Scandalous Women Reviews: Anne of Hollywood by Carole Wolper

Title:  Anne of Hollywood
Author:  Carole Wolper
Publisher: Gallery Books

Publication date: 1/24/2012
Pages: 352

Overview:

“I wasn’t prepared for the enemies. Had I been as gorgeous as a supermodel, or as rich as an heiress, or an actress with an Oscar to my credit, people would still not be happy that I had Henry’s attention, but they’d understand. What they resented was the king coupling with a ‘nobody.’”


Skirts may be shorter now, and messages sent by iPhone, but passion, intrigue, and a lust for power don’t change. National bestselling author Carol Wolper spins a mesmerizing tale of a twenty-first-century Anne Boleyn.

Wily, intelligent, and seductive, with a dark beauty that stands out among the curvy California beach blondes, Anne attracts the attention of Henry Tudor, the handsome corporate mogul who reigns in Hollywood. Every starlet, socialite, and shark wants a piece of Henry, but he only wants Anne. The question is: can she keep him?

Welcome to a privileged world where hidden motives abound, everyone has something to sell, and safe havens don’t exist. With her older sister Mary, a pathetic example of a royal has-been, Anne schemes to win her beloved Henry in the only way that gives a promise of forever—marriage. Success will mean contending with backstabbing “friends,” Henry’s furious ex-wife, and the machinations of her own ambitious family, and staying married to a man who has more options than most and less guilt than is good for either of them will take all her skill. Anne will do anything to hold on to the man—and the lifestyle—she adores, however, even if sticking your neck out in Hollywood means risking far worse than a broken heart. With Henry’s closest confidante scheming against her, and another beautiful contender waiting in the wings, Anne is fighting for her life. Can she muster the charm and wit to pull off her very own Hollywood ending?

My thoughts:  When I first heard about this book, I thought, 'You have to be kidding me! Anne Boleyn in Hollywood?' Still there was something about the idea that intrigued me. Perhaps it was the fact that this mash-up didn't turn Anne into a werewolf, a vampire or a succubus! So I downloaded a sample of the book onto my NOOK, and gave it a quick read. What I read made me want to read the whole book, but I confess, I took the book out of the library instead of buying it. A girl has to economize! 

The idea of translating the Tudors into contemporary Hollywood shouldn't work but it somehow does.  Henry VIII in Wolper's version is Henry Tudor who owns a studio, a web-site ala The Huffington Post, as well as other interests.  He's referred to as "the King" of Hollywood by various characters in the book. But Henry is not content with just being the Kingpin of Hollywood, he's seeking the Governorship of California. All of the usual suspects that most readers will be familiar with are here, Thomas Cromwell as been reinterpreted as Theresa Cromwell, Henry's right hand woman, Cardinal Wolsey is now crooked money manager Carl Wolsey, Catherine is Catherine Aragon, the daughter of a wealthy power-broker Ferdinand, she and Henry have a daughter Maren who is boarding school. As the book opens, they are wrangling not just over the divorce but over the property settlement. Catherine, obsessed with Henry, has become a devout Catholic, who pops pills to get through her day. Mary is a former model turned party girl who failed to snag Henry, so she becomes a pot-smoking hippie. All the Boleyn hopes are now pinned on Anne. See daddy Thomas Boleyn, unlike the successful courtier of Tudor Times, is an entertainment lawyer, who failed when he started his own firm. Now he creeps around the fringes of power with his face pressed against the window, trying to get in. George is a bisexual actor, who gets a job on a cop show thanks to Henry. Jane Boleyn is now Lacy, who hates Anne because George loves her so much. And then there's Jane Seymour who is now a jewelry designer and a friend of Theresa's.

The novel is written in an easy, breezy style from the points of view of various characters, mainly Anne (in the first person), Theresa, and a hanger-on Cliff Craven.  Anne is a likeable narrator, who genuinely seems to love Henry for himself, not just for what he can do for her family. Theresa Cromwell feels threatened by Anne, particulary when she takes over Henry's philanthropic foundation, which was Theresa's pet project.  There are two big weaknesses in this novel, the first is that Wolper fails to make the reader understand why everyone, apart from Catherine and Lacy, hates Anne so much.  She doesn't really throw her weight around, everyone agrees that she is vibrant, sexy, and charismatic. Unlike the real Anne, she doesn't confront Henry with his infidelities, she seems to roll with the punches.  She's a freelance writer, but unlike Lacy, she doesn't use her position as Henry's wife to snag a cushy job. Nor is she really one of those Hollywood wives who spend most of their times lunching.  We don't really see Anne doing much of anything, apart from giving birth to Elizabeth, and hoping to get pregnant with a male heir for Henry.  Apparently even in 2012, a daughter isn't good enough.

