Calling all fellow anglophiles. Keep calm and tune in tonight for a pair of queens.
Season 2 of the marvelous Victoria debuts at 8 p.m. today on AETN. It promises to be even better than the first season.
Jenna Coleman (Doctor Who) brings her spunky sense of fun to the role of a young Queen Victoria who wants it all -- romance, power, personal freedom and an heir.
Tom Hughes (Dancing on the Edge) reprises his role as the queen's dashing consort, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.
Fans of the series well know that this is not the stodgy, matronly, empirical Victoria of her later years peering out from the history books with her bulging eyes. This is a frisky, feisty young woman with a fiery temper. Purists, however, claim that Coleman is simply too comely to portray Victoria.
Coleman certainly is height appropriate. Victoria stood 5 feet tall in her stockings; the 31-year-old Coleman is 5-foot-2.
Too striking? English diarist Charles Greville (1794-1865) described the young Queen Victoria as "a short, vulgar-looking child." Oh, snap. Well, this is television and certain telegenic license has been allowed.
About Victoria's adored Albert, Greville wrote, "While she has the title, he is really discharging the functions of the sovereign. He is king to all intents and purposes."
Victoria, who inherited the throne at age 18, reigned from 1837 until 1901. She married Albert, her first cousin, in 1840. Before he died in 1861, they had nine (!) children, although it is well known that she hated being pregnant and thought newborns were ugly.
Trivia: Victoria and Albert's royal brood were (in order of birth) Victoria (1840); Edward (1841); Alice (1843); Alfred (1844); Helena (1846); Louise (1848); Arthur (1850); Leopold (1853); and Beatrice (1857).
Victoria had 37 living great-grandchildren when she died.
In tonight's special two-hour premiere, "A Soldier's Daughter" and "The Green-Eyed Monster," the action picks up in early 1841, six weeks after the birth of baby Vicky. Victoria is anxious to get back to the business of the crown, especially riding and dancing.
"What this country needs is a queen," she snaps, "not a brood mare."
Meanwhile, Albert attempts to protect Victoria from the increasingly desperate news concerning the war in Afghanistan. And Victoria is frazzled to discover that she is once again with child. And the Irish potato famine has begun to take a toll.
Add to all that Albert's growing friendship with mathematician Ada Lovelace (the only legitimate child of Lord Byron) and you have the makings of salacious royal gossip and intrigue.
Joining the cast in the new season is the inimitable Dame Diana Rigg (Game of Thrones), who plays the Duchess of Buccleuch, the court's new Mistress of the Robes.
Rufus Sewell returns as the brooding and enigmatic Lord Melbourne, Victoria's one-time mentor.
A ratings success (16.2 million viewers last season), Victoria has already been picked up for a third season.
• Rule Britannia. Victoria reigned 63 years, seven months and two days, which made her the longest-reigning queen in world history until her great-great-granddaughter Elizabeth II came along. Elizabeth set the record on Sept. 9, 2015.
Smithsonian Channel celebrates the forthcoming 65th anniversary of the June 2, 1953, coronation with a special airing at 7 p.m. today. The Coronation will be broadcast across three continents and details the event that was watched by millions of people across the globe.
Elizabeth, who was 27 at the time, shares memories of the ceremony. The special also features eyewitness accounts of those who participated in the ceremony, as well as an intimate look at the Crown Jewels, part of the Royal Collection, which consists of 140 items and contains 23,000 precious stones.
• Returning shows. The CBS Monday lineup returns from winter hiatus with brand-spanking new episodes. Here they are in order:
Kevin Can Wait, 7 p.m.; Man With a Plan, 7:30 p.m.; Superior Donuts, 8 p.m.; 9JKL, 8:30 p.m.; and Scorpion, 9 p.m.
In addition, Supergirl returns to The CW with new episodes at 7 p.m. Monday.
The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email:
mstorey@arkansasonline.com
Style on 01/14/2018