One of my favorite tv-series of all time. No CGI, theatrical costumes , no displays of vistas, no grand battles or action scenes. But the acting is on another level compared with what we have today and of course , a story that intrigues you and keeps you invested all the way to the end.
None of the "tricks" of modern TV productions....but I, Claudius still transports you to another world....even after 20 viewings...especially after 20 viewings.
@@kinglog4528 Of course it's a work of fiction. But when reading it you can really tell that Robert Graves really studied history when writing it. And the fictionalized parts never seem like implausible events at all. And that's how I prefer historical fiction to be done. Stay as close to the historical knowledge as possible, and during those points where you can't fill in some blanks with facts, you try to stay on a plausible course. In the end that's the best way to make the whole story come across as authentic.
I remember watching this on PBS with my whole family. It was an amazing piece of theater. I was 11 years old, on the edge of my seat with worry for poor Claudius, wondering if Caligula was going to kill him. Hail Claudius. Emperor of Rome!
I have the I, Claudius DVD box set as well. An older friend lent out his to me and I binge watched it. Later on I got my own copy. My encounter with the book was quite random. In the lunchroom at my workplace at the time there was a bookcase with some random books that largely went untouched by the employees. I browsed around a little because I was bored, and I just stumbled across I, Claudius by Robert Graves. It wasn't that long ago since I had binge watched the show so I picked it up and read it a little every day during lunch breaks and ended up reading the whole thing that way. I got my own copy of the book shortly thereafter.
I was 9 when Claudius appeared on PBS Masterpiece Theater in 1977 here in the USA. Yea, I know a little too much for a 9-year-old. But I was mature for my age and deeply into ancient Rome. So I was allowed. I’ve been absolutely enthralled with the production AND everything ancient Rome (historical Rome) ever since! I’ll be doing my every 2 years re-watch soon. If you haven’t seen it and are into fantastic storytelling and drama, Watch it today!
@@twiggledy5547 this makes no sense to me. Carl and the team always maintain a professional attitude whilst discussing some of the most infuriating conversations. Anyway...... it's Great to have them back.
I disagree about George Baker. Of the principal cast, I think he had one of the hardest parts to play, Tiberius being not only unlikeable, brutal and self-pitying, but above all *dull*. Livia was evil, but you could admire her tenacity, her mordant humour and her intelligence. Caligula was a dangerous monster, but an absolutely fascinating creature. Tiberius had virtually no redeeming features at all, giving Baker much more of an uphill struggle. I didn't think much of him the first time I watched it, but in later viewings I've really come to appreciate his performance a great deal.
Favourite BBC shows from the 70's and 80's of mine: I, Claudius, Blackadder, The Onedin Line and 'allo 'allo Unfortunately I haven't watched Sharpe yet, but i'm going to get ahold of it at some point because I hear really good things about it.
Spot on about the Graves novels. Hard to read while distractions are there. Also, it helps readers and viewers of to be familiar with the history of the Julio-Claudian pattern of succession and some of the intrigues-- not hard to do; an afternoon or two with the internet will suffice. Sejanus was a hugely important figure during Tiberius's era, and understanding his position in the hierarchy is helpful.
What a treat! Could not click on the video link fast enough. I have too much to say about the series and this discussion so I'll say nothing! Ever do that? I don't know where to begin and have too many concepts I'd love to discuss so I won't even try. I'll just say thanks for an enjoyable discussion and stroll down that memory's lane.
I still get a laugh out of John Hurt's performance as Caligula when Caligula suddenly asks his uncle Claudius if he thinks Caligula is insane and Claudius desperately tries to humor the madman. Caligula : Do you think I'm mad? Claudius : Mad? Caligula : Yes, sometimes I think that I'm going mad. Do you - be honest with me - has that thought ever crossed your mind? Claudius : Never. Never. The idea is preposterous. You set the standard of sanity for the whole world.
Back in the 1970s... I was a kid, in the USA... Yeah I stayed up and watched it at the neighbors house. We had just gone through Water Gate, and all the "adults" had been watching that ALL THE TIME, and now this. I thought the "adults" were nuts like Claudius. IMHO
As an American born in the 80s grew up in the 90s. My father would watch all the classic BBC shows on VHS. I Claudius, Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy, Smileys People and House of Cards. I remember hating US television because my favorite American shows didnt come close to the quality. It wasn't until early 2000s HBO we finally caught up
BTW check out Granada TV's The Caesars from 1968 with some of the same actors - also using the Robert Graves scripts - some scenes almost word for word!