The other weakness in the novel is that Henry remains off-stage throughout most of the book. He's a cipher, a Howard Hughes figure but without the OCD. It's unclear how he became so rich, or powerful. After awhile, I began to lose interest in the story, or even care how Anne was going to get her comeuppance in this version of her life. Clearly, she's not going to be executed but somehow banished from her glitzy lifestyle. I've read Jackie Collins novels with more pizzazz and punch than this book which is really a shame because it's an intriguing idea.

Verdict:  Only for real fans of Anne Boleyn, or readers who love reading about Hollywood.

Book Review: At The King's Pleasure

Title:          At The King's Pleasure
Author:      Kate Emerson
Publisher:  Simon & Schuster
Pub Date:  January 3, 2012

From the back cover:

Married to one man. Desiring another. Beautiful Lady Anne Stafford, lady-in-waiting to Queen Catherine of Aragon, is torn between her love for her husband, George, Lord Hastings . . . and the king’s boon companion, the attentive Sir William Compton. But when King Henry VIII, amorous as always, joins the men clustering around her, Anne realizes she has become perilously enmeshed in the intrigues of the court. Will she be forced to decide between the two men she desires—and the one she doesn’t?

My thoughts:  At The King's Pleasure was my first encounter with The Secrets of The Tudor Court series by Kate Emerson, and there were many things that I really liked about this book, and as well as several things that just didn't work for me. Emerson has a real feel for the period, not just the historical background but the small things, the sights, sounds and smells of the time. She is a master at evoking all five senses in her writing. The novel was like a backstage peak as it were of some of the minor courtiers who don't get much play compared to the big names of the Tudor period.  I enjoyed the few glimpses that the reader was given of the young Henry VIII, barely out of his teens and still wet behind the ears.  The book starts at the beginning of his reign and ends in the year 1520 with the execution of the Duke of Buckingham, a cousin of the King.

Lady Anne Stafford was an appealing heroine, feisty, stubborn and opinionated but also fiercely loyal. At the beginning of the novel, she is widowed and living at home with her brother and his family.  Another marriage is arranged, this time with George Hastings, who is 4 years younger than Anne.  At first Anne is unsure of the match, but she quickly realizes that while George is not quite as exciting as say, William Compton, he is stable and dependable, and the couple have great sex. Anyone who has watched the Showtime series The Tudors will probably remember her story.  In the series, Anne and Henry have an affair, and when her brother The Duke of Buckingham finds out, he is livid.  In Emerson's retelling of the story, Anne is innocent of the affair, but neither her brother nor her husband George Hastings is willing to believe her.  She is dragged away from court and shut up in a convent, after just discovering that she is pregnant with her first child. Despite her predicament, Anne doesn't take her situation lying down as it were.  She actively tries to change her situation. She even manages to forgive her husband for his doubts about her fidelity, certainly much quicker than I would have forgiven him!

The biggest weakness in the novel for me were the men.  Neither George Hastings, nor Will Compton, were appealing to me. I found George's continued jealousy over the years annoying to say the least, and Will Compton, although he knows that Anne is married, still continues to pursue her.  I found his behavior unpalatable and a bit stalkerish to tell the truth. The book also has the problem of the sagging middle, at least for me.  After the first excitement over Anne's predicament with her husband and brother, the book settles into a bit of a routine.  Anne and George have babies, they go to court, Anne flirts with Will Compton, George gets jealous, Anne placates George, lather, rinse, repeat.  Even when Anne finally succumbs to Will's advances, the affair is remarkably short-lived (although of course they have great sex).  She spends a few pages, lamenting that she's torn between two lovers, feeling like a fool, and then she's over it. Not even an inconvenient pregnancy to hide!

