New British historical drama Britannia aims to be the new Game of Thrones.
Set in AD 43, the series follows ancient Rome's conquest of the Celts in the British Isles — "a mysterious land ruled by wild warrior women and powerful druids who can channel the powerful forces of the underworld." Celtic rivals Kerra and Antedia must work together to fight off the Roman invasion led by Aulus Plautius - who became the first governor of the new province.
It hits our screens on Sky Atlantic on 18th January and stars, amongst others, David Morrissey and Mackenzie Crook.
SHOW ON THE WOAD Sky Atlantic drama Britannia aims to be the new Game of Thrones — but with extra boozing and brawling set in Roman Britain
The ambitious show stars David Morrissey as a Roman general, Zoe Wanamaker as a Celtic queen, and Mackenzie Crook as a mysterious druid
EXCLUSIVE
By Emma Coil
The Sun
27th December 2017
IT is being hailed as the British Game Of Thrones – an epic tale of the birth of our nation involving warring Celtic tribes, mystic druids and invading Roman legions.
Sky Atlantic drama Britannia stars David Morrissey as a Roman general, Zoe Wanamaker as a Celtic queen and Mackenzie Crook as a powerful druid.
Sky Atlantic's Britannia combines fact and fiction with a cutting-edge script to tell the story of feuds and mysticism
The nine-part story, set in 43AD, nearly 100 years after Julius Caesar first tried and failed to conquer Britain, begins with the Roman Army’s new attempt to take our islands.
Written by renowned playwright Jez Butterworth, it combines fact and fiction, with a modern script and thumping punk and folk soundtrack.
But how much is fact and how much is fiction?
Well, it turns out that life 2,000 years ago really was not that different to now.
Kerra, played by Kelly Reilly, is Queen Antedia's arch enemy
Early Brits, it turns out, loved beer, farting and a good fight as well as bling and tattoos — and that involved warriors colouring their bodies blue with dye made from woad plants.
The story begins with General Aulus Plautius, played by David, the only character from the series who existed in real life.
He overcomes an attempted mutiny from his 20,000 troops, who at first refuse to board their ships to Britain because they are terrified of the myths and legends they have heard of cannibals and fierce warriors who live there.
When they arrive, they advance from the south coast, conquering the country bit by bit by overcoming the existing tribe leaders who are also at war with each other.
Mackenzie Crook plays Veran, a mystical druid
They include the King of the Cantii (Ian McDiarmid) and his daughter Kerra (Kelly Reilly) as well as Kerra’s arch rival Queen Antedia of the Regni tribe (Zoe Wanamaker).
Historian Jonathan Stamp, who advised Butterworth while he was writing the series, said: “There is no exaggeration in the way the show depicts these tribes as being constantly at each other’s throats.
“The Celts loved fighting. If there’s anything we as Brits have inherited it’s that we still like a good scrap.
“There were constant turf wars, and they had just started using iron as opposed to softer metals, so they were fighting with axes and swords.
The nine-part series follows the Roman Army attempting to conquer Britain where the Celts and Druids live
“Those skirmishes wouldn’t have been big pitch battles — there would have been at most around 100 people at a time.
“In the ancient world a battle would involve getting drunk first — they were no braver then than they are now — then they would rush at each other in a big scrum.”
Actor David, 53, said: “When Aulus gets to Britannia, and I think this is true of all those Roman generals, he does his research, finds out which tribes hate each other and manipulates those hatreds to his advantage.
“He brings progress, such as healthcare and sanitation, but there’s going to be a fight because people don’t like change.”
David Morrisey stars as Aulus, the leader of the Roman Army trying to conquer Britain
As Aulus and his Romans attempt to conquer the country, they know their biggest challenge will come from the druids, who were the true leaders of the country.
The mystics were like a super-class of top Celts — mainly teachers, lawyers and doctors, known as “wise men” who probably had a legal role in sorting out tribal disputes.
In his writings, Julius Caesar depicts them as a terrifying group who sacrificed humans by burning them to death in wicker effigies. They are also thought to have had orgies — which are also depicted in the show.
The Office’s Mackenzie Crook, 46, who plays Druid Veran, said: “There’s next to nothing known about the Druids.
