Christopher Connor | On 01, May 2024

Audiences have long had an obsession with Tudor England. From The Tudors with Jonathan Rhys Meyers to the award-winning Wolf Hall, people can’t seem to get enough of Henry VIII and his ilk. The latest Tudor-era show is Shardlake, based on the successful novels from author CJ Sansom, written between 2003 and 2018 – the show’s airdate comes the week after the death of its author. The series, as with the novels, follows Barrister Matthew Shardlake as he investigates crimes often involving the supernatural for Sean Bean’s Thomas Cromwell. The mystery element helps differentiate it from others set in the era.

The road to the show’s release has been a long one, with Sansom initially granting film rights back in 2003 with Kenneth Branagh initially involved for both a film and TV adaptation, eventually dropping out of the project to pursue Wallander for the BBC. It eventually found a home in the shape of Disney+ in 2023. Is the show worth the lengthy wait?

It is a peculiar blend of period drama and mystery with comparisons to Wolf Hall inevitable due to the appearance of Thomas Cromwell. The murder mystery feels the stronger element of the show and is sure to please fans of any number of crime shows, as our titular hero (Arthur Hughes) and his sidekick, Jack Barak (Anthony Boyle), investigate a number of mysterious goings-on. We are immediately thrust into the mystery with the murder occurring in the opening scene. If not quite a Tudor Holmes & Watson, this duo have their own strengths and weaknesses and the chemistry between the pair is strong.

From a cast standpoint, it is perhaps a misdirect for the show to feature Sean Bean so prominently in its marketing. He has a relatively slight role, if integral to the plot, with Cromwell being the one to hire Shardlake. Hughes, a regular of the stage, has plenty of gravitas and his appearance and demeanour aren’t entirely dissimilar to Cosmo Jarvis in the recent hit Shōgun. Boyle, meanwhile, continues to build on his stellar run of Masters of the Air and Manhunt on Apple TV+.

There is plenty to admire in Shardlake, with attention to period detail sure to please history buffs and fans of the book. It may be less accessible to novices with some of the references to the religious practices of England and mainland Europe at the time. There is an underlying darkness at the heart of the investigation and a sense of paranoia and dread that slowly builds. For all the talk of Henry VIII, we are constantly reminded that these are his footsoldiers and we never expect to see the king involving himself in the investigation.

Shardlake is an intriguing marriage of two tried and tested genres. For the most part, it is a winning blend. It captures a specific point in Henry VIII’s reign, overlapping with Wolf Hall but tonally remaining worlds apart. While it might move slowly at points, the performances and period detail should hold the audience’s attention and, if successful, set a template for follow-ups.

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