The Churchills

Starring:Alan Brien, Josip Broz Tito, Sarah Churchill, David Fraser, Stanley Baldwin, Bill Deedes, Erwin Rommel, Roy Foster (III), David Cannadine, Captain Cruickshank, Diana Mosley (II), Celia Sandys, John S.D. Eisenhower, Lord Sherfield, Lord Halifax, Randolph Churchill, Peregrine Churchill, Steven Runciman, Bernard L. Montgomery, Michael Foot
Director: Greg Lanning
Studio: Wgbh Boston
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Description
An astounding portrait of one of history's most important families. They overcame doubters with powerful persuasion. They overthrew enemies with ruthless determination. They overjoyed the public with courageous leadership. The Churchillsregally descended from the first Duke of Marlboroughblended aristocratic privilege with ceaseless ambition to ultimately bring glory to their nation and their name.

While some called the Churchills vulgarians and opportunists, others hailed their foresight and intelligence. But, no matter how great their feats, the family's public profile would exact a private price.

Spanning two centuries and three generations, this definitive three-part documentary traces the historic lives of one of England's most celebrated families. From Lord Randolph Churchill's abrasive political beginnings and son Winston's impact on two world wars, to the progeny who earned their own honor and shame, a vivid Churchill family portrait is brought to life. Through Sir Winston Churchill's own letters and memoirs, as well as the memories of family members, close friends, political foes, and historians, The Churchills recounts the public and private lives of a family blessed with privilege, driven by ambition, and, at times, cursed by fate.

Special DVD features include: a link to the American Experience Web site; closed captions; and video descriptions.

Amazon.com

PBS's Masterpiece Theatre began business in 1971 with the American premiere of an engrossing, 12-part BBC series, The First Churchills, inspired by Sir Winston Churchill's biographical writings about 17th-century ancestors John Churchill and Sarah Jennings. Besides being a painless way to learn a few things about the revolving-door monarchy of the House of Stuart, The First Churchills is written with a stately air though its story flows like a steady stream of fresh gossip. A viewer needn't feel guilty about being entertained by intrigues at the royal court while listening to screenwriter's Donald Wilson's elegant and uplifting dialogue, rich in civility and courtly asides.

John Neville (The Adventures of Baron Munchausen) and Susan Hampshire (lauded for her earlier performance in The Forsyte Saga, a British series that helped launch public television in America) play John and Sarah, who meet in the court of Charles II (James Villiers) and defy family and friends by marrying for love instead of family fortune. (Neither has any money.) John, a military officer who built much of Charles's army and never lost a battle, and Susan, an aide and confidante to the Duchess of York, are trusted figures in the king's circle. But as with everyone around them, they are jostled by political and religious forces following the death of Charles, including anti-Catholic sentiments that drive the king's stubborn successor, James II (John Westbrook), to Ireland and see the latter replaced on the throne by William, Prince of Orange (Alan Rowe), and his vindictive wife (and James's daughter), Mary (Lisa Daniely). With a European war raging and British soldiers and resources mishandled by amateurs, a restless John is sidelined and even briefly arrested due to royal paranoia; meanwhile, Sarah's close friendship to the future Queen Anne (Margaret Tyzack) yields numerous dramas on its own. The First Churchills is really about a tumultuous period in English history which saw strains between Parliament, the citizenry, and the monarchy come to a head, several times over. The story of John and Sarah's survival and deep regard for one another offers a perfect, reassuring line to follow through all the epochal raucousness. Neville and Hampshire bask in their characters' good-humored intimacy and level-headedness while madness whirls all around. --Tom Keogh

Description

Based on Sir Winston Churchill's biography of his ancestors, the first Duke and Duchess of Marlborough, this classic BBC miniseries is a tender love story played out amid the intrigues of the 17th-century English court.

At a time when most marriages were made for money and position, Sarah Jennings and John Churchill married for love. And their love lasted throughout their long lives spent at the epicenter of political power in England. He was a military genius who never lost a battle. She was the intimate friend of a princess who later became queen. This addictive drama follows them from their budding romance in the bawdy court of King Charles II through five decades and five monarchs from the tumultuous House of Stuart.

The popularity of The First Churchills helped establish Masterpiece Theatre as a venue for the best of British drama. Starring John Neville (The Adventures of Baron Munchausen) as John Churchill with Susan Hampshire (Monarch of the Glen, The Pallisers) in an Emmy®-winning performance as the tempestuous Sarah.

DVD SPECIAL FEATURES INCLUDE an exclusive interview with Susan Hampshire, photo gallery, cast filmographies, and full-color insert with a sampling of the real love letters of Sarah and John Churchill, glossary of historical figures and terms, and House of Stuart family tree.

Customer Reviews:

Wigzapalooza.......2007-04-01

This miniseries, detailing the rise of the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough and the end of the House of Stuart, was the maiden broadcast of "Masterpiece Theatre"in the United States, and was to set a pattern for many great series to follow. As such series as "The Pallisers" and "I, Claudius" would do after it, the series is anchored by its title characters but really finds its greatest interest in those who surround them: here, a series of Stuart Kings, from Charles II to James II to William III and Mary II to Anne, with the accession of George of Hanover ending the story. The budget isn't quite what viewers of later series would come to expect, and so crowd scenes are hard to manage: thus the battles of Blenheim and Oudenarde and Malplaquet, and the Duke of Monmouth's rebellion, are done pretty much on the cheap. Much more money was lavished on the costumes and perukes, which are quite in abundance, and get more and more spectacular: William III is dwarfed by his enormous periwig, and Mary II looks like a ship in full sail with her collection of giant lace mantillas and silk bustles.

