Hornblower (TV series)

Infobox television
show_name = Hornblower


caption = DVD Cover
format = Drama
runtime = 120 minutes
creator = C. S. Forester (stories and characters)
starring = Ioan Gruffudd
Robert Lindsay
Paul McGann
Paul Copley
Sean Gilder
Jamie Bamber
Fernando Felício
channel = ITV
country=United Kingdom
first_aired = 1998
last_aired = 2003
num_series = 3
producer = Meridian Broadcasting

"Hornblower" is the umbrella title of a series of television drama programmes based on C. S. Forester's novels about the fictional character Horatio Hornblower, a Royal Naval officer during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars.

The series stars Ioan Gruffudd in the title role and is produced by the British broadcaster Meridian Television, and shown on ITV (and as of March 2008 is being shown on ITV3) in the UK and A&E Television Networks in the US. Episodes were shown on Greek television in 2007 (and still are, in 2008).

Cast

* Ioan Gruffudd as Horatio Hornblower
* Robert Lindsay as Captain (and later Commodore and Admiral) Sir Edward Pellew
* Jamie Bamber as Lieutenant Archie Kennedy (5 episodes)
* Paul McGann as Lieutenant William Bush (4 episodes)
* David Warner as Captain James Sawyer (2 episodes)
* Paul Copley as Matthews
* Sean Gilder as Styles
* Lorcan Cranitch as Wolfe (2 episodes)
* Philip Glenister as Hobbs (2 episodes)

Other well-known actors have appeared in guest roles, including Anthony Sher, Andrew Tiernan, Samuel West, Christian Coulson, Cherie Lunghi, Greg Wise and Ronald Pickup.

Episodes

The series consists of eight made-for-television movies, which are notable for their high production values. All were later released on DVD. In the US, the series was retitled "Horatio Hornblower", and some of the episodes were known by different titles. The eight movies cover the events of just three novels ("Mr Midshipman Hornblower", "Lieutenant Hornblower", and "Hornblower and the Hotspur"), and various alterations and additions are made to the source material.

*"The Even Chance" (AKA: "The Duel")
*"The Examination For Lieutenant" (AKA: "The Fire Ships")
*"The Duchess and the Devil"
*"The Frogs And The Lobsters" (AKA: "The Wrong War")
*"Mutiny"
*"Retribution"
*"Loyalty"
*"Duty"

Awards

* Emmy Award (1999) for Outstanding Supporting Extra (Fernando Felício)
* Emmy Award (1999) for Outstanding Miniseries
* Emmy Award (1999) for Outstanding Single Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries or a Movie

Future episodes

Ioan Gruffudd has said that he would be glad to participate in more "Hornblower" films. [ [http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200wales/tm_objectid=15761295&method=full&siteid=50082&headline=ioan---i--haven-t-asked-alice-to-marry-me----yet--name_page.html Karen Price, "Is it wedding bells for our Ioan?", "Western Mail" from icWales.co.uk, 21 July 2005] ] However, there are no plans for future episodes.

On 20 February 2007, Gruffudd also said he is planning to make a big-screen version of "Hornblower", and is attempting to gain the rights to the books by C.S. Forester. He was quoted as saying "A&E decided that since it's such an expensive venture to make these movies for television, they're not going to make any more at this point. So it's down to me, I think, to try to bring it back to life."

[ [http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/gruffudd%20plans%20hornblower%20movie_1022658 Ioan Gruffudd - Gruffudd Plans Hornblower Movie ] ]

On the "The Graham Norton Show" on 22 March 2007, Gruffudd disclosed that the producers have decided to end the series due to high production costs.

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0129686|title=Hornblower: The Even Chance
*imdb title|id=0194947|title=Hornblower: The Examination for Lieutenant
*imdb title|id=0194946|title=Hornblower: The Duchess and the Devil
*imdb title|id=0194948|title=Hornblower: The Frogs and the Lobsters
*imdb title|id=0273656|title=Hornblower: Mutiny
*imdb title|id=0273657|title=Hornblower: Retribution
*imdb title|id=0327890|title=Hornblower: Loyalty
*imdb title|id=0352410|title=Hornblower: Duty