Reply
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,889
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

I watched it since it followed a quite lurid finale of Sherlock. To me, I felt like I was watching a soap opera and, according to what I read, it seems that Victoria is more fiction than fact. That is an insult to the viewing audience.  I may not watch subsequent episodes. I don't like productions that purport to be representations of history but take liberties with the truth.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 36,050
Registered: ‎08-19-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

It's my belief they do this in order to keep the attention span of people they know aren't going to read books on the subject.

 

They have to add to, detract from, etc. in order to keep people watching.

Most people don't want to read dry books on wars, politics, so, they take poetic license with the facts. LOL

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,110
Registered: ‎03-12-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

@SharkE, I know you read the book, does the downstairs part have any relevance or is it just made up?  That's the only part I didn't like.  Selling her gloves and all that, who cares.  I know her wedding gown changed fashion forever but I don't need to know the seamstresses.

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,217
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

I watched the first hour then turned to watch something else.  I didn't love it but will watch if nothing else is on. 

 

I'm kind of over the subject of Queen V. anyway.  There was a good movie about Queen V. called Young Victoria (I still see it on cable channels occasionally) that was very enjoyable.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 36,050
Registered: ‎08-19-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

Nope, didn't read the Goodwin book. Fiction, I don't read fiction.

 

Royalty, to this day, is not known for their generosity, so, I would guess that is true.   Guess they thought to supplement their income they would 'regift'

LOL and make some extra money.

 

Johnny Mathis had to work for free when he sung at one of Elizabeth's parties. He admitted they gave him the best of accommodations and I guess paid for his plane fare, etc. but, money, nope, it's considered an honor to be asked and that's what you will accept. LOL

Honored Contributor
Posts: 36,050
Registered: ‎08-19-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

Some other facts that people may not know about her and her reign.

Her and Albert started the Christmas tree thing and by the time she had her 9th and last child, Beatrice, she was given chlorform for the birth.

Before she did this women were never given any pain killers the Dr.'s thought it was against "God's will".    As usual , the men , always told the women what they could and couldn't do .

 

I venture to say if the men had to have all the kids and no birth control was available like today there would had been considerably less kids born.

Thanks to her even the poor women could have chloroform.

 

Where I lose opinion on her is how she totally shut down after he died.

Wouldn't change his room, made everybody wear black for yrs. wouldn't do anything out in public till it looked like people was going to ask her to step down.  She wouldn't let her eldest son who would be KIng have any responsibility , so, he naturally wandered off the path into getting into trouble.  She blamed him for the death of her husband Prince Albert.

 

She didn't want to give Albert to much to do she guarded stuff all the time till he had to go out and make himself useful.

 

Unfortunately, Beatrice burned a lot of her diaries and papers after she died ! She was Victoria's private sec. who she tried to keep home and never allowed her to marry, but, eventually, she let her get married , but, they had to agree to stay on the grounds, or close by.

Super Contributor
Posts: 449
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?


@Sooner wrote:

Boring.  Won't be tuning in again.  I found the cast rather unwatchable as well.


 

 

I have to agree with you. 

 

I SO wanted to like this series but the lead actress that plays Victoria is just terrible!!  She really couldn't act her way out of a paper bag.  I can't envision myself watching the entire series with that bad acting.

 

Also, I hated that the computer graphics for many scenes was so obvious which really detracted from this episode.

 

Lastly, they crammed so much into this first episode that situations weren't given the time to develop.  I felt like I was watching diary entries vs. development of a story.

 

 

 

 

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,789
Registered: ‎06-26-2014

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

Liked it but didn't love it as much as I have other Masterpiece programs.

 

I think the acting is fine but the editing is too much. They switch to another angle every   2- 4 seconds or so, thus I do not feel like we get to savor the important moments such as when she was crowned Queen. I didn't see any need to switch between that event and the woman who was being examed; total distraction.

 

And as @chi5925 already mentioned, I too do not like all the CGI inserts, especially the crowd scenes.

 

I think back to my favorite - I, Claudius - where the important events were filmed in a way that we could watch them unfold. Victoria is so far missing that mark for me.

But I will continue to watch.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 36,050
Registered: ‎08-19-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

You got my vote on I, Claudius. The absolute best program there ever was.

I bought it. I read yrs. ago where Farrah Fawcett Majors and Ryan O'Neil said the same thing.  Not a bad performance in the cast.

 

If I had to pick the best it would be the woman who played Livia. Geez ! she was evil and could be funny, also.

 

"Don't eat the figs".

 

 

Smiley LOL

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,920
Registered: ‎03-12-2010

Re: Is anyone watching Victoria on PBS?

[ Edited ]

@PinkyPetunia wrote:

I watched the first hour then turned to watch something else.  I didn't love it but will watch if nothing else is on. 

 

I'm kind of over the subject of Queen V. anyway.  There was a good movie about Queen V. called Young Victoria (I still see it on cable channels occasionally) that was very enjoyable.


That Emily Blunt movie is so much better than this silly series.  They really lost me when the "villains" were criticizing Vic. because RATS were covering her birthday cake and she screamed.  What in the "yell" was she supposed to do?  A normal person would have done more than scream at that horror   The Crown is so divine compared to this.  Disappointed....I don't think I will watch any more.  This is worse than Mr. Selfridge.