Television
On television, Victoria has been portrayed by:
- Helen Hayes in Victoria Regina (1951), an episode of the American series Robert Montgomery Presents based on the play by Housman
- Renée Asherson in the BBC drama series Happy and Glorious (1952)
- Judi Meredith in The Consort (1957), an episode of the American series Telephone Time
- Julie Harris in the American drama Victoria Regina (1961), based on Housman's play
- Kate Reid in the American drama The Invincible Mr. Disraeli (1963)
- Patricia Routledge in the Granada Television series Victoria Regina (1964), also based on Housman's play
- Gladys Spencer in the BBC Play of the Month Gordon of Khartoum (1966)
- Jane Connell in an episode of the American sitcom Bewitched titled "Aunt Clara's Victoria Victory" (1967)
- Christine Ozanne in an episode of the Yorkshire Television drama series The Flaxton Boys titled "1854: The Dog" (1969)
- Mollie Maureen in the BBC drama series The Edwardians (1972)
- Perlita Neilson and (as an old woman) Mavis Edwards in the BBC drama series Fall of Eagles (1974)
- Terry Jones in an episode of the BBC comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus titled "Sex and Violence" (1969)
- Michael Palin in an episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus titled "Michael Ellis" (1974)
- Annette Crosbie in the ATV drama series Edward the Seventh (1975)
- Shirley Steedman in the British series East Lynne (1976), based on the novel by Mrs Henry Wood
- Rosemary Leach in the ATV drama series Disraeli (1978)
- Sheila Reed in the LWT drama series Lillie (1978), telling the story of Lillie Langtry
- Jacquelyn Hyde in the American comedy drama The Wild Wild West Revisited (1979)
- Jessica Spencer in an episode of the Granada Television drama series Cribb titled "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle" (1981)
- Marina McConnell in the Granada drama series Young Sherlock: The Mystery of the Manor House (1982)
- Lurene Tuttle in an episode of the American time travel series Voyagers! titled "Buffalo Bill & Annie Oakley Play the Palace" (1983)
- Zena Walker in the episode of the Yorkshire Television drama series Number 10 titled "Dizzy" (1983)
- Bronwen Mantel in the drama Barnum (1986)
- Erica Rogers in the miniseries Shaka Zulu (1986), based on the novel by Joshua Sinclair
- Miriam Margolyes in the BBC comedy Blackadder's Christmas Carol (1988)
- Anna Massey in the miniseries Around the World in 80 Days (1989)
- Honora Burke in the British drama Hands of a Murderer (1990)
- Margaret Heale in the BBC drama series Rhodes (1996)
- Rhoda Lewis and (as an old woman) Avril Angers in the Granada miniseries Victoria and Albert (1997)
- Wendy Worthington in an episode of the Paramount sitcom The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer titled "Saving Mr. Lincoln" (1998)
- Patti Allen in the series The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne (2000)
- Victoria Hamilton in the miniseries Victoria & Albert (2001), in which Joyce Redman played her as an old woman
- Prunella Scales in the BBC drama Station Jim (2001) and in the BBC drama documentary Looking for Victoria (2003), in which Charlie Hayes played the young Victoria
- Janine Duvitski in the BBC drama The Young Visiters (2003)
- Doreen Mantle in the BBC drama series Shadow Play (2004)
- Tessa Pointing in the British drama documentary The First Black Britons (2005)
- Pauline Collins in the episode of the BBC series Doctor Who titled "Tooth and Claw" (2006)
Monty Python's Flying Circus portrays Queen Victoria as a slapstick prankster and includes a sketch in which she says "We are not amused" in German accented English. Another Monty Python sketch contains a footrace in which all the contestants are dressed as Queen Victoria.
In a series of sketches portraying the Phantom Raspberry Blower, the Two Ronnies dress an entire squad of policemen as Queen Victoria to act as body doubles for protection from the PRB.
In the 2006 series of Doctor Who, Queen Victoria appears in the episode "Tooth and Claw", where she is played by Pauline Collins. In the episode, set in 1879, she is threatened by a werewolf that wants to infect her and take control of her empire. It is suggested that a scratch from the werewolf is the source of haemophilia in many of her descendants. Rose Tyler makes a bet with the Doctor for £10 that she can get the Queen to say "We are not amused". At the episode's conclusion, she founds the Torchwood Institute, an integral feature of the spin-off series Torchwood, with various (fictional) speeches and proclamations by her available on the Torchwood Institute website. In 2008, the Doctor's former companion Sarah Jane Smith, notes Her Majesty's awareness of aliens in The Sarah Jane Adventures episode, "Enemy of the Bane", to which her young apprentice Rani Chandra responds, "I'll bet she wasn't amused."
The BBC series Blackadder Goes Forth, set in World War I, alludes humorously to Queen Victoria's heritage. Captain Blackadder interrogates Captain Kevin Darling whom he suspects to be a German spy. Captain Darling: "I'm as British as Queen Victoria!" Captain Blackadder: "So your father's German, you're half German and you married a German?".
Read more about this topic: Cultural Depictions Of Queen Victoria
Famous quotes containing the word television:
“Laughter on American television has taken the place of the chorus in Greek tragedy.... In other countries, the business of laughing is left to the viewers. Here, their laughter is put on the screen, integrated into the show. It is the screen that is laughing and having a good time. You are simply left alone with your consternation.”
—Jean Baudrillard (b. 1929)
“Television is an excellent system when one has nothing to lose, as is the case with a nomadic and rootless country like the United States, but in Europe the affect of television is that of a bulldozer which reduces culture to the lowest possible denominator.”
—Marc Fumaroli (b. 1932)
“All television ever did was shrink the demand for ordinary movies. The demand for extraordinary movies increased. If any one thing is wrong with the movie industry today, it is the unrelenting effort to astonish.”
—Clive James (b. 1939)