Miniseries adaptation of Cornwell's The Last Kingdom

[Dave_LF]

BBC, Carnival Producing Viking Drama ‘The Last Kingdom’

The Saxon Tales at Wikipedia.

I was pleased to learn about this this morning. I like these books quite a lot on their own merits, and their setting in Anglo-Saxon England gives them a sort of bonus transitive intersection with Tolkien. It's unclear exactly how much of the (currently) 8-book series the adaptation will cover. Cornwell states on his website that he believes it's just the first one (you'll have to scroll to the July 17, 2014 Q&A since there's no way to link to a particular one), but he is also quoted in the Wikipedia article linked above as:

I don’t know how the chapter I’m writing now will end, let alone the book, and the series? No idea! I suspect there will be a few more; I just heard that BBC Television have commissioned a series that will follow Uhtred’s escapades. The company that makes Downton Abbey will make the programs, which is wonderful, and I’ll need to keep them supplied with stories (I hope). So? Six more? Eight more? I just don’t know.

The comparison with Game of Thrones, while inevitable, is off-base in my opinion since The Saxon Tales are strictly historical fiction without even a whiff of fantasy; but sure, it has swords and stuff.

As always, adaptation can go very well or very badly, but I'm happy for the opportunity to find out which it will be.

[Frelga]

I lost my confidence in BBC after seeing the first episode of the Musketeers. As a story, it was a mess, and as an adaptation it was butchery of story and character. I hope this one goes better.

[Passdagas the Brown]

Excited about this, as I very much enjoy Cornwell (both his Saxon and Briton stories). Of course they could totally butcher it, but I feel that the BBC will be very careful not to with these. Cornwell is pretty popular in the UK, and audiences will be prepared to be critical.

[Anduril]

Pretty good. They condensed Uhtred's childhood and adolescence among the Danes too much so his loyalty and identity conflicts never feel quite right. Due to budget restraints, the battles are all kind of small or cut short except for two big ones. The costumes, weapons armor don't look right (square Saxon shields) and a shield-wall is depicted more like a testudo. But the actors are good and they got Cornwell's tone down.

Young Odda was in Force Awakens as the Irish(?) smuggler.