Don't forget the 6 Wives of Henry viii with Keith Michel and Elizabeth R with Glenda Jackson. I actually got see the costumes of both series at the V and A museum on school trip
The 1970s and 1980s were the heyday of the epic mini-series and there were so many great historical mini-series -- I, Claudius, Fall of Eagles, The Winds of War, War and Remembrance, Marco Polo, Jesus of Nazareth, Shogun, North and South, Roots, Das Boot, The World at War, Piece of Cake.
42:16...It didn’t seem quite vague to me why Livia chose Tiberius over Drusus...Drusus seemed to be unabashedly pro-republic and Livia was decidedly anti-republic so it simply wouldn't do to put a pro-republic leader in charge of Rome. She states quite clearly later on that everything she did was to prevent the republic , and all its percieved instabilities and civil wars from being reinstated. She also makes it quite clear that Tiberius was a constant dissappointment to her, but she saw him as easy to control and manipulate, so she in effect could run the empire through proxy. At least thats my take on it...
Great point tbh., Tiberius had been her tool until he got the power... and then he just got to be someone else's tool in the form of Sejanus, lol And to the point of Drusus - the letter reading scene from ep. 2(?). It was just a death sentence from his mother, lol
Another impressive BBC historical drama miniseries from the 1970s was "Fall of Eagles," which portrays historical events from 1848 to 1918, dealing with the ruling dynasties of Austria-Hungary (the Habsburgs), Germany (the Hohenzollerns), and Russia (the Romanovs).
Great scene from a war movie, starring Lee Marvin. A young marine has been hit with a mine blast. His Sargent kneels down to check on the young man. He picks up a testicle.... and says don’t worry that’s why god gave you two. Lotus Eaters still got one big one!!!!!! Welcome back.
I think that "Old King Log" is a reference to the Aesop Fable of "The Frogs Who Wished for a King". The frogs got bored of their good life and prayed to Jupiter for a king who they could fawn over and would entertain them. Just to shut them up, Jupiter sent a log. The frogs didn't like or respect the peaceable King Log, so asked Jupiter for a better king. An angry Jupiter sent them a crane for a king, which much to their horror, began to gobble them up. Claudius as "Old King Log".
A rather good, and we’ll-written novel about the later Julio-Claudians, is “The Course of Honour”, by Lindsey Davis, which is a telling of the life of Antonia Caenis, Vespasian’s mistress and freedwoman.
Replying to your stance on intelligent historical drama. For along time I have wanted somebody to make a series based on the lead up to the battle of Hastings. The characters that appear 20 years before the battle are in terms of story telling every bit as engaging as those in I Claudius.. Blackmail murder and intrigue were rife on pre Norman England.. Helen Holick's well researched novel Harold the king delves into this story bring Anglo Saxon England vividly to life..
The reason that I, Claudius has remained so popular over the years is the setting. Even a well-crafted show around the events of the Norman landings will have a more limited audience...due it's focus on British history. That said I would love to see a series based on the political intrigue.
*_It says it all when you have to go right back into TV Dramas from way back to get excellent Drama - Instead of the totally inaccurate woke_* *_PC poor garbage that's made today ..._*
In regards to Messalina, her exploits seem to be a bit implausible to be believed. And given how roman historians did play a bit fast and loose with facts when it was prudent I think it's reasonable to be skeptic about some of her extremes.
Funny thing is - as far as I remember, Postumus HAS been called beastly in the show... as a child, in the scene with the wolf cub (not eagle) prophecy. Not much more than a reference to history I guess, lol
I'm always amused by Brits being aghast that a Roman character would be played by an American actor. I heard a discussion elsewhere about an American movie set in Rome and the Brits were complaining about how silly the American accents were. After all, everyone knows that Romans spoke with a proper RP English accent!
Pardon my lack of knowledge since I'm not a Limey , but who the heck is Nicholas Hughes and how's he related to I, Claudius. I don't know this man from Adam
Herod Antipa not Herod Agrippa, his nephew (from I Claudius) was the one who sent or kick Jesus to Poncio Pilatus...I wonder why they don't mention that Claudius wrote an autobiography, 8 books ( now lost). Tacitus and Suetonio read the book...a first witness of this period...about Claudius leaving the empire to Nero, is also because he has doubts about Britannicus been his son, and probably also doubts about his daughter... can we blame him having Mesalina as his wife..he was totally lost and careless at the end
@@VeraldoAncodini The Brits can read subtitles but the fact is far fewer people would have watched it if the actors delivered their lines in Latin with subtitles. Plus there would have been many practical difficulties (translating the script into Latin, training the actors to deliver their lines in a language that was likely unfamiliar to most of them). Plus there's this small detail that it's based on a novel written in English.It's not a documentary. Maybe you should hit up Mel Gibson to do a remake.
