Jamestown (TV series)

British drama television series

Jamestown is a British drama television series,^[1] written by Bill Gallagher and produced by Carnival Films, an NBC Universal International Television Production company, the makers of Downton Abbey. Set in 1619, Jamestown follows the first English settlers as they establish a community in the New World.^[2] Among those landing onshore are a group of women destined to be married to the men of Jamestown, including three spirited women. The series premiered on Sky One in the United Kingdom in May 2017. Sky ordered a second series of Jamestown in May 2017, before the premiere of the first series.^[3] Series 2 aired from February 2018.^[4] The renewal of Jamestown for a third and final season was announced by Sky One on 23 March 2018.^[5]

Summary

In 1619, twelve years after men founded the colony of Jamestown in 1607, women arrive from England duty bound to marry the men who have paid for their passage. Among the women are Jocelyn, Alice and Verity, who arrive with little idea of what the future holds or the disruption they are about to bring to the settlement. The new Governor, Sir George Yeardley, and his wife also arrive and discover that running the settlement is not without problems with a Company Secretary trying to undermine his position.

Cast and characters

• Naomi Battrick as Jocelyn Woodbryg – Betrothed and married to Samuel Castell
• Sophie Rundle as Alice Kett – Farm girl betrothed to Henry Sharrow but married to his brother Silas
• Niamh Walsh as Verity Bridges – Betrothed and unofficially married to Meredith Rutter
• Max Beesley as Henry Sharrow – Eldest brother of the three Sharrows
• Gwilym Lee as Samuel Castell – Recorder to the Virginia Company of London in Jamestown (Series 1)
• Jason Flemyng as Sir George Yeardley – Virginia Company of London Lieutenant-Governor and later Governor
• Claire Cox as Temperance Flowerdew, Lady Yeardley – Wife of Sir George Yeardley
• Dean Lennox Kelly as Meredith Rutter – Owner of the tavern of Jamestown
• Shaun Dooley as Reverend Michaelmas Whitaker (Series 1)
• Stuart Martin as Silas Sharrow – Middle brother of the three Sharrows
• Steven Waddington as Thomas Redwick – Marshal of Jamestown
• Matt Stokoe as James Read – Blacksmith/swordsmith/farrier/forger/craftsman
• Burn Gorman as Nicholas Farlow – Secretary of the Virginia Company of London in Jamestown
• Luke Roskell as Pepper Sharrow – Youngest of the three Sharrow brothers
• Ben Starr as Dr Christopher Priestley – Physician/surgeon/apothecary
• Tony Pitts as Edgar Massinger – Land owner and tobacco grower (Series 1–2)
• Patsy Ferran as Mercy Myrtle – Servant girl of Samuel Castell and maid to Jocelyn Woodbryg
• Kalani Queypo as Chacrow – Native Indian go-between the settlers and Pamunkey Indians
• Raoul Trujillo as Opechancanough – Chief or King of the Pamunkey Tribe
• Abubakar Salim as Pedro – Kingdom of Kongo Angolan warrior who is captured and sold into chattel slavery by the Portuguese but captive by the English (Series 2–3)
• Abiola Ogunbiyi as Maria – Kingdom of Kongo Angolan married with children who is captured and sold into chattel slavery by the Portuguese but captive by the English (Series 2–3)
• Rachel Colwell as Winganuske – Chacrow's sister married to Henry Sharrow as a gift (Series 2–3)
• Ben Batt as Willmus Crabtree – A mysterious trader from England with his motives and intentions unknown (Series 3)
• Harry Grasby as Tamlin Appleday – One of the boys sent from England by the company to work the fields (Series 3)

Production

Most of the series was filmed in Vértesacsa, Hungary.^[6]

Episodes

Series 1 (2017)

Series 2 (2018)

Series 3 (2019)

Reviews

The Guardian said the show was an expensive soap opera, but found the show to be fun.^[9][10] A critic with the Financial Times questioned the accuracy of the show, especially its portrait of women.^[11] The Irish Times found that everything in the show is "absurd, generic or risible".^[12] The Telegraph was kinder to the show, as it found the show to be a "silly but gripping period drama".^[13]

References

1. "'Downton Abbey' creator Carnival Films to produce 'Jamestown'". The Premium Herald. Archived from the original on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
2. "'Downton Abbey' creator Carnival Films to produce 'Jamestown'". Chicagotribune.com. 20 April 2016. Archived from the original on 21 April 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
3. "Sky orders second series of Jamestown – before the first has even begun". Radiotimes.com. Archived from the original on 20 June 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
4. "Jamestown Series 2 airing from February 2018". Sky.com. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
5. "Jamestown gets third series from Sky One". Digitalspy.com. 24 March 2018. Archived from the original on 28 June 2018. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
6. Harrison, Ellie. "Jamestown: Follow in the footsteps of the first British settlers in America". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 15 July 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
7. Hannah Gannagé-Stewart. "Jamestown strikes gold for Sky". Broadcast Now. Archived from the original on 8 May 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
8. "Jamestown – Listings". Next Episode. Archived from the original on 21 April 2019. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
9. Wollaston, Sam (6 May 2017). "Jamestown review – mail-order brides witness the bloody birth of America". Theguardian.com. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
10. Wollaston, Sam (9 February 2018). "Jamestown review – new settlers make a splash in Virginia". Theguardian.com. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
11. Maltby, Kate (13 May 2017). "Dramas like 'Jamestown' do us and history a disservice". Financial Times. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
12. Crawley, Peter (5 May 2017). "Jamestown: absurd, generic and risible show in 'a hive of men starved of women'". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 5 November 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
13. O'Donovan, Gerard (5 May 2017). "Jamestown is a silly but gripping period drama – review". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 16 March 2019.

External links

• Jamestown at IMDb
• Jamestown at epguides.com
• Meet the cast (Radio Times)