01x01 - Boleyns For The Win

[bunniefuu]

[dramatic string chords play]

May I?

[both breathe heavily]

[woman] Rules are meant to be broken.

Strap in, boys.

[woman] But love has no rules.

Who do you think you are?

I love you, Anne.

It's not enough.

That's not enough for Anne Boleyn.

Anne will go on

to change the whole of history.

Did he actually say

he was going to marry you?

'Course!

More or less.

She is an outspoken woman

One word from me,

and Henry will have your head for this.

I wouldn't aim any higher if I were you.

in an age that doesn't really like women.

We have brought the people closer to God

than they ever have been!

Enough!

Anne's ideas are very dangerous indeed.

Anne Boleyn, how do you plead?

Not guilty.

Ah

Help.

Help!

[dramatic drumbeats pound]

[Anne screams]

[man] He says it's all over.

Like hell it is.

[suspenseful music plays]

[distant bell rings]

[birds caw]

[man] It's cold in here. More wine?

Thank you for agreeing

to talk to me again, Anne.

Where shall we begin?

The last time we spoke,

I believe you were telling me

about your time at Amboise.

[chuckles softly]

I was sent to France

not to find a husband, but to find myself.

What really excited me was the buzz,

the creative energy,

the rebellion, the debate.

[birds sing]

[piano plays over soft trap beat]

[woman] When Anne Boleyn first arrives

in the French court,

she's just a teenager,

and she's completely unlike

most other women at the time.

Thanks. Tighter.

[chuckles lightly]

Anne.

You really should get out more.

It's party central here,

and all you do is sit and read.

- [Anne squeals]

- [both laugh]

[woman] Her family have given her

this exceptional education.

She's very precocious.

She's an independent thinker,

quite bookish,

with opinions of her own,

and she's not afraid to express them.

Oh, King Francis has such good taste.

Being a married man's mistress

is like being in the midst of flames

without getting burned.

I don't know what you're talking about.

Trust me.

Some things you can't learn from books.

Come on.

[woman] Mary Boleyn, Anne's sister,

is much more interested

in the immediate pleasures

and the immediate satisfactions of things,

whereas Anne,

she holds out for something more.

["Buss It" by Helena plays]

Cartier frames

And they match with the fit ♪

Always on go a hunnid percent ♪

If your man wanna roll

He gon' hop in the Benz ♪

He need a straw, drink up the mess ♪

Louis Vuitton, designer my step ♪

I turn him on

With the flick of the wrist ♪

King Francis,

ruler of France,

patron of the arts,

and banging my sister.

Don't get comfy, I got options ♪

My status, poppin' ♪

Got too many watchin' ♪

Independent, I'm a boss ♪

Check me out, I'm gorgeous ♪

Big bands tell that

Go head and buss it ♪

Sex and politics go hand-in-hand.

At the French court,

it is a hotbed of sexual licentiousness.

For young women like Anne and Mary Boleyn,

it's wild, it's exciting, it's chaotic,

but if you're not careful,

it's a little bit dangerous.

Gettin' wild

Gettin' wild, gettin' wild ♪

["Getting Wild feat. Scherazade"

by DJ Hertz plays]

I wanna, really wanna risk it ♪

Wanna finger the ♪

[sighs]

Oh, you do it like I love you wild ♪

Gettin' wild ♪

Want somebody gettin' wild ♪

Gettin' wild, gettin' wild ♪

[sighs]

Everywhere I looked,

women were getting screwed.

Cheating husbands,

controlling husbands,

gambling husbands,

or be a mistress,

screwed with no husband.

["Deep In Love" by 5 Alarm plays]

[Mary laughs]

[woman] Would you take a mistress

if you were king?

Wife for optics and heirs. Mistresses for

Everything else.

[both chuckle]

Marguerite d'Angoulême,

the beating heart

of the intellectual revolution.

A geek-chic goddess.

[Prof. Borman] Marguerite of Angoulême

is the sister

of Francis I, King of France.

Marguerite has

a massive influence on Anne,

encouraging her to embrace

her inner feminist.

She also radicalizes Anne,

encouraging her to question

the Catholic religion,

introducing these quite extreme new ideas,

which are actually incredibly dangerous.

