Victoria is a British historical television drama series created and principally written by Daisy Goodwin, starring Jenna Coleman as Queen Victoria. The series premiered in the United Kingdom on ITV on 28 August 2016 with eight episodes, and in the United States on PBS on 15 January 2017; PBS supported its production as part of the Masterpiece anthology. The series follows Victoria's early life, including her relationship with her husband Albert and her political responsibilities of the 1830s to the 1850s.
A second series was broadcast on ITV in 2017, including a Christmas special that aired that December; PBS broadcast followed starting in January 2018, with the special belatedly airing in March. In December 2017, Victoria was renewed for an eight-episode third series, which premiered on PBS on 13 January 2019, and on ITV on 24 March 2019 before concluding on 12 May 2019. In July 2021, ITV stated "there are no plans presently to film Victoria, but that's not to say we won't revisit the series with the production team at a later date".
Premise The first series (covering 1837–1840) depicts the first few years of the reign of Queen Victoria (portrayed by Jenna Coleman), from her accession to the British throne at the age of 18 (1837), to her intense friendship and infatuation with her favourite advisor Lord Melbourne (Rufus Sewell), to her courtship and early marriage (1840) to Prince Albert (Tom Hughes) of Germany, and finally to the birth of their firstborn child and eldest daughter, Victoria, Princess Royal (born 1840).
The second series (covering 1840–1849) follows Queen Victoria's struggles to balance her queenly role as the youngest monarch with her duties to her husband and children, various dramas within the English and German branches of the royal family, international relations with France, and such crises as the Anglo-Afghan War (1838–1842) and the 1840s Famine in Ireland (1845–1849).
At the beginning of the third series (covering 1849–1851), Victoria and Albert have six children and have just entered their early 30s while navigating difficulties in their marriage; as the series progresses, these tensions ebb and flow. Subplots in the third series include Albert's ongoing efforts to find his place, culminating in The Great Exhibition (1851), and his efforts to mould his eldest son (ages 7–9) into a king; Victoria's political relationship with the charismatic Lord Palmerston; the sudden arrival of Queen Victoria's estranged maternal half-sister, Princess Feodora, at the palace; and a forbidden romance between one of the Queen's ladies and a footman. The onset of Albert's health issues are also referenced, leading to the series ending in a cliffhanger.
Cast Main
Jenna Coleman as Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Tom Hughes as Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Peter Bowles as Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Catherine Flemming as Princess Victoria, Duchess of Kent and Strathearn (series 1–2) Daniela Holtz as Louise, Baroness Lehzen, Victoria's governess (series 1–2) Nell Hudson as Nancy Skerrett, Principal Dresser to the Queen Ferdinand Kingsley as Mr Francatelli, Royal Chef to the Queen Tommy Knight as Archibald Brodie, Bell Boy to the Queen Nigel Lindsay as Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (series 1–2) Eve Myles as Mrs Jenkins, Senior Dresser to the Queen (series 1) David Oakes as Prince Ernest of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Albert's brother who is the Queen's first cousin (series 1–2) Paul Rhys as Sir John Conroy, the Duchess of Kent's comptroller (series 1) Adrian Schiller as Mr Cornelius Penge, footman at Kensington Palace; later footman at Buckingham Palace Peter Firth as King Ernest Augustus of Hanover, Victoria's paternal uncle (series 1–2) Alex Jennings as King Leopold I of the Belgians, who is Victoria's and Albert's uncle, the Duchess of Kent's younger brother (and widower of Princess Charlotte of Wales) Rufus Sewell as Lord Melbourne, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (series 