When thinking of a popular series, what immediately jumps to mind? Game of Thrones. Even with that infamous ending, this show dominated HBO for eight years. Thrones brought fantasy back.
Outlander, on the other hand, has popularized historical fiction again (…along with science fiction, time travel, and romance), and it’s not the only show to do so. Historical fiction has produced plenty of recent shows, some of which don’t get the love they deserve. Therefore, here are 10 of the historical fiction TV shows many people didn’t see (there are so many, after all) but definitely should.
Wolf Hall (2015)
With an upcoming second season based on the third and final novel in Hilary Mantel’s Thomas Cromwell trilogy, 2015’s Wolf Hall is still relevant. Drawn from the life of Thomas Cromwell, one of Henry VIII’s most influential ministers, it’s another take on the Henry VIII/Catherine of Aragon/Anne Boleyn triangle that has fascinated people for centuries.
Mark Rylance is phenomenal as Cromwell, and from Claire Foy’s turn as Anne Boleyn, it’s not hard to see how she landed her lead role on The Crown. Overall, this isn’t a series to be missed.
The Crimson Petal and the White (2011)
Based on Michel Faber’s novel of the same name, The Crimson Petal and the White gave audiences a deep dive into the seedy underbelly of Victorian London. Sugar (a stunning Romola Garai) is a prostitute who wants to rise in the world. She is also writing a book, full of hatred against men who abuse prostitutes. She meets and becomes the mistress of William Rackham (Chris O’Dowd), the heir to a perfume business with a terminally ill wife (Amanda Hale).
This series truly gets 19th century London right; prostitutes and the mentally ill were badly treated, and those in power held all the reins. As a four-hour adaptation of a 900-page novel, certain subplots and characters received less time than they deserved, but this series is worth the watch.
Medici (2016)
Medici is an Italian-British Netflix show depicting the rise of Cosimo de’ Medici (Richard Madden) in 1494 Florence, Italy. The second season witnesses his grandson Lorenzo (the Magnificant) de’ Medici’s (Daniel Sherman) rise 20 years later.
There are so many shows on various services that it’s hard to know which to stick with. Medici, due to its music and setting, is definitely one to hang onto. It was filmed on location in Florence, and that definitely shows. Unlike shows that linger on indefinitely, Medici is only a quick three seasons, making it ideal for a binge-watch.
Mrs. Wilson (2019)
Ruth Wilson plays her own grandmother in a fictional version of her life in this three-part miniseries. Alison Wilson thought she knew the love of her life, Alec (Iain Glen); that is, until he dies and she starts digging into his secrets, discovering in the process some interesting things about family, lying, and spy work.
Namely, Alec was a bigamist, and by default, Alison is as well. Alec also wrote spy novels, forcing a hunt for truth in all his stories. Heavy on painful information, Mrs. Wilson is nonetheless an entertaining look at family secrets.
Frontier (2016)
Jason Momoa’s Frontier didn’t do as well as expected, which is a shame considering its fantastic premise. Declan Harp (Jason Momoa) is trying to make money in the fur trade. It’s the 1770s, and the Hudson’s Bay Company holds the monopoly in Canada, which Lord Benton (Alun Armstrong) seems content to leave as is.
Declan, on the other hand, wants to break it up. He must turn to some old friends when bounty hunters show up. Frontier is a fresh look at Canadian history and is not a show to skip out on, especially for those interested in the period.
Victoria (2016)
Victoria tells the story of Queen Victoria (Jenna Coleman), her reign, and her relationships with her husband Albert (Tom Hughes) and her first Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne (Rufus Sewell). Having just finished its third season, the show’s timeline will continue into the 1850s when it resumes for its fourth season.
As Victoria is about a long-reigning female British monarch with an overshadowed husband and covers a time of great change, comparisons with The Crown are inevitable. However, it’s more than just an older version of the same show, Relative unknown showrunner Daisy Goodwin makes it easy to witness these well-drawn characters interact, argue, and deal with crises of their time.
Marco Polo (2014)
Let’s travel back to the 13th century with Marco Polo! The 2014 Netflix series of the same name follows the explorer’s (Lorenzo Richelmy) exploits at the court of Kublai Khan (Benedict Wong). Kublai Khan, the grandson of Ghengis, is trying to unify his empire by cutting rebellions short.
Marco Polo gets caught up in the middle. Combining fighting with intrigue in a not-often-seen time period and location, this historical epic should go on your watch list sometime soon. Even if Netflix didn’t quite hit the Game of Thrones-levels it was hoping for, Marco Polo is still worth a watch.
The White Queen (2013)
This 10-episode miniseries covers a really confusing 30-year period of British history: The War of the Roses. Based on the novels by Philippa Gregory, The White Queen takes its name from Elizabeth Woodville (Rebecca Ferguson), wife of Edward IV, and the first of three protagonists.
Elizabeth is joined by Margaret Beaufort (Amanda Hale), mother of Henry VII, and Anne Neville (Faye Marsay), wife of Richard III. Even with all the time-compression, this series is the most recent to tell the story of the majority of the War of the Roses in such a concise way.
Poldark (2015)
Taking a look at another show that covers a war from a different perspective than usual, here is 2015’s Poldark. This series, having ended its most recent fifth season, tells the story of Captain Ross Poldark as he returned to Cornwall after the American Revolutionary War in 1783.
Once home, he finds distressing news waiting: His brother has died and his estate is in disarray. Along with a premise offering a different view of history, Poldark has recently accumulated five seasons of material, so there’s plenty to watch.
Catherine the Great (2019)
Catherine the Great depicts the loving but tempestuous relationship between Catherine, the Empress of Russia (Helen Mirren) and, well, just about everyone, most notably her lover Grigory Potemkin (Jason Clarke) and her son Paul (Joseph Quinn).
Having overthrown her husband Peter decades ago, Catherine is reluctant to give up an ounce of her power, especially to Paul. However, she is also a mix of hot and cold, making her an unstable person to work for or love. This four-episode miniseries captures Catherine’s ever-changing characteristics, as well as those around her, and is an intriguing portrait of a time long gone.