[Prof. Lipscomb] What she is interested in

is this movement

towards reforming the Church.

That means getting rid of all the ways

in which the Church is grabbing money

from innocent people

and promising them things

that they cannot deliver.

Religious reform might sound boring today,

but at the time, it's about making sure

that people have freedom

to think for themselves.

Have the courage

to forge your own path in life.

Remember who you are

and who you could be.

[Anne] Mm.

[Anne chuckles]

[percussive beat plays]

[horse neighs]

[Prof. Borman] It's France,

the year is 1520,

and the most extravagant festival

Europe has ever witnessed is underway.

Known as the Field of Cloth of Gold,

this is a political summit

between England and France,

who have been at w*r on and off

for many years.

It cost nearly $20 million,

and it would have been like

Woodstock on steroids.

[Prof. Borman]

This isn't just a state occasion though.

It's an incredibly hedonistic party.

No, no, this is wrong. Gauche, ugly. Go!

My dad, Thomas Boleyn, running the show.

Never share control with a Boleyn.

The Boleyns aren't

from ancient aristocracy.

They're social climbers,

they're well connected,

and they are truly on the rise

in the court of Henry VIII.

Anne, my sweet Anne.

[man] We've run out of wine.

We need some wine for the King of England!

[Prof. Borman] Henry VIII

has been King of England for 11 years,

and he's at the very height of his powers.

Henry is very much an alpha male.

He likes fighting and has a wild temper.

["Célavie" by Sainte Fortune plays]

Yeah ♪

- [man] Well played, Your Majesty.

- [Henry] Come on.

[Prof. Borman] Francis,

the first king of France,

is Henry's fiercest rival,

and each one wants to dominate the other.

[woman] England and France have been

historical enemies for centuries.

On top of this, Francis has

more of everything than Henry has.

He has more wealth.

He has more land.

He has more mistresses.

[spectators chuckle]

[cheering]

[scattered applause]

[man] Come on, get him, sire. Yes!

It's ridiculous.

It's like watching two pups play fight.

Only slightly less adorable.

Really?

- Oh.

- [chuckles]

[Anne chuckles]

[applause]

What was so funny?

Forgive me, Your Majesty.

To mock a king is treason.

And to duel when drunk is foolish.

Who are you?

I'm Anne Boleyn.

Anne Boleyn.

[gentle piano music plays]

Did I say you could go?

[clears throat] We should go.

I kept playing that moment

over and over again in my head.

The way he looked at me.

Like he wanted

to kiss or k*ll me. [chuckles]

I didn't see Henry again

for another few years

until I was back in England.

[court announcer] King Henry VIII

and Queen Katherine of Aragon.

[Anne] But my sister being my sister,

she got together with Henry first.

Mary does love a dalliance with a king,

a married king.

My dad had big plans

to marry me off to my cousin.

So, Cousin James, now you're back,

you'll be wanting to set up home.

w*r was brutal.

It's good to be back.

I need to get myself settled.

Sooner rather than later, I imagine.

He'll be away on tour

most of the time, sis.

You'll grow to love him.

My little brother.

My partner in crime

and fellow freethinker, George.

Of course, since the injury,

I can't do much fighting.

I'm stuck at home all the time. [chortles]

Full pension though.

The King's finally decided

to crack down

on those religious nutjobs though, eh?

Four lads caught

reading the Bible in English.

Latin too hard for them, is it?

Burn them all, I say.

Oh, so people

who aren't rich enough to learn Latin

deserve to be burned, do they?

Well, some people believe

everybody has the right to read the Bible.

- Why would it not be written in English?

- What Anne means

Boleyn, your daughter's a heretic.

You have to understand

that at this time, in London,

it's ill*gal to have a Bible in English.

[Prof. Lipscomb] This is heresy.

I mean, you can't just reinvent religion.

God told us to read the Bible in Latin.

To say otherwise is total insanity.

Henry Percy.

Lust at first sight.

["Highway To Nowhere (Instrumental)

by Paul J. Borg plays]

[Prof. Borman] Anne shows no enthusiasm

for her father's choice, James Butler,

because she's already fallen in love

with a man called Henry Percy.

