What I Watched: Period Drama Boyfriends

Today, I bring you one of my OG Period Drama Boyfriends^TM: Rufus Sewell. To give you a sense of the chronology here, I’ll have you know that I still have the photo I cut out from the 1998 Hollywood issue of Vanity Fair of a very Byronic-looking Sewell somewhere among my personal effects. He had come to my attention a couple of years before, when I watched the BBC’s Middlemarch series for the first time. I would have been 16 or 17 at the time, and if I didn’t have a type before, I certainly did after. The mid-90s were the heyday of BBC period dramas, and Pride and Prejudice ruled them all but, personally, I had a massive soft spot for Middlemarch, and an even more massive soft spot for Rufus Sewell in Middlemarch. Mr. Darcy, who?

Let’s take a look!

Birthday: October 29 (Scorpio, I mean of course)

Middle Name: Frederik

Posh: no. He studied drama at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London and was set up with an agent by Dame Judi Dench, who directed him in a play there. Not too shabby!

Height: 6’

Favourite period drama: The one that started it all: Middlemarch. I know that Austen adaptations top the list of many people’s period dramas but, for me, Middlemarch is right up there. One of the best ensemble dramas, with a bunch of intertwined plots that are each interesting on their own merit. Of course, I’d be lying if I didn’t mention that Sewell’s Will Ladislaw is one of the key attractions of the series. My main quibble with it, in fact, is that he doesn’t get nearly enough screen time, and his story is wrapped up in a rather rushed manner at the end. It still boggles my mind that, after this role, Sewell ended up getting pigeon-holed by Hollywood as a “baddie” for a long time (see Knights’ Tale, Legend of Zorro, The Holiday, The Illusionist, etc.). Listen, I am not a huge fan of Byronic heroes in general, but Sewell had that whole vibe locked down, and I feel like it was a major missed opportunity to have let that go to waste in the 2000s.

Honourable mention to Victoria, in which Sewell played Lord Melbourne as the ultimate silver fox. It’s rare that I tolerate factual liberties being taken in historical dramas, much less actively enjoy them, but this was one of the exceptions, and I confess that I found myself rather wishing that Vicky and Lord M gave in to all that (totally fictional!) UST, pretty boy Albert be damned. [I actually like Tom Hughes a lot, so that is saying something.] I also found myself wishing for a young Lord Melbourne-focused mini-series, because his actual personal life was messsssy – hello, love triangle with Caroline Lamb and Byron! – and I love mess.

Sexiest period drama role: As fond as I am of Will Ladislaw, for sheer beauty nothing beats Marco in Dangerous Beauty. That whole movie is a visual delight, and Sewell is so, so sexy in it. Again, who looked at this man and thought “yep, this guy has the vibe of someone women will definitely not want to fall into bed with”. I mean, look at that photo and tell me you care about the finer points of his personality. Also, for the record, Sewell does romantic yearning extremely well, so it’s not like he can’t compete in that category. Dangerous Beauty is proof enough, I think.

I have to give a separate shout-out to Cold Comfort Farm, which is an absolute hoot and joy to watch. It’s a movie that knows exactly what Sewell has to offer, and serves it up with tongue firmly in cheek. Seth Starkadder is a brooding hunk who doesn’t have much to offer in the sparkling conversation department but looks extremely fetching with his shirt off. The character is a parody of the Byronic hero trope delivered perfectly.

Austen adaptations: Sadly, none. Speaking of the 90s, I would have loved to see Sewell attempt Mr. Darcy or, as a less obvious choice, Henry Tilney. Alas, that boat has long sailed.

Favourite contemporary role: Zen is one of my fave detective series ever – and certainly the most stylish one – and Aurelio Zen, the Italian police detective struggling to navigate the murky waters of Rome society, is a fantastic character played brilliantly by Sewell. Zen has swagger (and plenty of smarts) but he’s also kind, honest, and loyal which make him an incredibly appealing character. And, god, so sexy! I am still mad that there were only 3 episodes of this show made.

Honourable mention to the obscure but underrated ShakespeaRe-Told, a series of 4 adaptations of Shakespeare plays set in modern times. Sewell played Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew episode, which is the best of the series and one of my fave rom-coms. I know, it’s an odd choice – particularly since I loathe the trope that underpins the original play, and I’m not even that big of a fan of Ten Things I Hate About You – and I can’t really explain it except to say that the chemistry between Sewell and Shirley Henderson (who plays Kate) is incredible. Also, Sewell has surprisingly great comedic timing.

As far as I know, ShakespeaRe-Told (god, that’s such a dumb title!) isn’t streaming anywhere at the moment, but it’s worth digging up if you can. I bought it on DVD years ago. The versions of Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream were meh for me (which is funny, because I like those plays more than the others), but Macbeth was a banger. The setting is a fancy restaurant owned by a celebrity chef (aka the king), with James McAvoy as Joe Macbeth, the ambitious sous chef. Yes, that James McAvoy. And, yes, it is sexy AF. Did I mention that Richard Armitage has a cameo as McDuff, the head waiter?

Least romantic role: Given Sewell’s extensive villain filmography, there are plenty of options in this category – even if we stick exclusively to period dramas. My choice may be a little out of left field, but it was a recent watch for me, so it’s top of mind: Mark Gertler in Carrington. The movie is based on the life of artist Dora Carrington (and featuring Emma Thompson in the titular role), and Sewell plays one of her lovers who is, to put it mildly, a real sh*t. Not in a cartoonish villain kind of way, but in a depressingly realistic “supposedly nice guy who’s actually completely toxic” kind of way. I actually enjoyed the movie – it’s Bloomsbury Group-adjacent, and I love that stuff – but it’s full of unlikeable male characters, and since I don’t know much about the real people on whom they are based, I have no idea if that’s a function of historical accuracy or artistic choice on the part of the filmmakers. Poor Carrington, plagued by unsatisfactory though extremely good-looking lovers! [In addition to Sewell, that line-up includes Jeremy Northam and PDB alumnus, Samuel West.]

Murder mystery cameos: Strangely enough, Sewell hasn’t done the usual round of British mystery shows, which is the bread-and-butter of a lot of his peers. I wonder if that was a function of his work in American film/television. Anyway, apart from Zen, there is the recent role in the new adaptation of Agatha Christie’s The Pale Horse. I did not enjoy it – it’s an adaptation only in the loosest sense, they completely changed the plot – but Sewell’s performance was ok.

Watch at your own risk: I have not subjected myself to all of the lesser known entries in Sewell’s filmography (hi, Bless The Child) so I can’t say for sure which one is the worst of the lot, but as noted above, I did not like The Pale Horse AT ALL.

Adieu, darlings, and till next time: happy period drama watching!