Henry VIII and His Six Wives
| Henry VIII and His Six Wives | |
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Original British quad poster
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| Directed by | Waris Hussein |
| Produced by | Roy Baird Mark Shivas |
| Written by | Ian Thorne |
| Starring |
Keith Michell Charlotte Rampling Jane Asher Donald Pleasence |
| Music by | David Munrow |
| Cinematography | Peter Suschitzky |
| Edited by | John Bloom |
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Production
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| Distributed by |
Anglo-EMI (UK Levitt-Pickman (US) |
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Release date
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Running time
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125 min |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Henry VIII and His Six Wives is a 1972 British film adaptation, directed by Waris Hussein, of the BBC 1970 six-part miniseries The Six Wives of Henry VIII. Keith Michell, who plays Henry VIII in the TV series, also portrays the king in the film. His six wives are portrayed by different actresses, among them Charlotte Rampling as Anne Boleyn, and Jane Asher as Jane Seymour. Donald Pleasence portrays Thomas Cromwell and Bernard Hepton portrays Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, a role he had also played in the miniseries and briefly in its follow-up Elizabeth R.
On his deathbed, Henry VIII reflects upon his long reign, and especially the crucial part his six marriages have played. The bulk of the film is depicted in flashback, while the elderly Henry VIII is surrounded by his family and courtiers waiting for him to die.
Henry's first queen is the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon. The young pair are in the midst of celebrating the birth of their son, only to be told that he has died. Henry and Catherine mourn their child together, and hope for another soon. Many years pass, during which time Catherine only manages to produce one living daughter, Mary. Henry confides to Thomas More that he fears the marriage is cursed by God, as Catherine had previously been married to Henry's late older brother, Arthur, although the marriage was not consummated.
Henry woos Anne Boleyn, a lady at court, who refuses to sleep with him unless she is his wife. Henry presses the Vatican for an annulment of his marriage to Catherine but when that fails he has Cardinal Wolsey removed from office and himself made head of the Church of England. Catherine is sent away from court and Anne is crowned the new queen. Anne also fails to produce a male heir, only giving birth to another daughter, Elizabeth. Henry loses interest in Anne and starts courting Jane Seymour, another lady of the court. Thomas Cromwell, protege of Cardinal Wolsey, observes Henry's interest in Jane and decides to assist him, presenting a case of Anne's infidelity with various gentlemen of the court and her own brother, George Boleyn. Anne is arrested and beheaded in the Tower of London.
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