Gunpowder (BBC-1 2017, Kit Harington, Liv Tyler)

In three part drama Gunpowder we get the real story of one of The Gunpowder Plot when a group of well connected Englishmen tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament.

England, 1603. Elizabeth I is dead and King James of Scotland has taken the throne. With the country at war with Catholic Spain, English Catholics are persecuted and priests caught saying Mass are punished with death. Several attempts have already been made on the new King’s life. All so far have failed. But deep in the heart of the Warwickshire countryside a new plot is brewing. A plot that will become legend, and leave a mark on the country that will still be felt over 400 years later.

Very much a pet project of Kit Harington’s, he is actually a descendent of Robert Catesby. Speaking of the drama he said “The story follows such a fascinating, dark and twisted piece of British history which is very close to being forgotten in the fog of time. You may know the name Guy Fawkes – as it has been attached to all sorts of things, from Occupying Wall Street to V For Vendetta – but many won’t know the whole story. It goes far beyond the name Fawkes and examines many fascinating characters and their desperate, tragedy-strewn lives. Gunpowder is all about choices, and the reasons desperate men make such choices, and it makes for really great drama.” He also remarked about viewers were not in for a traditional BBC period piece “it’s a crash, bang, wallop of an opening and it sets the scene for a programme that will not just be a slow burn of a typical period or costume drama. We wanted the strange, old-fashioned vernacular to clash against viewers’ usual expectations of a slow, boring period piece, as they quickly find themselves in a very real, visceral, and violent world.”

cast
Kit Harington as Robert Catesby
Liv Tyler as Anne Vaux
Mark Gatiss as Robert Cecil
Tom Cullen as Guy Fawkes
Peter Cullen as Father Garnet
Edward Holcroft as Thoma Wintour
Derek Riddell as King James I
Shaun Dooley as Sir William Wade

crew details
Creators: Kit Harington, Ronan Bennett, Daniel West
Writer: Ronan Bennett
Producer: Laurie Borg
Director: J. Blakeson
Executive Producers: Kit Harington, Daniel West, Ollie Madden, Matthew Read,

production details
Country: UK
Network and Production Companies: BBC One – Kudos – Thriker Filnms
Duration: 3×60 minute episodes
Aired From: Saturday 21 October – Saturday 5 November 2017

THE EPISODES
1. EPISODE ONE (21 Oct 17)
2. EPISODE TWO (28 Oct 17)
3. EPISODE THREE (4 Nov 17)