The characters spend a great deal of time being told about all the interesting things that are happening at court, like Henry's affair with Bessie Blount, and later his affair with Mary Boleyn, but we never actually see any of this. The chapter headings don't help, you finish one chapter and then discover that only a month has passed in the next chapter. I found myself looking foward to the scenes between Edward, the Duke of Buckingham and his mistress. If there can be said to be a villain in the novel that would be Edward Stafford, The Duke of Buckingham (is there something about the title. The Villiers Dukes of Buckingham were rogues and villains).  Descended from Edward III, he was also the son of Elizabeth Woodville's sister Katherine.  At the opening of the novel, he is the only non-royal Duke in the kingdom and very conscious of his position.  Soon others, such as Charles Brandon, receive honors that Stafford feels should be rightly his.  He's none too happy when both Brandon and Howard become the Dukes of Suffolk and Norfolk respectively. And don't even mention Cardinal Wolsey to him! (Imagine what the Duke would have made of Cromwell!).

Although there are some interesting moments at the Field of the Cloth of Gold, mostly involving Will Compton's bitter wife, the action in the book picks up pace again as events start spiralling out of control for The Duke of Buckingham.  Anne proves her loyalty to her brother, who has done nothing to deserve it.  Despite the back cover copy, the title of the book is most apt.  Everyone in the book is subject to The King's Pleasure, whether they like it or not.

The verdict: While this book wasn't a 'wow' for me, I would still consider picking up another book in the series.  I enjoyed getting to know the minor members of the Tudor Court.  Anne had some nice moments with Elizabeth Boleyn, mother of Anne and Mary, at court, giving us a rare glimpse of the woman known mainly for her children.

May 19, 1536 - The Execution of Anne Boleyn

Today marks the anniversary of the Execution of Anne Boleyn, a sad day of mourning and loss for those of us who love Anne.

It's no secret that Anne Boleyn is my favorite of Henry VIII's wives. I just find her endlessly fascinating and enigmatic.  Last year, I was lucky enough to go on the first ever Anne Boleyn experience, where we stayed at Hever Castle for a week. One of the highlights, out of many, on that journey was the day that we traveled to London on the anniversary to lay flowers in the chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula.  We were lucky enough to actually go up to the altar where Anne and Katherine Howard are allegedly buried as well as down into the crypt where George Boleyn and the others are buried within the walls. It was an eerie and unnerving experience, knowing that we were walking on the ground that Anne trod on her final day on earth.

Below are a few links to blogs celebrating Anne Boleyn:

The Tudor Tutor: Her Grace Under Pressure
The Anne Boleyn Files
On the Tudor Trail
Risky Regencies: A lovely post by Amanda McCabe
Tudor History.org: some lovely pictures of St. Peter ad Vincula

Scandalous Women in Fiction: THE IRISH PRINCESS

THE IRISH PRINCESS
author: Karen Harper
Publisher: NAL, February 1, 2011

From the back cover:

Born into a first family of Ireland, with royal ties on both sides, Elizabeth Fitzgerald-known as Gera-finds her world overturned when Henry VIII imprisons her father, the Earl of Kildare, and brutally destroys her family. Torn from the home she loves, her remaining family scattered, Gera dares not deny the refuge offered her in England's glittering royal court. There she must navigate ever-shifting alliances even as she nurtures her secret desire for revenge. From County Kildare's lush green fields to London's rough-and-tumble streets and the royal court's luxurious pageantry, The Irish Princess follows the journey of a daring woman whose will cannot be tamed, and who won't be satisfied until she restores her family to its rightful place in Ireland.

My thoughts:  I first came across the name Elizabeth Fitzgerald while researching Grace O'Malley for SCANDALOUS WOMEN. And then I saw her name again while reading Tracy Borham's excellent book ELIZABETH'S WOMEN which was just published in the states this past fall. So when I heard that Karen Harper's new book was about Gera, I couldn't wait for it to be published. I grabbed my copy early Tuesday morning while browsing the front table at Barnes & Noble.  This isn't the first book by Karen Harper that I've read, I've also read THE LAST BOLEYN about Anne's older sister Mary which is excellent.  There are so many books out there set in The Tudor time period, that its almost overkill.  What I found intriguing about this book was that Gera was Irish.  The history of Ireland as I discovered while reading about Grace O'Malley is full of intriguing characters, and is virtually untapped as a setting for most historical fiction set during this time period.  Gera is the ultimate outsider at the Tudor court, her family is attainted, even though
she is half-English and related to Henry VIII through her mother Elizabeth Grey, a granddaughter of Elizabeth Woodville, she must keep a tight hold of her tongue at all times, which she often is not too successful at doing.  The novel is filled with the usual suspects, Lady Jane Grey makes an appearance, as do her parents, and Catherine Howard who is as much of a dingbat in this book as she is in the Showtime series. 

