Victoria-Series 1 (Blu-ray) (2016)

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General		Extras
Category	Historical Epic	Featurette-Tour of Buckingham Palace Set (3:25) Featurette-Behind The Scenes-Creating the CGI Magic (4:19) Featurette-Making Of-The Making of Victoria (7:31) Featurette-Victoria and Albert (6:15) Featurette-Victoria and Lord Melbourne (6:24) Interviews-Cast-Ferdinand Kingsley (Francatelli) (2:48) Interviews-Cast-Adrian Schiller (Penge) (2:34) Interviews-Cast-Jenna Coleman (Victoria) (5:34) Interviews-Cast-Tommy Knight (Brodie) (1:48) Interviews-Cast-Eve Myles (Mrs. Jenkins) (2:47) Interviews-Cast-Nell Hudson (Skerret) (2:44) Interviews-Cast-Peter Firth & Nichola McAuliffe (D & D of Cumberland) (2:32) Interviews-Cast-Daniela Holtz (Baroness Lehzen) (2:36) Interviews-Cast-Catherine Flemming (Duchess of Kent) (2:58) Interviews-Cast-Rufus Sewell (Lord Melbourne) (3:43) Interviews-Cast-Tom Hughes (Prince Albert) (2:43)
Rating
Year Of Production	2016
Running Time	393:47
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered Dual Disc Set	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Oliver Blackburn Tom Vaughan Sandra Goldbacher Lisa James Larsson
Studio Distributor	Mammoth Screen Roadshow Home Entertainment	Starring	Jenna Coleman Daniela Holtz Catherine Flemming Adrian Schiller Nell Hudson Anna Wilson-Jones Tommy Knight Ferdinand Kingsley Margaret Clunie Eve Myles Tom Hughes Rufus Sewell Peter Firth
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Ruth Barrett Martin Phipps

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	Unknown	English
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	1080i
Original Aspect Ratio	1.78:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	Yes
Subtitles	English	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

    Britain has a good track record of producing visually stunning and well-acted period pieces and Victoria is no exception. Victoria is a British period piece based on the early life of Queen Victoria. The first season starts from the time just prior to Victoria’s coronation and ends with the birth of her first daughter. The gorgeous props and costumes used throughout the first season show that ITV and PBS did not hold the purse strings too tight during production. The ball room scenes alone used 900 candles a day (all handmade and hand dipped) and 350 square meters of gold foil was used in the making of palace furniture. Throw in the spectacular custom-made clothes, curtains and chandeliers and you get a production set fit for a royal setting.

    Unfortunately, where the props department stayed with historical accuracy the script department strayed into fiction. Although the broader script is historically correct, numerous smaller fictional sub-stories have been introduced. It can only be assumed such historical inaccuracies were incorporated to provide additional drama although historians have indicated there was plenty of drama in Victoria’s life without the need to manufacture additional drama. That being said, Victoria is a period piece, not an historical documentary, so the minor departures from the facts shouldn’t worry most viewers. The dialogue is well written and this combined with good acting and great sets makes Victoria one of those shows where you can just sit back and immerse yourself in the Victorian era (royal style).

    Jenna Coleman plays the role of young Victoria with great poise and talent although I found it difficult to picture her as the actual Victoria owing to her physical appearance. Critics have commented on the fact that Jenna Coleman is 5cm taller than Queen Victoria however I did not see this as an issue as Jenna Coleman’s short stature compared to other cast members was enough to convey the shortness of Queen Victoria. Jenna’s looks on the other hand, do not parallel the well-known image of the plain and somewhat podgy Queen Victoria. Even as a young woman Queen Victoria was not as thin and pretty as Jenna Coleman. Sources indicate that Victoria was intended to run for only one season however its popular reception has garnered a second season. I cannot envisage too many seasons before the differences in appearance between the older Queen Victoria (so well-known from portraits) and Jenna Coleman become insurmountable. Only time will tell.

    As one would expect, the key figures in Queen Victoria’s first years on the throne are also given significant air time in the series. Foremost is the Prime Minister Lord Melbourne, played by Rufus Sewell, who portrays with excellent aplomb the role of mentor to a young queen who is not yet savvy in royal etiquette. Catherine Flemming gives a solid performance as the Duchess of Kent as does Paul Rhys as John Conroy. In reality Victoria despised Conroy and believed many of her mother’s decisions were aimed at improving Conroy’s prospects. The uneasy relationship between all three is well scripted and acted. Tom Hughes provides a good portrayal of Prince Albert however historians have disagreed with his characterization.

    Much of the make-believe written into Victoria involves the goings-on of the household or palace staff. Historically inaccurate they may be, but well-acted and entertaining none the less. The key protagonists in these sub-plots are played by Nell Hudson, Tommy Knight, Ferdinand Kingsley, Eve Myles and Adrian Schiller.

Video

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Audio

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Featurettes (27.54)

Cast Interviews (27.54)

Menu

    The menu features music.

    The Zone A release of Victoria has the same features and run times as the Zone B release so go the Australian just to keep it local. I was initially confused regarding many of the Amazon reviews complaining about the Blu Ray release being cut. It turns out that PBS aired the series with deleted scenes inserted giving it a longer run-time. The series released on Blu Ray in the US is the same as what was aired in the UK and Australia.

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is good.

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