Henry Percy is very close in age to Anne,

but he's from one

of the highest-ranking families

in the whole of England.

He's way above Anne in status.

[Anne] Oh! [chuckles]

Aren't you glad

I rescued you from that guy?

Well, I don't need rescuing from anyone,

Mr. Percy,

but if you want to call yourself

my knight in shining armor, then you can.

It would be my honor.

[Anne gasps]

[suspenseful music plays]

in the street,

and I thought I recognized him.

Cardinal Wolsey,

King Henry's work wife

and court super snitcher.

[Prof. Borman] Cardinal Wolsey is

King Henry's right-hand man and confidant,

and he is a supreme political operator,

incredibly ruthless.

Anne's pursuit of Percy

is highly problematic.

His marriage plans

have already been laid out by his family

and by Cardinal Wolsey.

Wolsey has big plans for Henry Percy.

He is going to propose a fantastic match,

and it's going to benefit

different families,

and it's going to be

a feather in the cap for Wolsey as well.

The last thing he wants is

someone like Anne Boleyn walking in

and muddying the waters.

So Wolsey makes it his business

to get Anne out of the picture.

Percy is sent away from court,

much against Anne's wishes,

and from that moment on,

she sees Wolsey as enemy number one.

I don't trust him one bit.

[mellow hip-hop beat plays]

[Thomas] Making a mockery

of the Boleyn name

in front of the entire court.

- What were you thinking?

- No one has any respect for my privacy.

Don't be naive, Anne.

Your love life was public

from the moment you were born.

Until I can work out what to do with you,

you remain here.

So what, I'm grounded?

What's more important

than being with the one that you love?

Duty.

Anne falls in love just like we do today,

but the difference is

she doesn't get to choose her husband.

[Dr. Mackay] It's Thomas Boleyn's fault

that he has actually raised

such a headstrong and willful daughter

and certainly someone

who wants to negotiate her own destiny.

That is entirely at his door.

You can't possibly have read all these.

Well, it's what you read in life

that determines who you are.

Mm, well, like I've always said,

some of the biggest lessons in life

you don't learn from books.

[Prof. Borman] Mary had been

having an affair with Henry

for some time by this point,

and she's pregnant.

Have you told Henry?

He doesn't want to know,

even though he's desperate

for a male heir.

A legitimate one, obviously.

The truth is,

I don't know if it's actually his.

Oh, Mary!

[Prof. Borman] Of course,

if that boy was Henry's,

it would be a b*stard, illegitimate,

and so unable to inherit the throne.

Don't feel sorry for me, Anne.

There's nothing I want more right now

than to be a good mother.

It still feels really wrong

that he's just cut you off like this.

It's an age-old problem.

Men have affairs and can walk away,

whereas women live with the consequences.

But it doesn't make it right.

[scoffs]

When has what's right ever mattered?

[wistful piano music plays]

- [distant stag roars]

- [bird caws]

This.

Oh! [chuckles]

Oh, all dressed up and nowhere to go.

Jane Boleyn, my brother's wife.

Typical sister-in-law.

[door rattles]

Caught her red-handed, Miss Anne.

Stupid, this one.

Can't wait for this.

Actually I lent her the book.

Return it at supper time like we agreed.

Saint Anne.

How dare you.

That kind of book

shouldn't even be in this house.

She's free to choose,

and if I see anything like that again,

you'll be sent packing.

[Prof. Borman] The sorts of books

that Anne is reading

are deeply controversial.

They're going against

the established order,

the established religion.

Anne is very influenced by what

the new generation are starting to think,

that everyone should understand the Bible,

that the body of Christ is not in a wafer,

that everyone can speak to God

on their own terms.

But she can't say any of this out loud.

And even worse, by sharing these ideas,

she's increasing the risk

that someone will betray her

to the authorities.

[tense orchestral music plays]

[laughter]

Family, listen. News just in.

Dad's found me the perfect man.

- [laughter]

- Sadly no.

The King has finally rewarded me

for my obvious loyalty.

Drumroll, please.

[all drum table]

You are looking at

the new Viscount Rochford.