The Roman Army's biggest challenge will come from the druids, who were the true leaders of Britain
“We have five or six facts that were written by Julius Caesar but otherwise it’s all open to interpretation. All I could really do is draw on Celtic folklore.
“This sounds weird but I also sort of drew on Springwatch. It’s the most brutal and violent show on television, the violence of nature. Veran is about the natural world. There’s no room for sentiment, sympathy or empathy.
“For them, life is a cycle of birth, life, sex and death.”
The tribes the Romans encountered were tattooed, jewelled and lived in extended families or communal areas on the tops of hills.
Actor David Morrisey says the depiction of how much the different tribes despised each other is not exaggerated
Archaeologists know that the Celts wore fine jewellery of gold and silver and took great care about their appearances in other ways, too.
Historian Jonathan said: “There’s some evidence that the Celts were very interested in personal grooming and began to import objects from across the Channel such as tweezers to pull the hair out of their nostrils. They were almost certainly painted, like our modern day tattoos.
“It’s possible that the Latin word Britannia is based on a local Celtic word Preannike, which means “the painted people”, which could be a reference to the fact that the people covered themselves in woad.
“Some of the dye may have been temporary, but I’m sure some of it would have been ritualised markings which would have lasted for life. And they may have had studs pierced into their skin too.
Warrior Kerra's father tried to sacrifice his daughter as he thought she angered the gods
“They drank beer, mainly, although the richer Celts imported wine from France.”
The cosmopolitan Romans still saw them as hicks.
Jonathan explained: “They thought of us as being rather gauche and the kind of people who would fart at dinner parties and wouldn’t have any table manners.
“One of the things they had contempt for was how much we liked milk, which makes me laugh because to this day if you order a milky coffee in Rome rather than an espresso after breakfast time, they will look down their nose at you.”
The writers of Britannia believe Brits love to watch scraps because of how deeply our history is rooted in fighting
But there was one area in which the Celts were far more modern and enlightened than the Romans — the way women were treated.
Females led tribes (Boudicca being a prime example), owned their own properties and were entirely equal to the men — unlike those in Ancient Rome and Greece.
Actress Kelly Reilly, 40, said: “It wasn’t a misogynistic world. There was a sacredness to the Earth, which was seen as feminine, so I have a passion for this time in history.”
Zoe Wanamaker added: “Queen Antedia is a lioness, a tiger, she’s very powerful. She’s the beginning of Boudicca. There was a warrior queen in a tribe up by Norfolk, so I based the performance on that information, as little as there is. This world was earthy, violent, quite shocking. It was a tribal world.”
Nikolaj Lie Kaas plays Divis, who is an ex-druid who lives as hermit on a British island
Once the Romans had conquered Britain, most traces of Celtic life sunk without trace.
Their language was eradicated by the arrival of firstly the Latin-speaking Romans and then the Saxons, and it is these languages that formed the roots of modern English.
Most of the other Celtic traditions have also been lost, although we do still celebrate May Day for the beginning of spring, Harvest Festival and Christmas around the time of the winter solstice.
Both of these would have begun in ancient times, as Celts placed huge important on seasons.
Being Human actress Annabel Scholey swaps Lauren Drake for Amena in the upcoming Sky Atlantic drama
All of the crew involved in the making of Britannia believe we are still very much Celtic in our DNA thanks to the spirit of the tiny little warrior country.
James Richardson, the show’s creator and executive producer, said: “If you look at the last few decades of music and fashion and art and culture, there’s a spirit of rebellion, and myths and non conformity in British culture.
“I think the fact that is part of our psyche goes back hundreds and hundreds of years, before the Romans turned up and changed it a lot.
“What we were doing in that period is kind of unknown but I think you can feel it in our modern spirit.
Zoe Wanamaker stars as Queen Atedia, who is tattooed just like many modern day Brits
“That’s why we wanted to use modern music that taps into the punkish, rebellious streak we have.
“There are inevitably going to be comparisons with Game Of Thrones, although Jez has never watched it and doesn’t know what it is!
“Game Of Thrones is brilliant, classical and beautiful.
“Ours is more rebellious and modern. It’s a lot more crazy. But if everyone who loves Game Of Thrones loves this, I’ll be very happy.”
