The Other Henry

I've always been interested in history and historical figures, so I tuned in recently to the new Showtime series , "The Tudors" starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Henry VIII. Based on the royal court in Tudor England, it's basically a soap opera with a historical backdrop. Heavily laden with the seven deadly sins (and all the more riveting because of it) and despite a bare breast count that's now off the charts, it's actually pretty good. Beautiful people in (and frequently out of) beautiful costumes and the romance of history make it a fairly entertaining hour each week, racy as it may be.

One actor who, for me, is upstaging the main star (Meyers) is Henry Cavill (pictured above). I've never seen him in anything before this, but I must say that he makes one fine 1st Duke of Suffolk. He's hot, and the whole 'knight' type persona works for him, big time. I am surprised he's not a bigger star already, and I won't be suprised if he comes out of this as a major heart throb. (Gosh, he's only 23....I'm feeling so Mrs. Robinson right now....) :)

Historically, the show is interesting to watch because the characters, major events and settings (Whitehall Palace, Tower of London, etc.) are all real, even though the personalities and daily antics are purely speculative. Who knows what they were all really like? We can only imagine, and the script writers have done a fairly decent job of doing so.

But it is fun to read about the real historical characters as you watch the show. For example, Henry Cavill's character, Charles Brandon, was actually the grandfather of Lady Jane Grey, who reigned for nine whole days in 1553. And his father was killed on the battlefield by Richard III when Charles was a child. Interesting stuff all, if you are a history buff.

I do wonder if the real Charles Brandon was this hot. I doubt it, because if he was, Henry VIII would have probably had him beheaded. He didn't seem the type to enjoy being upstaged in his own court by a real hottie.