- Ah!

- [Mary laughs]

That sounds so impressive.

- Always happy to hang onto your coattails.

- Yes.

Well, someone's got to progress

your career.

Does that mean I get to go back to court?

- I'll give it some thought.

- And find that perfect man myself.

Don't push it.

I'm sure you'll find

a good match one day, Anne.

Someone who will love and look after you

and take you off my hands.

That's the plan.

[Prof. Borman] So after a year or two

at Hever, Anne returns to court.

She takes back her former position

as lady-in-waiting.

["B (Hydrangea Remix)" by Diagonal plays]

I remember you ♪

Do you remember me? ♪

Oh.

I remember you ♪

You're back.

Do you remember me? ♪

Katherine of Aragon,

King Henry's long-suffering wife.

Spanish, spirited,

commanded an entire army

on horseback while pregnant.

Respect.

[Prof. Borman] Katherine

is the pinnacle of European royalty.

She's the daughter

of the powerful monarchs of Spain.

She's also greatly beloved

of the people of England,

and her marriage to Henry

is one of the greatest political alliances

in Europe.

Sensing hostile vibes.

Wasn't you that banged her husband.

[chuckles softly]

Lady Worcester, AKA Lady W.

My bestie. Knows me better than I do.

[Henry] How dare you bring me this news?

The heretics will fall in line.

The idea that the Bible

should be read in English is outrageous.

It's evil!

Latin is the language of God's word.

The pope, the supreme head of the Church,

commands it.

[Dr. Mackay] Tudor England is Catholic.

Henry VIII is Catholic.

He is deeply pious.

He is the golden poster boy

for English Catholicism,

and he firmly believes

that the Bible should be read in Latin.

These friars are out of control,

deserting God's kingdom

and Christ's faith.

They're They're wallowing in lust

with Luther.

There's a man called William Tyndale

who has translated the New Testament

into English,

and he's on the run

from the King of England.

Heresy!

Heresy is the plague of England,

and I'm not prepared to tolerate it.

I want that book shoved

so far up the friar's backside

that he chokes on his own blasphemy.

[Prof. Lipscomb] The idea

that someone themselves

could read the sacred writing

and make up their own interpretation

rather than having to rely on the Church

to tell them what was right and wrong,

this is dangerous.

What are you waiting for? Get out!

[Prof. Lipscomb] It suggests

the possibility of anarchy,

of people thinking for themselves.

[percussive beat plays]

Mm-mm ♪

AB.

Mm-mm ♪

It's been a while.

I was just a little boy

the last time we met.

Always keen on you though.

I prefer older women. [chuckles]

Sir Thomas Wyatt.

Known for his poetry,

but certainly not his chat-up lines.

I'm two years older than you, Wyatt.

Yes. Well, I

You.

I remember you.

And I remember you, Your Majesty.

Anne Boleyn, isn't it?

[moving piano and cello music plays]

Mm, well

I hope to see more of you

now that you're back at court.

With your shirt on this time presumably.

[percussive beat kicks in]

[Prof. Lipscomb] The thing about Anne is

she is an outspoken woman.

She's feisty

in an age that doesn't really like women

to be that outspoken.

[Dr. McClendon] Life choices for women

are limited in the 16th century.

They can be a wife,

a mistress, a nun, or a spinster.

Anne wants something more.

[bloopy electronic melody plays]

[Wolsey] No chance! [laughs]

May I?

[Wolsey] Not a chance.

Strap in, boys.

["Zone" by Walgrove plays]

- Well played.

- [Henry] Well played.

- Now, one more time.

- That was not beginner's luck.

- Beginner's luck.

- [Anne] No!

- [Thomas] Of course it was.

- I think it probably was.

Yes!

All right.

- Ha-ha-ha!

- [man] Well played, Your Majesty.

Where's my prize?

No prizes in this game.

Oh, I'm the King. I make the rules.

[Henry chuckles]

Mwah!

The real prize.

[emotional piano music plays]

We kept catching each other's eye

in court.

[sighs]

Never intended for anything

to actually happen.

Respectable Anne Boleyn would never,

especially given what had happened

with my sister.