While I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I didn't love it, although I loved Gera who is feisty, stubborn to the point of recklessness, fiercely loyal to her family and the idea that the Geraldines will once again rule Ireland as they did successfully for the English for almost 100 years. Gera is also beautiful with red gold hair and pale skin, when she meets the young Princess Elizabeth, she feels a sense of kinship with the girl, who like her, has been buffeted about as she is in and out of favor according to her father's will.  Henry VIII in this novel, is not the handsome figure that Jonathan Rhys-Meyers cut in Showtime's THE TUDORS.  This is more the Henry VIII that most historical fiction readers have come to know. He's crotchety, cranky, morbidly obese with a disposition that can turn from hot to cold on a dime. Gera hates Henry with a passion, and spends most of the novel trying to figure out ways to destroy him.

The early part of the novel moves quickly as the young Gera Fitzgerald is forced to leave Ireland after the reckless actions of her older half-brother Thomas, nicknamed Silken Thomas. Resourceful, and fiercely Irish, Gera manages to secrete away The Red Book of Kildare out of the country so that the English don't get their hands on it.  On the boat from Ireland to England to join the rest of her family who went to England earlier, she meets Edward Clinton, the husband of Henry VIII's discarded mistress Bessie Blount.  Despite her young age (she's 13), she's immediately attracted to Clinton, even though he's English, one of her avowed enemy. But even before she gets to England, Gera learns about treachery, when she learns that her uncle by marriage, has turned her 5 uncles into the English.

The novel for me bogged down after the execution of her half-brother and uncles.  Once Gera is at court, she becomes more of an observer, than instigator of action.  While it was fascinating to see events through her eyes, at times I found my attention wandering, until Edward Clinton came back into the story, and he and Gera sparred. Their forbidden attraction, that has to be kept hidden because Clinton is married and Gera is bethrothed to Sir Anthony Browne, a man over 40 years her senior, give the novel heart.  Otherwise, it would just be a revenge story.  The book picked up again after Edward VI's death, in the struggle for the crown between Lady Jane Grey and Mary Tudor, which leads to conflict between Gera and her new husband, because his mentor is John Dudley, the father of Guildford and Robert.  Gera is plunged once again into the action, and the book is wonderfully exciting at this point.

When Gera finally returns to Ireland at the end of the book, the reader feels as if she and the main character have come full circle.  Harper was wise to end her book when she did, although Gera's life continued for another 20 or so years after the books end.

My verdict:  THE IRISH PRINCESS features a strong, powerful female protagonist that most readers will identify with.  With a strong beginning and end, only the meandering middle kept it from being a keeper for me.  Still if you are looking for something a little different, THE IRISH PRINCESS might just be your cup of tea.

Anne Boleyn Fatal Attractions - G.W. Bernard

ANNE BOLEYN FATAL ATTRACTIONS
Author: G.W. Bernard
Publisher: Yale University Press 2010, 192 pages.


Anne Boleyn has always been my favorite wife of Henry VIII's, ever since I was a child. I've read almost every major biography of her, including Antonia Fraser, Carolly Erickson, Joanna Denny, Eric Ives, and more recently Alison Weir.  When my editor suggested that I write a chapter on Anne Boleyn for SCANDALOUS WOMEN, I jumped at the chance to do even more research. As readers of this blog know, I even went on the first ever Anne Boleyn experience this summer. In other words, I'm biased! So it was with great trepidation that I picked up a copy of G.W. Bernard's book, but I felt that even though I am not a historian, I should read both sides of the argument.

