Merlin (2008 TV series): Difference between revisions
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|{{Flagicon|Italy}} Italy || [[Italia 1]] || 15 December 2008 || Tuesdays, 10:10 pm |
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|{{Flagicon|Malaysia}} Malaysia || [[Hallmark Channel]] || 1 March 2009 || Tuesdays, 9:00 pm |
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|{{Flagicon|Norway}} Norway || [[TV 2 (Norway)|TV2]] || 18 January 2009 || Sundays, 8:00 pm |
|{{Flagicon|Norway}} Norway || [[TV 2 (Norway)|TV2]] || 18 January 2009 || Sundays, 8:00 pm |
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| Merlin | |
|---|---|
| File:Merlintitlesequence.jpg Title sequence to Merlin | |
| Genre | Drama/Fantasy |
| Created by | Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Johnny Capps, Julian Murphy |
| Starring | Colin Morgan Angel Coulby Bradley James Katie McGrath John Hurt with Anthony Head and Richard Wilson |
| Composer | Rob Lane |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Julie Gardner Bethan Jones[1] |
| Production locations | Wales, France |
| Running time | 45 mins |
| Production company | Shine Television |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC One |
| Release | 20 September 2008 – present |
Merlin is a British television drama series that began in 2008. It is based on the Arthurian legends of the mythical wizard Merlin and his relationship with Prince Arthur, though differs significantly from more traditional versions of the myth. Produced by independent production company Shine Limited for BBC One, the programme is designed to run in the same Saturday evening family drama slot as series such as Doctor Who and Robin Hood.
The show has been commissioned for a second series.[2][3]
Production
The idea for the programme was conceived by Shine producers Julian Murphy and Johnny Caps, who had previously worked together on Hex, a fantasy series produced by Shine for Sky One.[4] The BBC had been keen on showing a drama based on the character of Merlin for some time; a little over a year before the Shine series was initiated, writer and producer Chris Chibnall had been developing a project aimed at a BBC One Sunday night slot, but this was ultimately not commissioned.[5] The Shine version of the project was put into development in late 2006, commissioned by Controller of BBC One Peter Fincham and BBC Head of Fiction Jane Tranter, with Fincham keen on having more series on his channel which embodied: "Three generation TV – that's TV you can watch with your grandparents and children. There's not enough of that about."[5]
The series went into production in March 2008,[6] with filming taking place in Wales and France (at the Château de Pierrefonds).[4] The series was produced by Shine in association with BBC Wales, whose Head of Drama Julie Gardner served as executive producer for the BBC.[4] Gardner had extensive experience of working on the BBC's Doctor Who, and claimed that show's chief writer Russell T Davies had been an important influence on the tone and style of Merlin.[4] CGI special effects for the series were provided by The Mill, which had also worked on Doctor Who and its spin-offs.[1] Consisting of an initial series of 13 episodes, Merlin began transmission in the UK on 20 September 2008. In advance of this, a special trailer was prepared for release on television, in cinemas and online.[4]
On December 13 2008, the BBC announced that it had re-commissioned Merlin for a second series, which begins filming in 2009.[7]
Tagline
The tag line that the BBC has used for the show is "Keep the magic secret", owing to the secrecy that surrounds Merlin's magical abilities in the television series.
Cast and crew
Main characters
- Colin Morgan as Merlin: The series protagonist, a young, remarkably talented sorcerer who attempts to keep his powers secret and will one day become the greatest wizard in the world. He is also Arthur's friend, despite the initial animosity between the two.
- Bradley James as Prince Arthur: the headstrong, arrogant and reckless but kind and benevolent son of King Uther, and future King of Camelot. He is friends with Merlin, and the pair have saved one another's lives on numerous occasions.
- Richard Wilson as Gaius: Camelot's court physician and one of the few who know Merlin's secret. Gaius used to be a sorcerer himself, and is something of an alchemist and magical scholar. He has a dry sense of humour and sees Merlin as the son he never had.
- Anthony Head as Uther Pendragon: Arthur's father and current king of Camelot. Uther is depicted as a ruthless and sometimes cruel man, but he cares deeply about his subjects and friends. However, he is frequently blinded by his hatred for all forms of magic.
- Angel Coulby as Guinevere (Gwen): Morgana's humble maid servant, and her friend. She has an open, friendly personality but is occasionally antagonistic with Arthur.
- Katie McGrath as Morgana: King Uther's ward and the daughter of his late best friend. Morgana is best friends with Gwen despite their class differences and is also secretly a "seer" - a person who has prophetic powers.