Welcome back Lotus Eaters!
One of my favorite tv-series of all time. No CGI, theatrical costumes , no displays of vistas, no grand battles or action scenes. But the acting is on another level compared with what we have today and of course , a story that intrigues you and keeps you invested all the way to the end.
'deadwood'
'true Detective' season 1
Ur welcome
John Hurt as Caligula was terrifying.
To me I Claudius is still my favorite TV series ever. I first saw it in '77 on a local PBS station when I was in my mid 20s.
Back on TH-cam, good to see
Watched I Claudius years ago. Derek Jacobi played the part very well. It was a programme you sat down and watched them as they were broadcast.
None of the "tricks" of modern TV productions....but I, Claudius still transports you to another world....even after 20 viewings...especially after 20 viewings.
Bernard Hill as the centurion: "He's the emperor now. Got it? Emp-er-or. Kai-sar."
Welcome back, and im glad youtube hasn't "undone" my subscription or removed you from my algorithm
I, Claudius is one of my favourite novels.
@@kinglog4528 Of course it's a work of fiction. But when reading it you can really tell that Robert Graves really studied history when writing it.
And the fictionalized parts never seem like implausible events at all.
And that's how I prefer historical fiction to be done. Stay as close to the historical knowledge as possible, and during those points where you can't fill in some blanks with facts, you try to stay on a plausible course. In the end that's the best way to make the whole story come across as authentic.
“Is there anyone in Rome who has NOT slept with my daughter?” Loved Augustus😊
Not to mention Brian Blessed who played Augustus.
He certainly knows how to tackle those larger than life roles.
Me
Not *slept*, Caesar
Welcome back lotus eaters!!!!
Great post lads.A truly great show.Gee remember when well written well acted dramas like this happened.
I first saw this in my mid teens, when it came out. Here I am again halfway thru it and rivetted.
I remember watching this on PBS with my whole family. It was an amazing piece of theater. I was 11 years old, on the edge of my seat with worry for poor Claudius, wondering if Caligula was going to kill him. Hail Claudius. Emperor of Rome!
I have the I, Claudius DVD box set as well.
An older friend lent out his to me and I binge watched it.
Later on I got my own copy.
My encounter with the book was quite random. In the lunchroom at my workplace at the time there was a bookcase with some random books that largely went untouched by the employees.
I browsed around a little because I was bored, and I just stumbled across I, Claudius by Robert Graves.
It wasn't that long ago since I had binge watched the show so I picked it up and read it a little every day during lunch breaks and ended up reading the whole thing that way.
I got my own copy of the book shortly thereafter.
I was 9 when Claudius appeared on PBS Masterpiece Theater in 1977 here in the USA. Yea, I know a little too much for a 9-year-old. But I was mature for my age and deeply into ancient Rome. So I was allowed. I’ve been absolutely enthralled with the production AND everything ancient Rome (historical Rome) ever since! I’ll be doing my every 2 years re-watch soon. If you haven’t seen it and are into fantastic storytelling and drama, Watch it today!
found it and watched it after 2010 , after 30 years of watching content . and it was a marvel . i still watch it once every one or two years .
Fun fact: the ending for I, Claudius was the inspiration for Evangelion’s Ending scene
Sharpe is a good fictional series on the Napoleonic Wars, thanks for the introduction to Connections, will watch.
Watching the BBC production as a teenager led me to the books, which became two of my favorites. Hopefully, they'll never attempt a remake.
I don't think we have to worry about them doing a remake. They would burn all this stuff if they could.
Great to see you lot are back!
What happened?
Channel strike for literally no reason
@@twiggledy5547 this makes no sense to me.
Carl and the team always maintain a professional attitude whilst discussing some of the most infuriating conversations.
Anyway...... it's Great to have them back.
Wild guess... Too much trans discussion. The Callum and Harry post about the down under story was gold.
@@winstonsmithsoul Carl said it was because they made fun of the Grammy awards for "bullying," which is Class A bullshit artistry.
I disagree about George Baker. Of the principal cast, I think he had one of the hardest parts to play, Tiberius being not only unlikeable, brutal and self-pitying, but above all *dull*. Livia was evil, but you could admire her tenacity, her mordant humour and her intelligence. Caligula was a dangerous monster, but an absolutely fascinating creature. Tiberius had virtually no redeeming features at all, giving Baker much more of an uphill struggle. I didn't think much of him the first time I watched it, but in later viewings I've really come to appreciate his performance a great deal.