ANNE BOLEYN FATAL ATTRACTIONS is a particularly frustrating book. It reads more like a graduate thesis or a dissertation. I found it difficult at times to get at what he was trying to say, to the point that I felt like throwing the book across the room in frustration. G.W. Bernard has mad credentials, the author teaches early modern history at the University of Southampton iin England, and he's the author of several books. In the inside of the front cover it reads, "In this groundbreaking new biography G.W. Bernard offers a fresh portrait of one of England's most captivating queens." I don't know about groundbreaking. Bernard writes in the afterward that he had no axe to grind, that he wanted to reclaim the historical Anne.  Well, after reading his book, I found her more elusive than ever.  Bernard spends a great deal of time going through sixteenth century documents with a fine tooth comb, but I question some of the conclusions that he came too.

For instance, he asserts that it was Henry who refused Anne Boleyn's advances during those seven long years until they were able to marry.  While I can certainly undetstand that after Henry had decided on a course of marriage, he would want to hold off, I have a hard time seeing Anne Boleyn throwing herself at him constantly during these years. He also asserts that Anne was not holding out for marriage.  Than what was she holding out for? I don't believe that Henry telling her that she would be his sole mistress would be enough of an incentive for her to give up her virginity, particularly after he had already slept with her sister.  Bernard writes that if Anne had said no, than Henry could just have forced her.  After all he was over six feet tall, and weighed over 200 pounds. Again, I have a hard time believing that Henry would go around forcing himself on women. Henry was wildly, passionately in love with Anne.  Also her turning him down would have been something unusual for him, the man who could have anything he wanted. It's not hard to believe that her decision to stand firm intrigued him more and led to his marriage proposal.  He was looking for away out of his marriage to Catherine even before Anne.  Why not be like his grandfather and marry a girl of good English stock?

Bernard also asserts that Anne was not an Evangelical, nor did she help Henry during the years of 'The Great Matter' by giving him books that might be useful.  He stops short of suggesting that Anne, like her sister Mary, fully partook of the looser morals of the French court. He also completely dimisses any theory that there was any conspiracy against Anne, either by the pro-Rome faction at court or by Cromwell. Interestingly he has nothing to say in his book about Anne's relationship with Elizabeth.  Most biographies assert that Anne was a devoted mother to her daughter, that she kept in constant contact with the head of Elizabeth's household.  When it gets down to the nitty gritty, the brass tacks, the reason for buying the book, it falls short.  For a book called ANNE BOLEYN, FATAL ATTRACTIONS, Bernard shows no new evidence that Anne Boleyn committed adultery.  On the contrary, the most that can remotely be concluded is that towards the end of her reign, Anne began to flirt more than was considered proper and she was indiscreet, particularly in regards to whether or not Henry was impotent.  Hardly adultery, and hardly worthy of death by execution.

At one point, Bernard talks about how the Spanish Ambassador Eustace Chapuys wrote about Anne and her brother George making fun of the King's clothes, that Anne was bored with the King. He writes "If that were true, then it would supplay a context in which committing adultery was thinkable, bu it hardly amounts to  proof." Now I'm not quite sure whether he mans that it supplies a context for Anne committing adultery in general or with her brother. If it is the latter, that's a pretty big leap. He writes that because Thomas Wyatt who was also arrested, was released, than that means that Anne might have committed adultery with the other men.  Only Mark Smeaton ever confession, although again Bernard doesn't believe that he was tortured, since none of the other men accused and executed were tortured, although they were high born and Smeaton as not.  They only needed one person to admit guilt to push through the trial and execution.  Bernard does admit that Anne's execution for adultery was a miscarriage of justice.

Verdict:  While Bernard does present some interesting arguments, this book is clearly for those who either have not made up their mind about Anne, believe her guilty, or serious Tudor historians.

Another review of the book can be found at the Anne Boleyn Files

More Highlights from The Anne Boleyn Experience 2010

My lovely bedroom, also known as the Azalea Room. One thing about the Astor Wing, the doors were really tricky. They were thick wood, like an Tudor Door, so after you turned the key you had to work the latch to get into your room. Also there were a lot of corridors in the Wing, so in order to remember which way to go, I had to remember the Peter Lely painting of Nell Gwynn that marked one of the corridors. Otherwise I would get lost on my way to the dining room.