Ruling in Britannia
Aulus Plautius - David Morrissey
David Morrisey, who plays Aulus, says that his character is on a spiritual journey despite being tough
ONE of Rome’s greatest generals, who leads conquest of Britain.
David said: “He’s a ruthless guy but he’s also on a personal, spiritual journey to find out what he can about the Druid philosophy and belief.”
Kerra - Kelly Reilly
Kerra, played by Kelly Reilly, has never forgiven her father after he attempted to sacrifice her
WARRIOR whose father King Pellenor once believed she had angered the gods.
Kelly said: “Gods decreed she was going to be killed as a sacrifice and Kerra’s father agreed to it. She’s never forgiven him.”
Veran - Mackenzie Crook
Mackenzie Crook, who plays Veran, says he draws on Celtic folklore to play his character
IT is claimed druid Veran is 10,000 years old and was the second man put on the planet.
Mackenzie said: “He’s an enigmatic, charismatic leader. He lords it over the Celtic tribes.”
Queen Atendia - Zoe Wanamaker
Zoe Wanamaker, who plays Queen Atendia, says her character is a lioness and very powerful
FIERCE ruler of the Regni who hates the Cantii tribe.
Zoe said: “She’s not just a ballsy lady. She’s got a mystical side to her. She’s got a history with both the druids and the Cantii and has deep hatred.”
Cait - Eleanor Worthington-Cox
Eleanor Worthington Cox plays the role of Cait, a fragile teenager who must discover her own power after her village is destroyed by Romans
A TEEN Cantii, Cait’s village is attacked. Eleanor said: “The Romans start slaughtering people. She has to run away and discovers that she’s stronger than she thinks.”
Divis - Nikolaij Lie Kaas
Nikolaij Lie Kaas plays the complex Divis, who can go from 'generous to an idiot' in the blink of an eye
EX-DRUID who is now a hermit on an island.
Nikolaj said: “Divis is an outcast, a survivor. He changes from moment to moment, sometimes he’s pleasant and generous, then a complete idiot.”
Britannia begins on Sky Atlantic on Thursday January 18 at 9pm, and all nine episodes will also be available on demand on Sky Atlantic and TV streaming service NOW TV.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/5220562/sky-atlantic-britannia-new-game-of-thrones/
Set in AD 43, the series follows ancient Rome's conquest of the Celts in the British Isles — "a mysterious land ruled by wild warrior women and powerful druids who can channel the powerful forces of the underworld." Celtic rivals Kerra and Antedia must work together to fight off the Roman invasion led by Aulus Plautius - who became the first governor of the new province.
It hits our screens on Sky Atlantic on 18th January and stars, amongst others, David Morrissey and Mackenzie Crook.
SHOW ON THE WOAD Sky Atlantic drama Britannia aims to be the new Game of Thrones — but with extra boozing and brawling set in Roman Britain
The ambitious show stars David Morrissey as a Roman general, Zoe Wanamaker as a Celtic queen, and Mackenzie Crook as a mysterious druid
EXCLUSIVE
By Emma Coil
The Sun
27th December 2017
IT is being hailed as the British Game Of Thrones – an epic tale of the birth of our nation involving warring Celtic tribes, mystic druids and invading Roman legions.
Sky Atlantic drama Britannia stars David Morrissey as a Roman general, Zoe Wanamaker as a Celtic queen and Mackenzie Crook as a powerful druid.
Sky Atlantic's Britannia combines fact and fiction with a cutting-edge script to tell the story of feuds and mysticism
The nine-part story, set in 43AD, nearly 100 years after Julius Caesar first tried and failed to conquer Britain, begins with the Roman Army’s new attempt to take our islands.
Written by renowned playwright Jez Butterworth, it combines fact and fiction, with a modern script and thumping punk and folk soundtrack.
But how much is fact and how much is fiction?
Well, it turns out that life 2,000 years ago really was not that different to now.
Kerra, played by Kelly Reilly, is Queen Antedia's arch enemy
Early Brits, it turns out, loved beer, farting and a good fight as well as bling and tattoos — and that involved warriors colouring their bodies blue with dye made from woad plants.
The story begins with General Aulus Plautius, played by David, the only character from the series who existed in real life.
He overcomes an attempted mutiny from his 20,000 troops, who at first refuse to board their ships to Britain because they are terrified of the myths and legends they have heard of cannibals and fierce warriors who live there.
