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Snippet reviews and thoughts due to Darth Real Life: Wolf Hall ep 2 and 3: like it without being enthusiastic about it, which is the reaction I had to the original novel as well (will be interesting to see if my feeling changes correspondingly once we get into Bring up the Bodies territory with the plot. BTW, as with the book, the characterisation of Thomas More is so hopelessly over the top that you keep waiting for the "and then Thomas More kicked a puppy!" scene, but what I had forgotten is that while there isn't a kicked puppy (about the only thing there isn't re: TM in Wolf Hall), we do get a scene where Thomas Cromwell cradles a kitten. Oh, Hilary Mantel. Seriously though, seeing this book played out on screen hammered it in fo rme that I actually prefer Sansom's Shardlake novels when it comes to this period and these characters, because Sansom's Cromwell, while a sincere reformer as opposed to Just Looking Out For No.1, is actually allowed to make mistakes and be in the wrong a couple of times, and there's an equal amount of sympathetic Protestant, Catholic and just-trying-to-survive-Henry's-ever-changing-opinions characters around.
(BTW, one last thing re: Evil!More in Wolf Hall, book and tv series, perhaps the most unnecessary change/omission both Mantel & Kominsky (unnecessary because you could have shown More as the orthodox enemy of heresy versus Cromwell the champion of Protestantism while including it) made is the utter lack of a sense of humor. And you can't really have a plausibly historical More without the wit. I mean, this was a man able to joke on his way to the scaffold and cheer up his executioner. To quote from the most famous contemporary account, Hall's chronicles: “About Nine he was brought out of the Tower (...) (A) Woman came crying and demanded some Papers she said she had left in his Hands, when he was Lord Chancellor, to whom he said, Good woman, have Patience but for an Hour and the King will rid me of the Care I have for those Papers, and every thing else. (...) When he came to the Scaffold, it seemed ready to fall, whereupon he said merrily to the Lieutenant, Pray, Sir, see me safe up; and as to my coming down, let me shift for myself. Being about to speak to the People, he was interrupted by the Sheriff, and thereupon he only desired the People to pray for him, and bear Witness he died in the Faith of the Catholic Church, a faithful Servant both to God and the King. Then kneeling, he repeated the Miserere Psalm with much Devotion; and, rising up the Executioner asked him Forgiveness. He kissed him, and said, Pick up thy Spirits, Man, and be not afraid to do thine Office; my Neck is very short, take heed therefore thou strike not awry for having thine Honesty. Laying his Head upon the Block, he bid the Executioner stay till he had put his Beard aside, for that had committed no Treason. Thus he suffered with much Cheerfulness; his Head was taken off at one Blow, and was placed upon London-Bridge, where, having continued for some Months, and being about to be thrown into the Thames to make room for others, his Daughter Margaret bought it (...).)
(BTW, same chronicler, i.e. Edward Hall, on Thomas Cromwell's execution a few years later, recording Cromwell's death speech: "I am come hether to die, and not to purge my self, as may happen, some think that I will, for if I should do so, I wer a very wretche and miser: I am by the Lawe comdemmned to die, and thanke my lorde God that hath appointed me this death, for mine offence: For sithence the tyme that I have had years of discretion, I have lived a sinner, and offended my Lord God, for the whiche I aske him heartily forgiveness. And it is not unknown to many of you, that I have been a great traveler in this world, and being but of a base degree, was called to high estate, and sithes the time I came thereunto, I have offended my prince, for the whiche I aske him heartily forgivenes, and beseche you all to pray to God with me, that he will forgive me. O father forgive me. O son forgive me, O holy Ghost forgive me: O three persons in one God forgive me. And now I pray you that be here, to beare me record, I die in the Catholic faith, not doubting in any article of my faith, no nor doubting in any Sacrament of the Church. Many have slandered me, and reported that I have been a bearer, of such as have maintained evil opinions, whiche is untrue, but I confess that like as God by his holy spirit, does instruct us in the truth, so the devil is ready to seduce us, and I have been seduced: but bear me witnes that I die in the Catholic faith of the holy Church. And I heatily desire you to pray for the King's grace, that he may long live with you, may long reigne over you. And once again I desire you to pray for me, that so long as life remains in this flesh, I waver nothing in my faith."
And then made he his prayer, which was long, but not so long, as bothe Godly and learned, and after committed his soul, into the handes of God, and so patiently suffered the stroke of the axe, by a ragged and Boocherly miser, which very ungoodly performed the Office."