But it was fun though.

[cheering and applause]

[man] Three points!

Beau of Portland!

Henry's whole identity

is based on his masculinity,

and nothing portrays that

more than a joust,

which Henry excels in.

[dramatic electronic music plays]

[horse whinnies]

Nice seats.

Yeah. I'm not a fan of jousting.

Somebody always gets hurt.

[horse whinnies]

I can't watch.

[cheering and applause]

[horse snorts]

What's that about?

"Declare, I dare not."

What's he declaring?

Really?

[Dr. Mackay] "Declare, I dare not."

I mean, it's such an odd

and mysterious message, isn't it,

to be sending to the court

and to be sending to the woman

who's watching you joust,

sort of in her honor?

It's this, "I'm not yet going to say

your name, but you know my heart."

It's a massive signal to everybody.

"Okay, I have a new love interest."

It's a little awkward,

because your wife is sitting right there,

but this is how Henry works.

First time it felt real

was that day at the jousting.

But I didn't want to let myself

get too excited.

I didn't want to let myself believe it.

He does this with all the girls, right?

He did it with Mary. He'd do it with me.

I wasn't special.

[sighs]

But then came the letters.

[gentle piano music plays]

"For over a year now,

I've been struck with the dart of love,

and I'm not yet sure

whether I have a place in your heart."

Well, Henry's got it bad, then?

Clearly not the only one.

- [giggles]

- And he sent me this.

Let's see.

Yeah, and this as well,

and I'm seeing him tonight.

- Ouch!

- Ooh.

- Ooh!

- Oh.

Love is a dangerous game, Anne!

- Uh-oh.

- Hmm?

What do I have to do

to get some attention?

Still not interested, Wyatt.

- Oh! We'd make a great team.

- But you're married. End of.

- So is the King.

- And I'm not his mistress either!

No, no, give it back!

- Uh-uh-uh!

- Give it back!

Doesn't Queen Katherine have one

just like this?

Ugh!

You can come get it later!

[Prof. Borman]

Anne must be shocked and horrified

when Wyatt pulls the necklace

off her neck.

Jewelry is understood

by the whole Tudor court

as being deeply symbolic.

Henry is gifting Anne jewels,

and by doing so,

he's almost marking out his territory.

[playful music plays]

- Oh-h*!

- Very good.

[Wyatt] Well done, well done,

well done, well done.

[Henry sighs] Hmm.

[man] Oh!

Unlucky, sire.

The next game will be mine.

You're the game, by the way.

[somber music plays]

[Wyatt] Actually,

I believe this game is already mine.

[Prof. Lipscomb]

Henry fetishizes virginity.

He cares about Katherine of Aragon

being a virgin when he marries her.

He cares that Anne is a virgin,

because it means

he's the first man to have her.

And so the idea

that Wyatt might have been near her,

it creates the sense

of a little bit of doubt.

And in her first book,

didn't she claim to say that

- Yes.

- He did! Thank you

I didn't give him the necklace.

He stole it.

I need to be able to trust you, Anne.

You trust me?

Well, what about

what you did to my sister?

Mary made it clear

the child may not be mine.

And if I'm not mistaken,

I'm by no means the first king

she's been acquainted with.

Well, with your hot temper

and hatred of heretics,

why should I trust you?

You can't.

[thrilling electronic music plays]

[breathily] Ha, ha-ha, ha-ha, ha ♪

Ha-ha, ha-ha, ha-ha, ha ♪

May I?

Ha-ha, ha-ha, ha, ha-ha ♪

Ha-ha, ha-ha, ha ♪

No.

Don't fight it.

No, for so many reasons.

I can't think of one good reason

not to kiss you.

But that's not what we're talking about,

is it?

I want you.

I know.

This time,

we play by my rules.

[poignant post-rock music plays]

Addicted,

right there in that moment.

But I couldn't do it.

I couldn't let him kiss me.

I had a reputation to consider.

A husband to find, a life to think about.

Ever tried saying no to a man like Henry?

No use, because he won't listen.

[chuckles]

So I decided to walk away.

Go home.

[birds sing]

[ducks quack]

[Henry] I can't stop thinking about you

every second of every day.

