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Gormenghast
adapted
from the novels by Mervyn Peake; screenplay by Malcolm
McKay
A
BBC Television and WGBH/Boston co-production, in
association with Chum Television.
First broadcast on BBC 2, 17th January 2000.
Director: Andy Wilson
Producer: Estelle Daniel
Executive Producers: Rebecca Eaton, Hilary
Salmon and Michael Wearing
Cinematography: Gavin Finney
Production Designer: Christopher Hobbs
Costume Designer: Odile Dicks-Mireaux
Makeup Designers: Christine Greenwood and Joan
Hills
Original Music: Richard Rodney Bennett and John
Tavener
Running time: 274 mins
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Cast
(main
characters, in
alphabetical order) |
Lynsey Baxter.....Cora Groan
June Brown.....Nanny Slagg
Stephen Fry.....Professor Bellgrove
Richard Griffiths.....Swelter
Celia Imrie.....Lady Gertrude Groan
Christopher Lee.....Flay
Neve McIntosh.....Lady Fuchsia Groan
Warren Mitchell.....Barquentine
Jonathan Rhys-Meyers.....Steerpike
Ian Richardson.....Lord Groan
John Sessions.....Dr. Prunesquallor
Fiona Shaw.....Irma Prunesquallor
Zoë Wanamaker.....Clarice Groan |
Production |
| The Groan family
have reigned over the strange land of Gormenghast for
centuries. The royal household's aversion to change and
its reliance on the traditions of the past, however, threaten to
cripple this once-mighty kingdom. And when Steerpike, a
ruthless servant, determines to exploit his employers'
weaknesses, the overthrow of Gormenghast seems certain.
Among the palace's residents are identical twins Clarice (played
by Zoe) and Cora, who have been barred from
public life for over a decade. Ignored by their relatives,
the resentful sisters develop a thirst for power at any cost,
and are among the first to be corrupted by Steerpike. The
simple-minded pair, having failed to guess the real motivation
behind the kitchen boy's plans, are persuaded to set the King's
beloved library alight. The monarch is driven
insane. Steerpike rewards his co-conspirators only by
locking them away once again, without hope of escape. A
multi-million pound television epic, adapted from the cult
novels of Mervyn Peake. |
Pictures |
| Click
thumbnails to enlarge (images will open in a new window): |
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Mervyn
Peake, The Gormenghast Trilogy |
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Gormenghast
(Region 1) DVD |
|
Gormenghast
(Region 2) DVD |
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