- John Hurt as the voice of the The Great Dragon: Merlin often visits the Dragon when in a predicament, because the Dragon knows what Merlin is destined for. The Dragon is also one of the few who know his secret. The Dragon appears omniscient at times, and his motivations are unknown beyond his desire to be released from the dungeons of Camelot.
- Michelle Ryan as Nimueh: The main antagonist of the first series, Nimueh is here portrayed as a beautiful, powerful, but amoral sorceress, bent on overthrowing Uther and Arthur and restoring magic to Camelot.
Guest appearances
- Eve Myles as Mary Collins / Lady Helen ("The Dragon's Call")
- Caroline Faber as Hunith ("The Dragon's Call", "The Moment of Truth" and "Le Morte d'Arthur")
- Will Mellor as Valiant ("Valiant")
- Santiago Cabrera as Lancelot ("Lancelot")
- Asa Butterfield as Mordred ("The Beginning of the End")
- Julian Rhind-Tutt as Edwin Muirden ("A Remedy to Cure All Ills")
- Kyle Redmond-Jones as Sir Owain ("Excalibur")
- Alexander Siddig as Kanan ("The Moment of Truth")
- Joe Dempsie as William ("The Moment of Truth")
Directors working on the first series include James Hawes, Ed Fraiman, Jeremy Webb, David Moore, and Stuart Orme.
Plot
Merlin arrives at the city of Camelot, where the king, Uther Pendragon, has outlawed magic and imprisoned the last dragon. Merlin, who was born with extraordinary magical powers, is taken as the apprentice of Gaius. Merlin later discovers, after being informed by the last dragon, who is held as a prisoner deep under the city, that he has an important destiny in protecting Uther's arrogant son, Arthur, so that he may grow up to found a great kingdom.
The era in which the series is set is ambiguous; traditionally the Arthurian legends are set in the dark ages, and the idea of King Uther reigning over a small kingdom (which is present in both traditional legend and the television series) sets it before the union of England in 927. Despite this, the castle interiors are 15th century, making the series' setting inconsistent with English history. Britain is never mentioned, though the dragon has used the name Albion, which is the oldest known name for Great Britain.
The television series deviates significantly from more traditional versions of the legend, such as those written by Geoffrey of Monmouth and Thomas Malory. For instance, in the original myth, it is Arthur who builds Camelot, whereas in this series it pre-dates Arthur's father Uther. Another key difference is that in the television series, Arthur and Merlin are of approximately the same age, whereas in traditional myth, Merlin is much older, and acts as Arthur's tutor. This kind of relationship is played out between Gaius and Merlin. Morgana, normally shown as an evil sorceress, is here a kind and caring woman.
Other characters from Arthurian legend have appeared. Lancelot was portrayed as a commoner who longed to become a knight. Mordred has been shown as a young Druid boy who formed a bond with Morgana (in some legends Mordred's mother) and who was prophesied by the Great Dragon to be the cause of death of Arthur (in the legend this occurred at the Battle of Camlann). Mordred and the Great Dragon referred to Merlin by his Druidic name, Emrys (the Welsh form of Ambrosius; Ambrosius Aurelianus was a historical figure whom Geoffrey of Monmouth partially merged with Merlin). Geoffrey of Monmouth himself has appeared as the court genealogist.
Episode guide
There are 13 episodes in the first series.
Broadcast
In April 2008, American broadcast rights were purchased by NBC.[8] The distributor, FremantleMedia Enterprises, also sold broadcast rights to CTV in Canada, Network Ten in Australia,[9][10][11], RTL in Germany, Canal+ in France, M-Net in South Africa, and MICO in Japan.[12] In Italy, Italia 1 began broadcasting the series on Monday 15 December 2008 at 21:10.[12] While in Malaysia, TV3 airs this series every Sunday, 9.00 pm, starting from the 25 January 2009. In Norway, TV2 began airing the series 18 January 2009 every Sunday at 8:00 pm. Merlin is also aired in the Swedish public broadcasting context on Sundays at 6.45 pm as well as on demand through the web.