How timely given that since this interview the bbc are re-running the show!
Nice guest, nice job.
Favourite BBC shows from the 70's and 80's of mine: I, Claudius, Blackadder, The Onedin Line and 'allo 'allo
Unfortunately I haven't watched Sharpe yet, but i'm going to get ahold of it at some point because I hear really good things about it.
Spot on about the Graves novels. Hard to read while distractions are there. Also, it helps readers and viewers of to be familiar with the history of the Julio-Claudian pattern of succession and some of the intrigues-- not hard to do; an afternoon or two with the internet will suffice. Sejanus was a hugely important figure during Tiberius's era, and understanding his position in the hierarchy is helpful.
Master and commander: far side of the world is another good example of a fiction written so well you'd think it's an historic account.
What a treat! Could not click on the video link fast enough. I have too much to say about the series and this discussion so I'll say nothing! Ever do that? I don't know where to begin and have too many concepts I'd love to discuss so I won't even try. I'll just say thanks for an enjoyable discussion and stroll down that memory's lane.
Yay Rhubba! on Lotuseaters at last!
I still get a laugh out of John Hurt's performance as Caligula when Caligula suddenly asks his uncle Claudius if he thinks Caligula is insane and Claudius desperately tries to humor the madman.
Caligula : Do you think I'm mad?
Claudius : Mad?
Caligula : Yes, sometimes I think that I'm going mad. Do you - be honest with me - has that thought ever crossed your mind?
Claudius : Never. Never. The idea is preposterous. You set the standard of sanity for the whole world.
The boys are back!
Elizabeth R with Glenda Jackson and Robert Hardy. Another great series.
The show also had amazing theme music.
Great video.
At 53:05. Claudius actually catches a Wolf cub, not an eagle. But wonderful discussion. At 59:48 one of them also says "we didn't sleep" LOL.
Back in the 1970s... I was a kid, in the USA...
Yeah I stayed up and watched it at the neighbors house. We had just gone through Water Gate, and all the "adults" had been watching that ALL THE TIME, and now this. I thought the "adults" were nuts like Claudius. IMHO
Brian Blessed still playing the kindly grandad in Peppa Pig 😂
Although he shouts a lot more in Peppa Pig than he did in I, Claudius.
As an American born in the 80s grew up in the 90s. My father would watch all the classic BBC shows on VHS. I Claudius, Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy, Smileys People and House of Cards. I remember hating US television because my favorite American shows didnt come close to the quality. It wasn't until early 2000s HBO we finally caught up
BTW check out Granada TV's The Caesars from 1968 with some of the same actors - also using the Robert Graves scripts - some scenes almost word for word!
Don't forget the 6 Wives of Henry viii with Keith Michel and Elizabeth R with Glenda Jackson. I actually got see the costumes of both series at the V and A museum on school trip
The 1970s and 1980s were the heyday of the epic mini-series and there were so many great historical mini-series -- I, Claudius, Fall of Eagles, The Winds of War, War and Remembrance, Marco Polo, Jesus of Nazareth, Shogun, North and South, Roots, Das Boot, The World at War, Piece of Cake.
Secret Army …
42:16...It didn’t seem quite vague to me why Livia chose Tiberius over Drusus...Drusus seemed to be unabashedly pro-republic and Livia was decidedly anti-republic so it simply wouldn't do to put a pro-republic leader in charge of Rome. She states quite clearly later on that everything she did was to prevent the republic , and all its percieved instabilities and civil wars from being reinstated.
She also makes it quite clear that Tiberius was a constant dissappointment to her, but she saw him as easy to control and manipulate, so she in effect could run the empire through proxy.
At least thats my take on it...
Great point tbh., Tiberius had been her tool until he got the power... and then he just got to be someone else's tool in the form of Sejanus, lol
And to the point of Drusus - the letter reading scene from ep. 2(?). It was just a death sentence from his mother, lol
Another impressive BBC historical drama miniseries from the 1970s was "Fall of Eagles," which portrays historical events from 1848 to 1918, dealing with the ruling dynasties of Austria-Hungary (the Habsburgs), Germany (the Hohenzollerns), and Russia (the Romanovs).
The same premise as GMF and the Flashman Papers :)
Great scene from a war movie, starring Lee Marvin. A young marine has been hit with a mine blast. His Sargent kneels down to check on the young man. He picks up a testicle.... and says don’t worry that’s why god gave you two.