(Re: "I die in the Catholic faith", Cromwell is using "Catholic" as in "universal" - the original meaning of the term - , not "Roman-Catholic; he uses the term in the same sense as Luther, Melanchthon and Thomas Cramner did when they spoke of the "Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church" of the New Testament. Cromwell having the bad luck of an inept executioner who "very ungoodly performed the Office" rubs it in that as cynical as it sounds, Anne Boleyn getting that expert sword executioner from Calais actually was a mercy. Mind you, for the swordsman from Calais to arrive in time to execute Anne he must have been sent for before her trial ever started, which tells you something about good old Henry. No swordsman for Thomas Cromwell, though, and no trial, either; at that point Henry didn't even bother anymore.)
(BTW, one last thing re: Evil!More in Wolf Hall, book and tv series, perhaps the most unnecessary change/omission both Mantel & Kominsky (unnecessary because you could have shown More as the orthodox enemy of heresy versus Cromwell the champion of Protestantism while including it) made is the utter lack of a sense of humor. And you can't really have a plausibly historical More without the wit. I mean, this was a man able to joke on his way to the scaffold and cheer up his executioner. To quote from the most famous contemporary account, Hall's chronicles: “About Nine he was brought out of the Tower (...) (A) Woman came crying and demanded some Papers she said she had left in his Hands, when he was Lord Chancellor, to whom he said, Good woman, have Patience but for an Hour and the King will rid me of the Care I have for those Papers, and every thing else. (...) When he came to the Scaffold, it seemed ready to fall, whereupon he said merrily to the Lieutenant, Pray, Sir, see me safe up; and as to my coming down, let me shift for myself. Being about to speak to the People, he was interrupted by the Sheriff, and thereupon he only desired the People to pray for him, and bear Witness he died in the Faith of the Catholic Church, a faithful Servant both to God and the King. Then kneeling, he repeated the Miserere Psalm with much Devotion; and, rising up the Executioner asked him Forgiveness. He kissed him, and said, Pick up thy Spirits, Man, and be not afraid to do thine Office; my Neck is very short, take heed therefore thou strike not awry for having thine Honesty. Laying his Head upon the Block, he bid the Executioner stay till he had put his Beard aside, for that had committed no Treason. Thus he suffered with much Cheerfulness; his Head was taken off at one Blow, and was placed upon London-Bridge, where, having continued for some Months, and being about to be thrown into the Thames to make room for others, his Daughter Margaret bought it (...).)
(BTW, same chronicler, i.e. Edward Hall, on Thomas Cromwell's execution a few years later, recording Cromwell's death speech: "I am come hether to die, and not to purge my self, as may happen, some think that I will, for if I should do so, I wer a very wretche and miser: I am by the Lawe comdemmned to die, and thanke my lorde God that hath appointed me this death, for mine offence: For sithence the tyme that I have had years of discretion, I have lived a sinner, and offended my Lord God, for the whiche I aske him heartily forgiveness. And it is not unknown to many of you, that I have been a great traveler in this world, and being but of a base degree, was called to high estate, and sithes the time I came thereunto, I have offended my prince, for the whiche I aske him heartily forgivenes, and beseche you all to pray to God with me, that he will forgive me. O father forgive me. O son forgive me, O holy Ghost forgive me: O three persons in one God forgive me. And now I pray you that be here, to beare me record, I die in the Catholic faith, not doubting in any article of my faith, no nor doubting in any Sacrament of the Church. Many have slandered me, and reported that I have been a bearer, of such as have maintained evil opinions, whiche is untrue, but I confess that like as God by his holy spirit, does instruct us in the truth, so the devil is ready to seduce us, and I have been seduced: but bear me witnes that I die in the Catholic faith of the holy Church. And I heatily desire you to pray for the King's grace, that he may long live with you, may long reigne over you. And once again I desire you to pray for me, that so long as life remains in this flesh, I waver nothing in my faith."
And then made he his prayer, which was long, but not so long, as bothe Godly and learned, and after committed his soul, into the handes of God, and so patiently suffered the stroke of the axe, by a ragged and Boocherly miser, which very ungoodly performed the Office."
(Re: "I die in the Catholic faith", Cromwell is using "Catholic" as in "universal" - the original meaning of the term - , not "Roman-Catholic; he uses the term in the same sense as Luther, Melanchthon and Thomas Cramner did when they spoke of the "Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church" of the New Testament. Cromwell having the bad luck of an inept executioner who "very ungoodly performed the Office" rubs it in that as cynical as it sounds, Anne Boleyn getting that expert sword executioner from Calais actually was a mercy. Mind you, for the swordsman from Calais to arrive in time to execute Anne he must have been sent for before her trial ever started, which tells you something about good old Henry. No swordsman for Thomas Cromwell, though, and no trial, either; at that point Henry didn't even bother anymore.)
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I mean I think anti-immigrant feeling is nearly always a fun cocktail of racism, religious prejudice and economic anxiety, but there's not an explicitly religious element in the speech as he performs it.