Continuing our video capsule reviews for King Lear…
In 1983, just a year after the very good (bordering on great, in my mind) BBC production, Granada Television produced another UK broadcast version, this one directed by Michael Elliott and starring arguably the most famous Shakespearean actor of the twentieth century, Laurence Olivier. Olivier was 75 when he appeared in this, and it would be his last Shakespearean role.
And he’s not the only heavy hitter in the production: John Hurt plays the Fool; Diana Rigg, Regan; Brian Cox, Burgundy; and Robert Lindsay (who appears in three of the BBC Complete Works productions), Edmund. With a pedigree like this, you’d expect this to be very, very good.
Continue reading “King Lear video capsule review: 1983, directed by Michael Elliott [Laurence Olivier]”