When they arrive, they advance from the south coast, conquering the country bit by bit by overcoming the existing tribe leaders who are also at war with each other.
Mackenzie Crook plays Veran, a mystical druid
They include the King of the Cantii (Ian McDiarmid) and his daughter Kerra (Kelly Reilly) as well as Kerra’s arch rival Queen Antedia of the Regni tribe (Zoe Wanamaker).
Historian Jonathan Stamp, who advised Butterworth while he was writing the series, said: “There is no exaggeration in the way the show depicts these tribes as being constantly at each other’s throats.
“The Celts loved fighting. If there’s anything we as Brits have inherited it’s that we still like a good scrap.
“There were constant turf wars, and they had just started using iron as opposed to softer metals, so they were fighting with axes and swords.
The nine-part series follows the Roman Army attempting to conquer Britain where the Celts and Druids live
“Those skirmishes wouldn’t have been big pitch battles — there would have been at most around 100 people at a time.
“In the ancient world a battle would involve getting drunk first — they were no braver then than they are now — then they would rush at each other in a big scrum.”
Actor David, 53, said: “When Aulus gets to Britannia, and I think this is true of all those Roman generals, he does his research, finds out which tribes hate each other and manipulates those hatreds to his advantage.
“He brings progress, such as healthcare and sanitation, but there’s going to be a fight because people don’t like change.”
David Morrisey stars as Aulus, the leader of the Roman Army trying to conquer Britain
As Aulus and his Romans attempt to conquer the country, they know their biggest challenge will come from the druids, who were the true leaders of the country.
The mystics were like a super-class of top Celts — mainly teachers, lawyers and doctors, known as “wise men” who probably had a legal role in sorting out tribal disputes.
In his writings, Julius Caesar depicts them as a terrifying group who sacrificed humans by burning them to death in wicker effigies. They are also thought to have had orgies — which are also depicted in the show.
The Office’s Mackenzie Crook, 46, who plays Druid Veran, said: “There’s next to nothing known about the Druids.
The Roman Army's biggest challenge will come from the druids, who were the true leaders of Britain
“We have five or six facts that were written by Julius Caesar but otherwise it’s all open to interpretation. All I could really do is draw on Celtic folklore.
“This sounds weird but I also sort of drew on Springwatch. It’s the most brutal and violent show on television, the violence of nature. Veran is about the natural world. There’s no room for sentiment, sympathy or empathy.
“For them, life is a cycle of birth, life, sex and death.”
The tribes the Romans encountered were tattooed, jewelled and lived in extended families or communal areas on the tops of hills.
Actor David Morrisey says the depiction of how much the different tribes despised each other is not exaggerated
Archaeologists know that the Celts wore fine jewellery of gold and silver and took great care about their appearances in other ways, too.
Historian Jonathan said: “There’s some evidence that the Celts were very interested in personal grooming and began to import objects from across the Channel such as tweezers to pull the hair out of their nostrils. They were almost certainly painted, like our modern day tattoos.
“It’s possible that the Latin word Britannia is based on a local Celtic word Preannike, which means “the painted people”, which could be a reference to the fact that the people covered themselves in woad.
“Some of the dye may have been temporary, but I’m sure some of it would have been ritualised markings which would have lasted for life. And they may have had studs pierced into their skin too.
Warrior Kerra's father tried to sacrifice his daughter as he thought she angered the gods
“They drank beer, mainly, although the richer Celts imported wine from France.”
The cosmopolitan Romans still saw them as hicks.
Jonathan explained: “They thought of us as being rather gauche and the kind of people who would fart at dinner parties and wouldn’t have any table manners.
“One of the things they had contempt for was how much we liked milk, which makes me laugh because to this day if you order a milky coffee in Rome rather than an espresso after breakfast time, they will look down their nose at you.”
The writers of Britannia believe Brits love to watch scraps because of how deeply our history is rooted in fighting
But there was one area in which the Celts were far more modern and enlightened than the Romans — the way women were treated.
Females led tribes (Boudicca being a prime example), owned their own properties and were entirely equal to the men — unlike those in Ancient Rome and Greece.
Actress Kelly Reilly, 40, said: “It wasn’t a misogynistic world. There was a sacredness to the Earth, which was seen as feminine, so I have a passion for this time in history.”