Our goody bag, with at least some of the books that we received on our first night at the castle. On top is our Anne Boleyn Files bag. You can just about see the two of the three Elizabeth Norton books that we received, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Parr, plus another biography of Catherine Parr. I've become very interested lately in Henry's last wife. You can just barely see at the top The Tudor Housewife.

The Henry VIII puppet show that took place on Tuesday afternoon, our first day at Hever, was one of the few things that I was not that fond of. I was in the minority, other people loved it. I'm sure that it goes over great with school groups and people who don't know the story of the 6 Wives of Henry VIII but I found it tedious at times, although I did like the actor who played Henry VIII.

This is the lovely Annika Hammerton, who played one of Jane Seymour's ladies in waiting in The Tudors. She's wearing one of Jane Boleyn's dresses from The Other Boleyn Girl. Interestingly, Annika told us that the costumes for The Tudors were rented from various costume houses instead of made for the production, which probably explains why they are all over the place. It was nice to know that 'Johnny' (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) as she calls him was really nice on the set.

Wednesday we headed out to Hampton Court Palace, where they were reenacting the wedding of Henry to Kateryn Parr (as they spelled her name). Part of the fun was helping Kateryn (on the left) and her sister, choose what she would wear for such an auspicious occasion. I think we did a good job.

Thomas Seymour, the rejected suitor, and future husband of Kateryn Parr, who came to make his respects to the happy couple. He doesn't look too pleased to lose his love to his sovereign.

This is Moira, the the first and so far only female Yeoman of the Guard at the Tower of London, with John our guide, pointing out the ER on her uniform. She joined The Guard in 2008. The Yeoman have to have served at least 20 years in the armed forces (which now includes the Royal Navy), have earned the good conduct medal and reached the rank of Staff Sergeant or higher.  They retire from The Tower at 65 but before then, they and their families actually live in The Tower, which made me think that someone should write a YA about a teenager living at The Tower, either historical or contemporary.

Michelle and Julissa, my fellow Anne Boleyn participants, wearing two of Bess Chilver's costumes, while posing out of what looks like the window overlooking the courtyard in the castle. But it couldn't be, right? The castle was closed for the night.

All About Anne: Highlights of the 1st Anne Boleyn Experience

Last week, I had the joy of spending a week at Hever Castle for the first ever Anne Boleyn Experience. This amazing trip was put together by Claire Ridgway who has the most wonderful web-site called The Anne Boleyn Files. If you don't already know about the site, please do check it out. It's one of the best historical web-sites out there.  Over my years of traveling in England, I'd been to Hever Castle before, but staying there is an entirely different experience. I felt so close to Anne Boleyn, looking out my window in the morning, I could imagine her wandering the gardens, perhaps with her brother George, or with the King himself. When the final day came, I didn't want to leave. I'm sure there are scratch marks in the castle walls from where I clung for dear life.

Now that I've had a few days back in reality (I flew back to the States on Friday and spent the weekend in a jet-lagged coma watching the first series of Law and Order UK), I've had time to reflect on my time at Hever. Here are just a few highlights and photos from the trip. I'll have more when my pictures get developed. 

• High up on the list has to be Claire and her husband Tim for putting together the trip which must have taken months of hard, hard work.
• The staff at the Castle who couldn't have been nicer, especially Kevin on our last night there.
• The Astor Wing of the Castle where we stayed which blends in so seemlessly with the castle that you wouldn't know that it was added when the Astor's bought the castle and restored it in 1903. There are 21 rooms of various sizes. I stayed in the Azalea Room which was a single.  My bed was adorable with a red canopy.
• The food. Seems strange to be talking about the food but I can't tell you how many conferences I've been too where the vegetarians meals were barely edible. I've been given pasta slicked with oil and badly nuked vegetables or a badly nuked baked potato as my entrees.  The food was superb. My first night I had fresh ravioli with kale and spring peas. Another night we had the most delicious tomato soup, and then I had butternut squash risotto. I'm sorry that I didn't take pictures of the meals, especially the delicious desserts and the chocolates featuring Henry and his 6 wives. Every dinner was 3 courses, and wine was included.  Plus we were served breakfast every morning, and had vouchers for lunch for our days out.
• Having dinner the second night in the Tudor Dining Room in the Castle. Yes, we ate in the Castle itself.

