Hamlet (2009 TV film)
Encyclopedia
Hamlet is a 2009 television film adaptation of the Royal Shakespeare Company
's 2008 award-winning modern-dress
stage production of William Shakespeare
's play of the same name
, aired on BBC Two
on 26 December 2009. It was broadcast by PBS
in the United States on 28 April 2010.
It features the original stage cast of David Tennant
in the title role of Prince Hamlet
, Patrick Stewart
as King Claudius
and the ghost of Hamlet's father
, Penny Downie
as Queen Gertrude
, Mariah Gale
as Ophelia, Edward Bennett
as Laertes, Oliver Ford Davies
as Polonius
, and Peter de Jersey
as Horatio
.
, using the pioneering RED One camera technology.
in the United Kingdom
and Ireland
on DVD
on 4 January 2010 and on Blu-ray
on 19 April 2010, and on DVD and Blu-ray on 4 May 2010 in the United States
and Canada
.
Royal Shakespeare Company
The Royal Shakespeare Company is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs 700 staff and produces around 20 productions a year from its home in Stratford-upon-Avon and plays regularly in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne and on tour across...
's 2008 award-winning modern-dress
Modern dress
Modern dress is a term used in theatre and film to refer to productions of plays from the past in which the setting is updated to the present day , but the text is left relatively unchanged. For example, Baz Luhrmann's film Romeo and Juliet uses a relatively unaltered text of Shakespeare's play but...
stage production of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's play of the same name
Hamlet
The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
, aired on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
on 26 December 2009. It was broadcast by PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
in the United States on 28 April 2010.
It features the original stage cast of David Tennant
David Tennant
David Tennant is a Scottish actor. In addition to his work in theatre, including a widely praised Hamlet, Tennant is best known for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, along with the title role in the 2005 TV serial Casanova and as Barty Crouch, Jr...
in the title role of Prince Hamlet
Prince Hamlet
Prince Hamlet is a fictional character, the protagonist in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. He is the Prince of Denmark, nephew to the usurping Claudius and son of the previous King of Denmark, Old Hamlet. Throughout the play he struggles with whether, and how, to avenge the murder of his father, and...
, Patrick Stewart
Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century...
as King Claudius
King Claudius
King Claudius is a character and the antagonist from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. He is the brother to King Hamlet, second husband to Gertrude and uncle to Hamlet. He obtained the throne of Denmark by murdering his own brother with poison and then marrying the late king's widow...
and the ghost of Hamlet's father
King Hamlet
The ghost of Hamlet's father is a character from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, also known as The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. In the stage directions he is referred to as "Ghost."...
, Penny Downie
Penny Downie
Penny Downie is an Australian actress, noted for her appearances on British television.She began her career in Australia, initially in Brisbane at Twelfth Night Theatre and Brisbane Arts Theatre. She trained at the National Institute of Dramatic Art , Sydney...
as Queen Gertrude
Gertrude (Hamlet)
In William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, Gertrude is Hamlet's mother and Queen of Denmark. Her relationship with Hamlet is somewhat turbulent, since he resents her for marrying her husband's brother Claudius after he murdered the King...
, Mariah Gale
Mariah Gale
Mariah Gale is a British-Australian actress who won the 2006 Ian Charleson Award.She studied at Birmingham University and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama....
as Ophelia, Edward Bennett
Edward Bennett (actor)
-Life:Bennett attended Chipping Campden School in Gloucestershire prior to graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art . In the RSC 2008 summer Stratford-upon-Avon season he appeared as Laertes in Hamlet, Demetrius in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Navarre in Love's Labour's Lost...
as Laertes, Oliver Ford Davies
Oliver Ford Davies
-Biography:From the King's School, Canterbury, he won a scholarship to Merton College, Oxford, where he read History and became President of the Oxford University Dramatic Society . He was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award in 1990 for Best Actor in a New Play for Racing Demon...
as Polonius
Polonius
Polonius is a character in William Shakespeare's Hamlet. He is King Claudius's chief counsellor, and the father of Ophelia and Laertes. Polonius connives with Claudius to spy on Hamlet...
, and Peter de Jersey
Peter de Jersey
Peter de Jersey is a television and theatre actor. Perhaps best known for his longtime recurring role as Jerome Taylor in The Bill, he has acted in numerous British programmes. From 2000-2003 he played Steve Waring in Holby City until the character was involved in a car crash and later died in...
as Horatio
Horatio (character)
Horatio is a character from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. A friend of Prince Hamlet from Wittenberg University, Horatio's origins are unknown, though he is evidently poor and was present on the battlefield when Hamlet's father defeated 'the ambitious Norway'...
.
Production
The film was filmed with a single-camera setupSingle-camera setup
The single-camera setup, or single-camera mode of production, is a method of filmmaking and video production. A single camera—either motion picture camera or professional video camera—is employed on the set and each shot to make up a scene is taken individually...
, using the pioneering RED One camera technology.