Zoe Wanamaker added: “Queen Antedia is a lioness, a tiger, she’s very powerful. She’s the beginning of Boudicca. There was a warrior queen in a tribe up by Norfolk, so I based the performance on that information, as little as there is. This world was earthy, violent, quite shocking. It was a tribal world.”
Nikolaj Lie Kaas plays Divis, who is an ex-druid who lives as hermit on a British island
Once the Romans had conquered Britain, most traces of Celtic life sunk without trace.
Their language was eradicated by the arrival of firstly the Latin-speaking Romans and then the Saxons, and it is these languages that formed the roots of modern English.
Most of the other Celtic traditions have also been lost, although we do still celebrate May Day for the beginning of spring, Harvest Festival and Christmas around the time of the winter solstice.
Both of these would have begun in ancient times, as Celts placed huge important on seasons.
Being Human actress Annabel Scholey swaps Lauren Drake for Amena in the upcoming Sky Atlantic drama
All of the crew involved in the making of Britannia believe we are still very much Celtic in our DNA thanks to the spirit of the tiny little warrior country.
James Richardson, the show’s creator and executive producer, said: “If you look at the last few decades of music and fashion and art and culture, there’s a spirit of rebellion, and myths and non conformity in British culture.
“I think the fact that is part of our psyche goes back hundreds and hundreds of years, before the Romans turned up and changed it a lot.
“What we were doing in that period is kind of unknown but I think you can feel it in our modern spirit.
Zoe Wanamaker stars as Queen Atedia, who is tattooed just like many modern day Brits
“That’s why we wanted to use modern music that taps into the punkish, rebellious streak we have.
“There are inevitably going to be comparisons with Game Of Thrones, although Jez has never watched it and doesn’t know what it is!
“Game Of Thrones is brilliant, classical and beautiful.
“Ours is more rebellious and modern. It’s a lot more crazy. But if everyone who loves Game Of Thrones loves this, I’ll be very happy.”
Ruling in Britannia
Aulus Plautius - David Morrissey
David Morrisey, who plays Aulus, says that his character is on a spiritual journey despite being tough
ONE of Rome’s greatest generals, who leads conquest of Britain.
David said: “He’s a ruthless guy but he’s also on a personal, spiritual journey to find out what he can about the Druid philosophy and belief.”
Kerra - Kelly Reilly
Kerra, played by Kelly Reilly, has never forgiven her father after he attempted to sacrifice her
WARRIOR whose father King Pellenor once believed she had angered the gods.
Kelly said: “Gods decreed she was going to be killed as a sacrifice and Kerra’s father agreed to it. She’s never forgiven him.”
Veran - Mackenzie Crook
Mackenzie Crook, who plays Veran, says he draws on Celtic folklore to play his character
IT is claimed druid Veran is 10,000 years old and was the second man put on the planet.
Mackenzie said: “He’s an enigmatic, charismatic leader. He lords it over the Celtic tribes.”
Queen Atendia - Zoe Wanamaker
Zoe Wanamaker, who plays Queen Atendia, says her character is a lioness and very powerful
FIERCE ruler of the Regni who hates the Cantii tribe.
Zoe said: “She’s not just a ballsy lady. She’s got a mystical side to her. She’s got a history with both the druids and the Cantii and has deep hatred.”
Cait - Eleanor Worthington-Cox
Eleanor Worthington Cox plays the role of Cait, a fragile teenager who must discover her own power after her village is destroyed by Romans
A TEEN Cantii, Cait’s village is attacked. Eleanor said: “The Romans start slaughtering people. She has to run away and discovers that she’s stronger than she thinks.”
Divis - Nikolaij Lie Kaas
Nikolaij Lie Kaas plays the complex Divis, who can go from 'generous to an idiot' in the blink of an eye
EX-DRUID who is now a hermit on an island.
Nikolaj said: “Divis is an outcast, a survivor. He changes from moment to moment, sometimes he’s pleasant and generous, then a complete idiot.”
Britannia begins on Sky Atlantic on Thursday January 18 at 9pm, and all nine episodes will also be available on demand on Sky Atlantic and TV streaming service NOW TV.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/5220562/sky-atlantic-britannia-new-game-of-thrones/
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