Lotus Eaters still got one big one!!!!!! Welcome back.
I cannot comment on the historical accuracy of the third black adder series, but the fourth nailed the first world war.
“I, Claudius” as any aficionado knows is pronounced “I Clav-Divs” 😂
I think you mean "written" 😉
In latin, the V is pronounced like a U as well as a V.
"I WAS THERE!"
@@sevenproxies4255 it’s a joke, nevermind.
I think that "Old King Log" is a reference to the Aesop Fable of "The Frogs Who Wished for a King". The frogs got bored of their good life and prayed to Jupiter for a king who they could fawn over and would entertain them. Just to shut them up, Jupiter sent a log. The frogs didn't like or respect the peaceable King Log, so asked Jupiter for a better king. An angry Jupiter sent them a crane for a king, which much to their horror, began to gobble them up. Claudius as "Old King Log".
The BBC series had Patrick Stewart with hair!
Sejanus.
5 channels only if you lived near the boundary of 2 ITV regions!
A rather good, and we’ll-written novel about the later Julio-Claudians, is “The Course of Honour”, by Lindsey Davis, which is a telling of the life of Antonia Caenis, Vespasian’s mistress and freedwoman.
House of Cards and Tinker Tailor would be up there with I, Claudius
Replying to your stance on intelligent historical drama. For along time I have wanted somebody to make a series based on the lead up to the battle of Hastings. The characters that appear 20 years before the battle are in terms of story telling every bit as engaging as those in I Claudius.. Blackmail murder and intrigue were rife on pre Norman England.. Helen Holick's well researched novel Harold the king delves into this story bring Anglo Saxon England vividly to life..
The reason that I, Claudius has remained so popular over the years is the setting. Even a well-crafted show around the events of the Norman landings will have a more limited audience...due it's focus on British history. That said I would love to see a series based on the political intrigue.
*_It says it all when you have to go right back into TV Dramas from way back to get excellent Drama - Instead of the totally inaccurate woke_*
*_PC poor garbage that's made today ..._*
Weird, I just rematched I cluaudius last weekend .
In regards to Messalina, her exploits seem to be a bit implausible to be believed.
And given how roman historians did play a bit fast and loose with facts when it was prudent I think it's reasonable to be skeptic about some of her extremes.
The peak of the tory boy.
AY UP LOTUS EATERS
Funny thing is - as far as I remember, Postumus HAS been called beastly in the show... as a child, in the scene with the wolf cub (not eagle) prophecy. Not much more than a reference to history I guess, lol
Wheres Sly Sneak when you need him?
Fuming with rage by all accounts
BBC no longer do drama well.
they barely do entertainment mate!
I'm always amused by Brits being aghast that a Roman character would be played by an American actor. I heard a discussion elsewhere about an American movie set in Rome and the Brits were complaining about how silly the American accents were. After all, everyone knows that Romans spoke with a proper RP English accent!
Pardon my lack of knowledge since I'm not a Limey , but who the heck is Nicholas Hughes and how's he related to I, Claudius. I don't know this man from Adam
1. It's me
2. 2nd cousin twice removed
3. Adam's my son
Is this video monetised? Or should I keep watching on rumble?
I stopped consuming BBC content over a decade ago. They just pump out garbage these days. A pitiful decline.
Herod Antipa not Herod Agrippa, his nephew (from I Claudius) was the one who sent or kick Jesus to Poncio Pilatus...I wonder why they don't mention that Claudius wrote an autobiography, 8 books ( now lost). Tacitus and Suetonio read the book...a first witness of this period...about Claudius leaving the empire to Nero, is also because he has doubts about Britannicus been his son, and probably also doubts about his daughter... can we blame him having Mesalina as his wife..he was totally lost and careless at the end
Fall of Eagles
fall of eagles
I would argue that today's culture and society is functionally illiterate. 🙄
Algorithm.
The show would've been better if they spoke Latin.
Yeah, the BBC actually wanted people to watch the series, so no.
@@dabhidhm4093 Oh I didn't realize the Brits are illiterate and can't read subtitles.
@@VeraldoAncodini The Brits can read subtitles but the fact is far fewer people would have watched it if the actors delivered their lines in Latin with subtitles. Plus there would have been many practical difficulties (translating the script into Latin, training the actors to deliver their lines in a language that was likely unfamiliar to most of them). Plus there's this small detail that it's based on a novel written in English.It's not a documentary. Maybe you should hit up Mel Gibson to do a remake.