Cast
- Prince HamletPrince HamletPrince Hamlet is a fictional character, the protagonist in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. He is the Prince of Denmark, nephew to the usurping Claudius and son of the previous King of Denmark, Old Hamlet. Throughout the play he struggles with whether, and how, to avenge the murder of his father, and...
— David TennantDavid TennantDavid Tennant is a Scottish actor. In addition to his work in theatre, including a widely praised Hamlet, Tennant is best known for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, along with the title role in the 2005 TV serial Casanova and as Barty Crouch, Jr... - King ClaudiusKing ClaudiusKing Claudius is a character and the antagonist from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. He is the brother to King Hamlet, second husband to Gertrude and uncle to Hamlet. He obtained the throne of Denmark by murdering his own brother with poison and then marrying the late king's widow...
/ King HamletKing HamletThe ghost of Hamlet's father is a character from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, also known as The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. In the stage directions he is referred to as "Ghost."...
— Patrick StewartPatrick StewartSir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century... - Queen GertrudeGertrude (Hamlet)In William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, Gertrude is Hamlet's mother and Queen of Denmark. Her relationship with Hamlet is somewhat turbulent, since he resents her for marrying her husband's brother Claudius after he murdered the King...
— Penny DowniePenny DowniePenny Downie is an Australian actress, noted for her appearances on British television.She began her career in Australia, initially in Brisbane at Twelfth Night Theatre and Brisbane Arts Theatre. She trained at the National Institute of Dramatic Art , Sydney... - Ophelia — Mariah GaleMariah GaleMariah Gale is a British-Australian actress who won the 2006 Ian Charleson Award.She studied at Birmingham University and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama....
- HoratioHoratio (character)Horatio is a character from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. A friend of Prince Hamlet from Wittenberg University, Horatio's origins are unknown, though he is evidently poor and was present on the battlefield when Hamlet's father defeated 'the ambitious Norway'...
— Peter de JerseyPeter de JerseyPeter de Jersey is a television and theatre actor. Perhaps best known for his longtime recurring role as Jerome Taylor in The Bill, he has acted in numerous British programmes. From 2000-2003 he played Steve Waring in Holby City until the character was involved in a car crash and later died in... - Laertes — Edward BennettEdward Bennett (actor)-Life:Bennett attended Chipping Campden School in Gloucestershire prior to graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art . In the RSC 2008 summer Stratford-upon-Avon season he appeared as Laertes in Hamlet, Demetrius in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Navarre in Love's Labour's Lost...
- PoloniusPoloniusPolonius is a character in William Shakespeare's Hamlet. He is King Claudius's chief counsellor, and the father of Ophelia and Laertes. Polonius connives with Claudius to spy on Hamlet...
— Oliver Ford DaviesOliver Ford Davies-Biography:From the King's School, Canterbury, he won a scholarship to Merton College, Oxford, where he read History and became President of the Oxford University Dramatic Society . He was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award in 1990 for Best Actor in a New Play for Racing Demon... - RosencrantzRosencrantz and GuildensternRosencrantz and Guildenstern are characters in William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. They are courtiers who are set by the king to spy on Hamlet, using their claimed friendship with him to gain his confidence. The characters were revived in W. S...
/ Second Gravedigger — Sam Alexander - GuildensternRosencrantz and GuildensternRosencrantz and Guildenstern are characters in William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. They are courtiers who are set by the king to spy on Hamlet, using their claimed friendship with him to gain his confidence. The characters were revived in W. S...
— Tom Davey - Gravedigger — Mark HadfieldMark HadfieldMark Hadfield is an English actor.Before starting his professional career, Hadfield trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art .-Theatre:...
- Player King — John WoodvineJohn WoodvineJohn Woodvine is an English stage and screen actor who has appeared in more than 70 theatre productions, as well as a similar number of television and film roles.-Early life:...
- Osric / Player Queen — Ryan Gage
- Dumbshow King — Samuel Dutton
- Dumbshow Queen / Priest — Jim Hooper
- Reynaldo / Dumbshow Poisoner — David Ajala
- Marcellus — Keith Osborn
- Barnardo — Ewen Cummins
- Francisco / FortinbrasFortinbrasFortinbras is the name of two minor fictional characters from William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. The more notable is a Norwegian crown prince with a few brief scenes in the play, who delivers the final lines that represent a hopeful future for the monarchy of Denmark and its subjects...
— Robert Curtis - Voltemand — Roderick Smith
- Cornelia — Andrea Harris
- Lucianus — Ricky Champ
- Lady-in-waiting — Riann Steele
- Lady-in-waiting — Zoe Thorne
DVD release
The film was released by 2 Entertain2 Entertain
2 Entertain is a British video and music publisher, formed by the merger of BBC Video and Video Collection International in 2004....
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
on 4 January 2010 and on Blu-ray
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
on 19 April 2010, and on DVD and Blu-ray on 4 May 2010 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.