was subsequently broadcast in the United States as part of PBS's Masterpiece Theatre series, where it received critical acclaim. Tim Harvey won a 1978 Emmy for Outstanding Art Direction. The producers and director were nominated but did not win. In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, I, Claudius was placed 12th.
The major cast included
Most VHS and DVD versions of the TV series include the 1965 BBC documentary The Epic That Never Was, about the attempted Alexander Korda film adaptation of the first book, featuring interviews with key production staff and actors as well as most of the surviving footage. The 2002 UK DVD edition also contains a documentary on the series, I, Claudius – a Television Epic, as well as some alternate and deleted scenes.
- In Pulman's script for Claudius's speech to the senate in the final episode, Claudius prophesies that "the man who dwells by the pool shall open graves, and the dead shall live again". This is a reference to the scriptwriter, Jack Pulman, and a pun on the book's author, Robert Graves.
- The writhing snake from the title sequence is parodied in the title sequence of Blackadder II.