Born To Be King (The Black Adder)

Born To Be King (The Black Adder)

List of Blackadder episodes

"Born to Be King" is the second episode of The Black Adder, the first series of the BBC sitcom Blackadder. Set in late 15th-century England, the episode takes a humorous look at rivalries with the Kingdom of Scotland and centres the dramatic tension on the doubts cast over parentage of the lead character, Prince Edmund, Duke of Edinburgh.

As with other episodes in this series, the end credits include an acknowledgement of "additional dialogue by William Shakespeare". The script parodies certain elements of the Shakespeare's plays, notably the plot to assassinate Dougal MacAngus, Duke of Argyll which draws on the plot against Hamlet by Laertes and Claudius, while the use of daggers as a plot device and the presence of a Scottish antagonist character allude to Macbeth. The presentation of an Egyptian mock tradgedy in the castle is itself a play within a play, a dramatic device used frequently by Shakepeare; the drama piece has echoes of Anthony and Cleopatra and the players mention the "Ides of June", a reference to the Ides of March in Julius Caesar.

As the episode is set in 1486, there are numerous anachronistic references to the Crusades which ended in the Thirteenth Century.

Although Born to Be King was originally broadcast as episode 2 of the series, on later broadcasts and DVD releases it has been switched with episode 4, The Queen of Spain's Beard.

Read more about Born To Be King (The Black Adder):  Plot, Similarities To The Pilot Episode, Cast

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