This was taken at dinner in the Tudor Dining Hall, I'm seated at the end of the table looking pensive

• 
  
  Being taken by the Chief Yeoman Warder into the Chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula at The Tower of London, who let us behind the rope at the altar to see exactly where Anne Boleyn is supposed to be buried. Her plaque is underneath the altar cloth, where she is buried next to her cousin Katherine Howard, and Jane Boleyn. At the end of the row is Lady Jane Grey. Claire placed roses from us at the site. The Yeoman Warder also told us that every year red roses are delivered by taxi to be placed on Anne's grave but no one knows who they come from. They've tried to find out but the trail has been well-hidden. Rumors are that it is one of Mary Boleyn's descendants. We also got to go down into the crypt to see where Sir Thomas More and Bishop Fisher are buried, and to see where George Boleyn might be buried.
• 
  
  Being able to wander into Hever Castle while it was open with our handy ticket. We also had a private tour before it opened to the public for the day.
• Our lovely guest speakers, historian Elizabeth Norton and costumer Bess Chilver. I disagree with Elizabeth's theory that Jane Seymour was Henry's true love. I just think she died before he could get bored with her. And she gave him a son. Thanks to Bess, I now know exactly when into what a Tudor woman of the court would wear, down to her underwear. Anyone who has seen the episode of The Tudors in Season 3 where Katherine Howard just drops her dress on the ground without even unlacing it , should know that could never happen. Also actress, Annika Hammerton, who played one of Jane Seymour's ladies came to talk to us about what it as like to film The Tudors. She brought along two costumes that she had bought from the production of The Other Boleyn Girl with Natalile Portman and Scarlet Johanssen.
• Books! Our goody bag included 10 books, Henry VIII's Mistresses by Kelly Hart, 3 of Elizabeth Norton's books, How Fat Was Henry VIII among others.
• Having our own guide to take us around Hampton Court Palace and The Tower of London.
• The people that I met. Spending 5 days talking about Anne Boleyn with 20 other knowledgeable people was heaven. And no one thought I was crazy for a change.

Lowlights:

There weren't really any other than the tour was too short and my shower didn't work for two days.

Claire and Henry VIII

The trip was truly one of those trips that I will remember for the rest of my life.  I can't wait for next year!

Please check out The Anne Boleyn Files for Claire's daily journal and more photos from the trip.

Scandalous Women on Film: Anne of the Thousand Days

Anne of the Thousand Days (1969)
from the play by Maxwell Anderson
A Hal Wallis Production
directed by Charles Jarrett

Starring:

Anne Boleyn - Genevieve Bujold
Henry VIII - Richard Burton
Katherine of Aragon - Irene Pappas
Cardinal Wolsey - Anthony Quayle
Thomas Cromwell - John Colicos
Thomas Boleyn - Michael Hordern
Duke of Norfolk - Peter Jeffrey
Mark Smeaton - Gary Bond
Henry Percy - Terence Rigsby


Synopsis (from IMDB): Anne of the Thousand Days  recounts the rise and fall of Anne Boleyn (Genevieve Bujold) who becomes the second wife of King Henry VIII (Richard Burton.) Engaged to Henry Percy, son of the Earl of Northumberland, Anne attempts to avoid to the king's attention and refuses to become his mistress, but her betrothal is broken-off by Cardinal Wolsey (Anthony Quayle.) Vowing vengeance, Anne returns to Court, where she soon becomes intoxicated with the power of having the King in love with her, using that power to undermine Wolsey. Still refusing to submit to the King's advances, Henry eventually proposes marriage and promises to divorce his wife, Katherine of Aragon(Irene Papas.). After several years of waiting for the divorce, she and Henry finally marry, but her world slowly begins to collapse when she fails to give birth to the son her husband so desperately wants and he falls for Jane Seymour. Henry asks Cromwell (John Colicos) to move against her, concocting a sensational set of lies to destroy her and they triumph in a brutally unfair show-trial which ends Anne's thousand-day reign as queen of England.