Was this your plan?

Retreat to Hever and see me in agony

with how much I miss you?

If that's what you wanted,

it's worked, Anne,

because I would do anything just to spend

a single minute with you right now.

You must feel

this pain of separation the way I do.

We had something.

What possible reason could be big enough

to keep you from my arms?

[Prof. Lipscomb]

We know from Henry's letters

that Anne doesn't always write back to him

when he writes to her.

We don't know

if she is playing a long game here,

if this is strategic,

or actually if this is just a sense

of not knowing what to do

and being overwhelmed with this attention.

[sweeping string music plays]

These letters get pretty explicit.

[laughter]

[Thomas] I told Norfolk

it's 'cause you're holding the wrong end!

[laughter]

[R & B beat plays]

Do you think he k*lled it himself?

[scoffs]

Well, they say the way to your heart

is through your stomach.

[Prof. Lipscomb] Henry sends Anne venison,

that's the meat of a deer,

and he says,

"When you put this flesh in your mouth,

think of me."

I think it's quite clear

what he's saying. [chuckles]

Well, it's done the job for me.

- What a romantic gesture.

- This came with the buck.

Are you going to read it, or should I?

Anne, you do it.

Yes, go on. We're all ears.

Wah.

[clears throat melodramatically]

"Anne. It's been a year now."

"Come on, you've made your point.

You've turned me into a desperate man."

"I'm making a fool of myself now,

and you know it

and are possibly even enjoying it."

"I'm starting to wonder if you ever

really liked me in the first place."

Oh, you tease.

"I have to know, will you be my"

Go on.

"will you be my mistress?"

"It would be exclusive.

I'll happily get rid of all the others."

- "It'd just be you."

- Stop.

At least he has a type.

I thought we had something special.

Sweetheart, you must have realized

what he was after.

No, no. I will never be anyone's mistress.

You're unbelievable.

[Dr. Mackay] Anne can't quite believe

that Henry still doesn't get it.

She has no intention

of being his mistress.

It is such an anticlimax for her.

She's worth more than this.

She has been raised

to be something brilliant.

Henry's going to have to come up

with a lot better than that.

["On" by Tajk Blueman plays]

[sobs]

You okay?

Dad's right. He was only after one thing.

Well, I'm sure that's not true.

How could he not

fall in love with you, Anne?

I thought maybe he did

love me.

I almost let myself believe it could work.

I even thought

of what it might be like to be

What, queen?

Yeah! For one moment of madness,

I actually thought about it.

Think of all that you could do with it.

You could make change for the better.

Change that really matters.

And the shoes.

- Think of the shoes.

- Shut up!

[chuckles]

[Anne sniffs]

You would make a great queen.

But he already has one, Anne.

And the people love Katherine.

I'll write back.

Tell him he can stick his proposition

up Wolsey's cassock

and never contact me again.

Come here.

- You're the only man I need, George.

- Mm.

Anne is playing with fire

in choosing to taunt the King of England.

Her family's entire financial position,

their status, their opportunities,

all depend on Henry's favor.

So by choosing to be willful

and defending her own self,

she's actually putting

her entire family at risk.

[dramatic drumbeat]

We need to talk.

There's nothing to talk about.

I wrote you letters, lots of letters.

And I replied.

Were my terms not good enough?

Your terms humiliated me.

How dare you?

You'd want for nothing.

And what would you know about what I want?

Do you know what it means

to be loved by the King of England?

Yes, it means you're a mistress,

it means that your future is done.

- You don't get to do that to me.

- I love you, Anne!

I love you.

And I thought you felt the same.

[moving piano music plays]

It's not enough.

That's not enough for Anne Boleyn.

Is it enough for you?

Whatever this is was,

it's over.

[dramatic orchestral music plays]

You need to go.

You're making a big mistake.

You foolish girl.

Just thrown away your future,

your family's future.

Everything we've worked for!

What have you done?

["You Can Run" by Lee Richardson plays]

I'm wantin' for you

♪ Gunnin' for the true desire ♪

♪ You can run, but you cannot hide ♪

♪ Got that growin' deep inside ♪

♪ You can run ♪