!The Hollow Crown Shakespeare is what made it successful. We track mentions on Twitter and Shakespeare outruns mentions of any of the actors by 1020 times the rate!”
moments came from a PBS interview Tom Hiddleston did where he spent time talking about our account and #ShakespeareSunday. Getting support from the star of the series, as well as a prominent television network like PBS, is a great feeling.” Was The Hollow Crown responsible for the rise of Tom Hiddleston – or was Tom Hiddleston responsible for the success of The Hollow Crown? HCF: “Tom Hiddleston was already making waves as Loki in the Marvel films, but perhaps The Hollow Crown showed a mass audience how adept he is at performing and leading an audience through Shakespeare. The Hollow Crown had a tremendous cast of new talent as well as legends – it would be a mistake to chalk up the success of The Hollow Crown to any one actor. To be frank,
David Dawson as Poins (left) with Tom Hiddleston’s Hal.
Apart from the obvious big names, who are some of your favourite characters and actors from The Hollow Crown? Lis: “The supporting actor that really stood out for me was David Morrissey as Northumberland in Richard II. I can only describe him as completely badass. His role and lines were appropriate for the historical setting Shakespeare wrote for, but David made the political role modern and fresh with the right balance of edginess and gravitas. “As for favourite character, I really enjoyed how David Dawson brought Poins to life. I thought he and Tom Hiddleston had great chemistry together and provided a lot of levity that stood up well against the wellknown humour between Hal and Falstaff. They made me want to head off to Boar’s Head Tavern for a few cups of sack!” Rose: “Two names I have to mention here. Firstly, Edward Akrout – the ‘dashing’ Dauphin in Henry V. He gave a wonderful performance in a role that was rather edited down from the original version of the play. I felt he gave the Dauphin more than just the ‘bad guy’ image one would originally expect in the role – and by the end might dare to confess even feeling some sympathy it hadn’t gone to plan at Agincourt! “Joe Armstrong as Harry Percy (Hotspur) in Henry IV Part 1 was another key favourite character and actor in the series. I had long been a fan of his father, Alun Armstrong, and was delighted that they were cast as father and son in The Hollow Crown! “Not only did they naturally work
“The supporting actor that really stood out for me was David Morrissey as Northumberland in Richard II. I can only describe him as completely badass” Lis 16
SHAKESPEARE magazine