| Country | TV Network(s) | Series Premiere | Weekly Schedule (local time) |
|---|---|---|---|
 Italy |
Italia 1 | 15 December 2008 | Tuesdays, 10:10 pm |
 Malaysia |
Hallmark Channel | 1 March 2009 | Tuesdays, 9:00 pm |
 Netherlands |
Nederland 3 | 28 March 2009 | Saturdays, 7:20 pm |
 Norway |
TV2 | 18 January 2009 | Sundays, 8:00 pm |
 Poland |
Polsat | 7 March 2009 | Saturdays, 5:15 pm |
 Sweden |
SVT1 SVT2 (replays) |
18 January 2009 |
Sundays, 6:45 pm Mondays, 10:30 pm |
 United Kingdom |
BBC One | 20 September 2008 | Saturdays, 7:30 pm |
 United States |
NBC | 21 June 2009 | Sundays, 8:00 pm |
Ratings
The series première drew an overnight average of 6.65m (30%) viewers in the 19:30 slot (and a final consolidated figure of 7.15 million) despite being scheduled against popular ITV series The X Factor.[13] The series as a whole had an average of 6.32 million viewers,[14] which is fewer than Doctor Who attracted during its first series, and slightly more than those received by Robin Hood.[15] Merlin was the fifth most watched programme on BBC iPlayer in 2008.[16]
Weekly ratings
| # | Episode | UK Air Date | Timeslot | Viewers (millions)[17] | Audience share in timeslot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Dragon's Call" | 20 September 2008 | 19:30 | 7.15 | 30.0% |
| 2 | "Valiant" | 27 September 2008 | 18:00 | 5.40 | 30.6% |
| 3 | "The Mark of Nimueh" | 4 October 2008 | 18:00 | 6.30 | 28.9% |
| 4 | "The Poisoned Chalice" | 11 October 2008 | 19:05 | 6.48 | 25.6% |
| 5 | "Lancelot" | 18 October 2008 | 17:55 | 5.37 | 27.1% |
| 6 | "A Remedy to Cure All Ills" | 25 October 2008 | 17:50 | 6.00 | 28.6% |
| 7 | "The Gates of Avalon" | 1 November 2008 | 19:30 | 6.45 | 22.9% |
| 8 | "The Beginning of the End" | 8 November 2008 | 19:20 | 6.25 | 23.1% |
| 9 | "Excalibur" | 15 November 2008 | 19:20 | 6.47 | 24.4% |
| 10 | "The Moment of Truth" | 22 November 2008 | 19:25 | 7.03 | 25.6% |
| 11 | "The Labyrinth of Gedref" | 29 November 2008 | 19:35 | 6.71 | 23.0% |
| 12 | "To Kill the King" | 6 December 2008 | 19:25 | 6.31 | 23.1% |
| 13 | "Le Morte d'Arthur" | 13 December 2008 | 19:10 | 6.27 | 22.2% |
| CiN | "Merlin in Need" | 14 November 2008 | 19:00 - 19:30 |
References
- ^ a b "Merlin's Secrets Revealed" (Press release). BBC Press Office. 2008-07-23. Retrieved 2008-07-23.
- ^ "More magical adventures for Merlin". Press Association. 2008-12-12. Retrieved 2008-12-12.
- ^ Merlin Renewed
- ^ a b c d e Sweeney, Mark (2008-08-29). "Merlin: BBC cues up TV and cinema ads". guardian.co.uk. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 2008-08-30.
- ^ a b Deans, Jason (2006-12-07). "BBC1 seeks magic touch for Merlin drama". guardian.co.uk. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 2008-08-30.
- ^ "Richard Wilson and Anthony Head lead cast in Merlin, a fantasy drama for BBC One" (Press release). BBC Press Office. 2008-03-17. Retrieved 2008-04-04.
- ^ "Hit fantasy Merlin is recommissioned for BBC One". bbc.co.uk. 2008-12-13. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
- ^ Holmwood, Leigh (2008-04-03). "NBC buys BBC family drama Merlin". guardian.co.uk. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 2008-04-04.
- ^ "CTV secures Canadian broadcast rights to 'Merlin'". CTV. 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2008-10-26.
- ^ Hurrell, Will (2008-08-07). "BBC's Merlin heading Down Under". Broadcast Now. Retrieved 2008-09-13.
- ^ "Merlin casts spell over TEN".
- ^ a b Clarke, Steve (2008-12-15). "'Merlin' heads into second series". Variety. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
- ^ Wilkes, Neil (2008-09-21). "'Merlin' pulls in 6.6 million". Digital Spy. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
- ^ Exact figure: 6.32230769230769, calculated from BARB figures which can be found here
- ^ Doctor Who: Series One averaged 7.95 million viewers, Robin Hood averaged 6.19 (Series 1) and 5.83 (Series 2), calculated from BARB figures which can be found here
- ^ "BBC releases list of 10 most viewed shows to mark iPlayer's first birthday". Sam Nichols. The Guardian. 12-12-2008.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Weekly Viewing Summary (see relevant week)". BARB.