Fact vs. Fiction: Although the film for the most part follows the historical record, there are a few inaccuracies. For dramatic purposes in the film, Henry comes out of hiding at Anne's trial and forces Mark Smeaton to admit that he'd lied about committing adultery with Anne. Later on, Henry shows up in Anne's chambers at the Tower of London, and offers her a deal, if she agrees to an annulment of their marriage, she can take Elizabeth and go abroad. She refuses and Henry tells her that she must died. This also never happened. Henry never saw Anne again after he left the May Day joust the day before she was arrested. Archbishop Cranmer did visit Anne in the Tower to inform her that her marriage was being annulled which led Anne to hope that her life would be spared since Henry was now free to marry. The film also implies that Anne's sister Mary Boleyn gave birth to the King's child. Henry never claimed Mary's son Henry Carey as his, although historians now believe that he may have been the father. Anne's interest in the new religious ideas is not mentioned at all in the film. There is also no proof that Anne had a vendetta against Sir Thomas More and wanted him dead the way it is implied in the film.

My thoughts: Since I'm about to head off to England for the first ever Anne Boleyn experience, I decided to watch Anne of the Thousand Days to get me in the mood. I saw this film years ago and I remember being impressed by Genevieve Bujold's performance as Anne Boleyn (this was her first English language performance, and she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress).  This second time, I was still impressed by her performance, but not as much by the film. In the film, Anne is motivated by revenge against the King and Cardinal Wolsey for ruining her chance to marry Henry Percy. While I have no problem with that, what bothered me was her open anger towards the King. After Wolsey tells her that she cannot marry Percy, the King attempts to woo her. She viciously assaults him verbally, telling him that he is spoiled, his poetry is bad, and his attempts to write music worse, and that he's not a particularly good lover. Whoa! Despite Henry's lust and fascination for Anne, I can't imagine that he'd still be interested after that. She doesn't so much tease him, as hold him off with a battering ram.

What's missing from the early stages of their relationship is a sense of charm on Anne's part. It would have made more sense for her to hold her tongue, the historical Anne would have been smarter than that. Yes, Anne was known for being arrogant and for arguing with the King but that was later on when the divorce was dragging on for years, and she was tired of waiting. She is also openly disdainful of Wolsey at a time, when she would have been more subtle but that the fault of the screenplay not Bujold's performance. She certainly looks beautiful in the costumes, and is fiery and passionate particularly in the final scenes in the Tower where she has a monologue about her relationship with Henry where she tries to pinpoint the day that they were both in love before things changed and he began to hate her.

Richard Burton is of course excellent as Henry VIII. While Jonathan Rhys-Meyers tends to play Henry as just a petulant, spoiled, schoolboy, Burton's Henry is an athelete, musician, erudite, canny, arrogant, autocratic and vicious. He also has moments of extreme tenderness towards Anne. However, my favorite performance is John Colicos who played Thomas Cromwell as a wily, and crafty politician, willing to do anything to keep his hold on power including torturing an innocent man into confessing to adultery. Because the film is only a little more than two hours, Anne's relationship with her brother gets short shrift. In fact, I forgot which actor was playing the role since so many of the actors had dark hair. Interestingly Mary Boleyn is written as a bitter, bitter woman who warns Anne about getting involved with the King before she disappears from the film.

The film falls apart in the final third when Anne refuses to sleep with Henry unless all the men who oppose the Right of Succession die. The trial scene is a travesty, Anne would never have been allowed to cross-examine witnesses. For one thing, she was a woman. And Henry popping up serves absolutely no purpose at all. The scene between Henry and Anne, where he offers her an out and she refuses to take it, insisting that her Elizabeth will be Queen one day, and the greatest Queen is a little high-handed. The final image though is lovely as the little Princess Elizabeth plays in the garden and Anne is heard once again in a voice-over, telling the audience how Elizabeth will be a great Queen.

I give this film both a thumbs up and a thumbs down. It is sumptuously filmed, the costumes are gorgeous, good performances, but the script is uneven. The scene where Anne finally admits that she loves Henry, just before they sleep together for the first time, seemingly comes out of nowhere. Is she saying it because it's true or to hold her position? Or because she's just been given one of Wolsey's palaces? Still, if you are a lover of all things Tudor, you will want to own a copy of this film along with The Six Wives of Henry VIII starring Keith Michel.

The film is available on DVD along with Vanessa Redgrave as Mary, Queen of Scots