TV Gold

The seventh episode, entitled <span style='color:green'>?Reign of Terror?</span> affords Patrick Stewart?s ?Sejanus? character to take a more prominent role. Seen here in casual attire shares his first scene with a white haired aged Tiberius which best illustrates the powerful (albeit short lived!) position. It certainly seems like a convincing performance of this scheming power hungry figure by Patrick. Sejanus is indeed a totally ruthless individual as typified by the truly disturbing, well realised and historically accurate brutal interrogation of Asinus Gallus. In this well paced scene we watch Sejanus taking his time, with a degree of dispassionate pleasure, in gaining a signed confession from his prisoner. Worth noting as Sertorius Macro, ambitious deputy to Sejanus is a fairly slim, clean shaven John Rhys Davies whom I still best remember best from his regular ?Sliders? series role. Lastly to mention about this episode I had a good laugh about the scene with Claudius visiting the printers whom are making copies of his ?History of Carthage?. Personally I though the ?elephant? design looked pretty good but it was Claudius? outrage at seeing this that made me see the funny side.

With <span style='color:green'>?Zeus, By Jove?</span> it is the last gasp for Tiberius who bows out early in this instalment. Certainly a memorable sequence of events involving the elderly emperor and the scheming of Caligula and his eager to please friend, Captain of the guard Sertorius Macro. With Tiberius dispatched by Macro this eighth episode quickly settles down to focus almost entirely around the clearly mad Caligula. This is most notable in his believe that he has been reincarnated as a god. Towards the end of the episode we have a beaded Caligula believing he can safely perform a caesarean on his chained naked wife/sister, something that obviously goes gruesomely wrong. Thankfully we do not see this but Claudius reaction is enough to clearly convey what has indeed taken place. Now I feel it?s down to a matter of personal preference but I don?t particularly rate John Hurt as an actor so there was certainly a bit of fast forwarding particularly during this particular episode. The only other notable role I can think of is his appearance in the 1984 film of George Orwell?s ?Nineteen Eighty-Four? novel as Winston Smith which was reasonably alright. Worth noting at this point is the fine performance of Margaret Tyzack as Claudius long suffering mother Antonia whom, disgusted with Caligula?s rule as Emperor makes her final series appearance in this episode by her character taking her own life.

It still seems, even now almost thirty years on for the ninth episode of ?I, Claudius? to open with the debauchery of a Roman brothel but this sequence is typical of Caligula?s sickeningly mad reign as Roman emperor. His manic mood swings and bizarre behaviour are clearly putting emotional pressures on all those around him hence the title <span style='color:green'>?Hail Who??</span> seems wholly appropriate. As we see some are better at dealing with the situation than others, most notably, of course, Claudius a character whom we know is far wiser than his outward stuttering, slow witted, lame persona would suggest. This episode has a memorable sequence with Claudius meeting Caligula at his encampment in Germany located close to a river. When he initially enters without the carts with ?valuables? Caligula orders his guards to throw his uncle off the bridge into the river below. It is later, on his return, the mud splattered form of Claudius certainly raises a few laughs. We later discover that this ?so called treasure? is merely common shells. However the greatest indication I feel of his madness was when he coolly welcomes the Senator and old friend Incitatus. Ordinary you might think until you see that his ?old friend? is a white horse! I guess we all cheered when this ?ruler? finally gets his comeuppance at the end of the episode, brutally knifed to death in a corridor behind the arena.