The horror...

[maleficent]

I haven't watched more than snipets of The Tudors although I keep meaning to. This, however, makes me think I might be better off not bothering:

Joss Stone to play Anne of Cleves in The Tudors.

I have no words...

Comments

[holyschist]

It's a ludicrous show. I actually kind of love it, the same way I love the BBC Robin Hood. But one must either entirely set aside history while watching or get one's enjoyment from shrieking at the screen.

[ciara_belle]

You cannot watch the show if you're interested in serious history, but I find it immensely entertaining. I watched it with a group of people from my master's program, and we enjoyed snarking it muchly. I also have a massive crush on Jeremy Northam, so that also helped. The second season is almost halfway decent, though, mostly because they focus more on the better actors (Northam, James Frain, Peter O'Toole, who is also one of my favorite all-time actors, so that's another reason to watch). They did pretty much entirely get rid of Norfolk, though, and I wasn't thrilled with that.

That story is a definite 'wut', though. I don't know if I'm looking forward to this season, since the girl who plays Jane Seymour is supremely boring.

[terminal_echoes]

I looked at a few pictures of Joss Stone because I didn't know who she was. While I don't think she's anywhere close to the best person for the role, I can't really complain that much. She's got the right hair, the right dark eyes, and looks like she has the right complexion. And as model-esque starlets go, she's a bit thicker around the middle than most which would be good for Anne of Cleves. Regardless of how Henry described her, I don't think Anne was really that "fat" since the fashion of the day was for a woman to be waifish, yes? She was maybe just a bit thicker than average, and really, the way she's described (dark hair, dark eyes, swarthy skin, curvy, and big boobs)...well that sounds like a modern-day hottie to me...minus the whole "smelling like a horse" part.

I watched a few of the shows though and it made me want to pluck out my own eyeballs. I'll stick with Lost.

[lorifury]

I know that it was Henry's personal preference for a thin woman with small breasts, but I've never read that the general preference was for a waifish woman in Tudor times. I'm not saying it isn't true, it's just something I've never come across personally.

There is though, a description of Mary I made (I believe, by a Spanish ambassador at the time of her marriage to Philip) where he describes her as thin or possibly 'not fleshy', with a negative emphasis on her thinness. I think our modern definition of thin would be regarded as bizarre in any other period in history.

[terminal_echoes]

You're right. I went and re-read some descriptions of her and she was described as being excessively tall and not "petite". I misinterpreted her not being petite as just being a big girl. Henry also likened her to a horse, which I took to mean her weight or her overall mass.

[_makeshiftwings]

Why couldnt they just get a German actress?

[maleficent]

Presumably for the same reason they didn't feel the need to get an actress.

[_makeshiftwings]

Haha, that was the best reply.