The Palace | |
---|---|
Genre | Drama |
Created by | Tom Grieves |
Directed by |
Metin Hüseyin Maurice Phillips |
Starring |
Rupert Evans Jane Asher Zoe Telford Roy Marsden Lorcan Cranitch Sophie Winkleman David Harewood Sebastian Armesto |
Composer(s) | Richard Chester Joby Talbot |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of series | 1 |
No. of episodes | 8 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | George Faber Charles Pattinson Tom Grieves |
Producer(s) | Gina Cronk |
Editor(s) | Annie Kocur Beverley Mills |
Running time | 45 minutes |
Production company(s) | Company Pictures |
Distributor | All3Media |
Release | |
Original network | ITV, STV, UTV |
Picture format | 16:9 1080i |
Audio format | Stereo |
Original release | 14 January | – 3 March 2008
External links | |
www |
The Palace was a British drama television series that aired on ITV in 2008. Produced by Company Pictures for the ITV network, it was created by Tom Grieves and follows a fictional British Royal Family in the aftermath of the death of King James III and the succession of his 24-year-old son, King Richard IV, played by Rupert Evans. It also stars Jane Asher and Zoe Telford. The series was filmed on location in Lithuania in 2007 and broadcast from 14 January to 3 March 2008. It was cancelled after one series due to low viewing figures.
On the sudden death of King James III, his 24-year-old elder son, Richard IV, inherits the throne. This causes resentment with his elder sister, Princess Eleanor (Sophie Winkleman), who wants the throne for herself. Her Private Secretary, Major Simon Brooks (David Harewood), helps her in trying to discredit the new king. Richard's younger brother, Prince George (Sebastian Armesto), is a party-animal, while the younger daughter, Princess Isabelle (Nathalie Lunghi), is an A-Level student. Their mother is the now-widowed Queen Charlotte (Jane Asher).
Abigail Thomas (Zoe Telford) is Richard's secretary who plans to write a tell-all book about her life in the Palace. Richard's Private Secretary is Sir Iain Ratalick (Roy Marsden). Other staff featured in the series are Abigail's personal assistant Lucy Bedford (Fiona Button) and the Press Secretary Jonty Roberts (Lorcan Cranitch).
The Palace aired on Mondays at 9 p.m. Each episode is about 45 minutes long and originally aired in a 60-minute slot with adverts. The broadcasts were sponsored by Warner Leisure Hotels, both on television and on itv.com. International broadcast sales were handled by All3Media, Company Pictures' parent company.