Harewood has regularly been used as a backdrop for filming; this winter is no different! During December and on into spring, Harewood will be used as a location for new ITV drama, Victoria, which will air on ITV. The ambitious 8-part drama follows the early life of Queen Victoria, from her ascension to the throne at the tender age of 18, through to her courtship and marriage to Prince Albert. Jenna Coleman (Doctor Who, Death Comes to Pemberley, Dancing on the Edge) will star as a young Queen Victoria.
Jenna Coleman said: “I am delighted to be cast as Queen Victoria in this ambitious drama of her life. She is a vivid, strong, inspirational and utterly fascinating woman in British history and I can’t wait to tell her story.”
BAFTA-nominated actor Rufus Sewell (The Man in the High Castle, Parade’s End, The Pillars of the Earth) has been cast alongside Jenna Coleman in the series.
Rufus Sewell stars as Lord Melbourne, Victoria’s first prime minister. The two immediately connected and their intimate friendship became a popular source of gossip that threatened to destabilise the Government – angering both Tory and Whigs alike.
Jenna and Rufus are joined by a stellar ensemble cast including Paul Rhys (The Assets, Borgia, Being Human) as Sir John Conroy, the ambitious controller of the Duchess of Kent’s household, who controlled Victoria’s upbringing, hoping to rule through her, when she came to the throne. Peter Firth (Spooks, Undeniable, World Without End) is the Queen’s conniving uncle the Duke of Cumberland and Catherine Flemming (Simones Labyrinth, No Place to Go) plays the Duchess of Kent, Queen Victoria’s mother.
Eve Myles (You, Me & Them, Broadchurch, Torchwood) plays Mrs Jenkins, the Queen’s senior dresser and Adrian Schiller (Suffragette, Residue, Endeavour) is Penge, the Household Steward. Nichola McAuliffe (Agatha Raisin: The Quiche of Death, Coronation Street) is the ruthless Duchess of Cumberland, Daniela Holtz (Phoenix, Der Verdacht) is Victoria’s governess and confidante Baroness Lehzen, and Nell Hudson (Outlander, Call the Midwife, Les Bohemes) plays the mysterious new member of the household, Miss Skerrett. Tommy-Lawrence Knight (The Sarah Jane Adventures) also joins the royal household as the hall boy, Brodie.
Nigel Lindsay (You, Me and the Apocalypse, The Tunnel, The Fear) is Sir Robert Peel, the leader of the Tory party. Alice Orr-Ewing (The Theory of Everything, Pramface) is cast as Lady Flora Hastings, lady-in-waiting to Victoria’s mother, the Duchess of Kent.
Mammoth Screen, producers of Poldark (BBC One) and Endeavour (ITV), and the series is created and written by acclaimed novelist Daisy Goodwin, in her screenwriting debut.
The series will open with a 90-minute episode, followed by 7 one-hour episodes. Tom Vaughan (Doctor Foster, He Knew He Was Right, Starter For Ten) opens the series as director and Paul Frift (Doctor Who, That Day We Sang, Room at the Top) will produce the landmark series.