The miniseries doesn't come with many extras, but there is an interesting interview with Sarah Hampshire who famously plays Sarah Churchill: in the interview, Hapshire reveals she did not get along very well with John Neville (who plays her husband), and that he and many of the other actors in the show did not take the miniseries very seriously. She did get the best revenge of living well by winning an Emmy for the role, as well as the last word here, though unfortunately this is not one of her better parts (she is simply too likeable to be a fearsome termagent). Because this was base don Winston Churchill's memoirs of his ancestors, the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough are pretty much whitewashed: in this version, neither ever ask for any money, but just keep getting showered with guineas and gifts by Anne Stuart. The Duke's waverings of loyalty are never self-serving, but always to teach the monarch in power a good lesson, and never amount to much danger for the kings or queens anyway, though the bad ones always take it for ill. Thus the screenplay remakes Mary II, the "faultless queen," into something of a wicked witch, which is not very historically accurate but great fun for Lisa Daniely, who plays her with real zest. The best performers (and the ones who make this really worth seeing) are John Westbrook and Sheila Gish, who make something very complex and moving out of James II and his queen Mary of Modena, and above all the great Margaret Tyzack as the tortured and much wronged Queen Anne. There's a scene fairly early in the series when the well-meaning Anne tries to comfort her distressed pregnant stepmother that is marvelously accomplished by Tyzack and Gish, and this and a few other choice scenes hit just the right note of intrigue and ambiguity for the adaptor seems to aim. But others lose focus and simply parade names and events... and perukes, lots and lots of perukes.

The BBC later learned to do this sort of thing much better.......2007-02-05

I have a feeling that this series creaked and clunked a bit even when it was first shown. The production values are on the cheap (most of the money seemingly went into wigs), and my experience with the marvelous original 'Forsyte Saga', which was filmed in black and white, bears out my hypothesis that 'cheap', shows itself worse in color than in b & w. In most cases the performances are excellent, especially Susan Hampshire who deservedly won an Emmy for this. John Neville is okay, the acting of James Villiers as Charles II is a bit over the top but keeps the interest going. Without Susan I think the series would have too dull. There is a feature on the DVD with a recent interview with Susan--she does not have fond memories of making this series, and though she tries to be discreet, she clearly had little respect or affection for her male co-star. Susan tells us that, like the Forsyte Saga, each episode was filmed as a play, with no cuts in the tape between scenes--when one character exits, the others carry on, or move to another set, or the camera simply shifts the focus, while the exited actor is backstage changing costumes, in order to return later. This is a period of English history that many people, especially in the USA, know little about, and I was glad to refresh my memory about how important the Catholic vs Protestant succession to the throne, was at that time. I can't give this a rave, but I am far from sorry to have seen it again after many many years. Brava Susan.

The First Churchills.......2006-04-13

While watching the first scene of this mini series, I thought that everything that I'd read about The First Churchills was complete rubbish, and I felt inclined to stop watching it right then and there. But I didn't do so, and it wasn't long before my opinion of the series had changed completely--so much so that I watched all twelve episodes in just three days.

While the story centres on John Churchill, the 1st duke of Marlborough, one of the greatest military leaders in British history, and his politically astute wife, Sarah Jennings, The First Churchills is really a survey of British history from the end of the reign of Charles II to the arrival of George I.

There not much that is bad that can be said about the series. The set design is not exactly on par with what most of us expect these days, and the outdoor scenes are not all that convincing, but this is more than made up for by the superb acting of all the main characters, excellent costume design and lively dialogue.

Definitely worth watching.

A Series for History Lovers.......2005-06-25

As Masterpiece Theater's launching series, "The First Churchills" was a landmark for TV viewers desiring intelligent, historically accurate stories. Masterpiece Theater continues as a feeding station for those starved viewers whose choices prior to this were among westerns and unpalatable sitcoms.
So much English history flies by in "The First Churchills" that the viewer may find it useful, as I did, to have background reference material that keeps the characters sorted out.
Winston Churchill reveals his ancestors with truth, tempermental warts and all. The duchess is quick tempered and self-serving even when it causes her husband difficulty with the queen. She defies his wishes as she did her parents' and she pays dearly.
Susan Hampshire won an Emmy for her role, yet I felt uncomfortable with her somewhat overly-strident performance. John Neville, as her husband, played a tough general loyal to kings and queens, and a pussycat at home tolerating her frequent table-pounding. As much as this series is considered a love story, there is not much chemistry between the two lovers. The scenes showing passionate reunions and reconciliations between the two seemed forced and embarassing. Yet that minor flaw may not be noticable to others. It could also be because I had just viewed "The Last KIng", based on the same era, which was a lively romp with decidedly passionate scenes strewn throughout. Regardless, "The First Churchills" is first-rate!

The Best.......2005-06-15

You know it's good when the now-antiquated cinematics fall by the wayside to reveal a wonderfully acted drama portraying fascinating people. Susan Hampshire is the penultimate; that she wasn't even the first choice for the role of Sarah Churchill makes her performance even more fabulous. It is worth the price of admission simply to listen to the actors in this series.

Average customer rating:

The Churchills
Starring: Alan Brien , Sarah Churchill , David Fraser , Bill Deedes , and Roy Foster (III)
Director: Greg Lanning
Manufacturer: Wgbh Boston
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Winston Churchill
The Gathering Storm
Sir Winston Churchill: War Years
Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years 1929 - 1939
The First Churchills

ASIN: B0000B1OAK
Release Date: 2003-10-07

Description

An astounding portrait of one of history's most important families. They overcame doubters with powerful persuasion. They overthrew enemies with ruthless determination. They overjoyed the public with courageous leadership. The Churchills—regally descended from the first Duke of Marlborough—blended aristocratic privilege with ceaseless ambition to ultimately bring glory to their nation and their name.

Special DVD features include: a link to the American Experience Web site; closed captions; and video descriptions.

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