1–2) Bebe Cave as Lady Wilhelmina Paget (née Coke), Lord Alfred's wife (series 2) Margaret Clunie as Harriet, Duchess of Sutherland, the Queen's lady-in-waiting (recurring series 1, main series 2) Tilly Steele as Miss Cleary, Junior Dresser to the Queen (series 2) Leo Suter as Mr Drummond, Sir Robert Peel's private secretary (series 2) Jordan Waller as Lord Alfred Paget, Clerk Marshal to the Queen (recurring series 1, main series 2–3) Anna Wilson-Jones as Lady Emma Portman, Lady of the Bedchamber to the Queen (recurring series 1, main series 2–3) Diana Rigg as Matilda, Duchess of Buccleuch, the Queen's lady-in-waiting (series 2) Nicholas Audsley as Charles, Duke of Monmouth, the Duchess of Monmouth's husband (series 3) Sabrina Bartlett as Abigail Turner, Lady's maid to the Queen (series 3) David Burnett as Joseph Weld, Footman at Buckingham Palace (series 3) Kate Fleetwood as Princess Feodora, Victoria's half-sister (series 3) Bruno Wolkowitch (featured series 2) and Vincent Regan (main series 3) as King Louis Philippe I of the French Lily Travers as Sophie, Duchess of Monmouth, the Queen's lady-in-waiting (series 3) John Sessions as Lord John Russell, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (series 3) Laurence Fox as Lord Palmerston, Foreign Secretary (series 3)
Recurring Peter Ivatts as William Howley, the Archbishop of Canterbury Tom Price as The Duke of Sutherland, the Duchess of Sutherland's husband (series 1–2) Robin Soans as Sir James Clark, Physician to the Queen (series 1–2) Samantha Colley as Eliza Skerrett, Nancy Skerrett's first cousin (series 1–2) Andrew Bicknell as The Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, Ernest's and Albert's father who is Victoria's maternal uncle (and the Duchess of Kent's and the King of the Belgians's older brother) (series 1–2) Hallie Woodhall (series 2) and Louisa Bay (series 3) as Victoria, Princess Royal "Vicky", Victoria's and Albert's eldest daughter Mac Jackson (series 2) and Laurie Shepherd (series 3) as Albert Edward, Prince of Wales "Bertie", Victoria's and Albert's eldest son John Tueart as Lord Eversley, Speaker of the House (series 2–3)
Series 1 Robin McCallum as Lord Portman, Lord Lieutenant of Somerset Nichola McAuliffe as Queen Frederica of Hanover, Victoria's paternal aunt by marriage Richard Dixon as Lord Cottenham, Lord Chancellor Alice Orr-Ewing as Lady Flora Hastings, the Duchess of Kent's lady-in-waiting Julian Finnigan as Lord Hastings, Lady Flora Hastings's brother Daniel Donskoy as Alexander, Tsesarevich of Russia Guy Oliver-Watts as Sir George Hayter, Principal Painter in Ordinary to the Queen Nicholas Agnew as Prince George of Cambridge, Victoria's first cousin who is the son of Victoria's paternal uncle, Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge Basil Eidenbenz as Lohlein, Prince Albert's valet David Bamber as The Duke of Sussex, Victoria's paternal uncle Daisy Goodwin as The Duchess of Inverness, Victoria's paternal aunt by marriage Simon Paisley Day as The Earl of Uxbridge, Lord Chamberlain Robert MacPherson as Anson, Private Secretary to Prince Albert
Series 2 Phil Rowson as John Bright MP, Member of Parliament for the City of Durham Tommy Rodger as Boy Jones, a boy who entered Buckingham Palace during 1838 to 1841 Andrew Havill as Dr Pritchard Zaris-Angel Hator as Sarah Forbes, Captain Forbes's adopted daughter who is the Queen's goddaughter Ben Lamb as Captain Forbes, Sarah's adopted father Catherine Steadman as Mrs Forbes, Sarah's adopted mother Martin Compston as Dr Traill, Irish campaigner for Famine victims in Cork Denis Lawson as The Duke of Atholl, the Queen's guard in a royal visit at Blair Castle
Series 3 Siobhan O'Carroll as Lady Lyttelton, the Prince of Wales's governess C.J. Beckford as William Cuffay, the Chartist Leader Ben Cartwright as Feargus O'Connor, Irish Chartist Leader Kerr Logan as Patrick Fitzgerald, the Irish Chartist Gregory Mann as William Monmouth, the Duke and Duchess of Monmouth's son Laura Morgan as Florence Nightingale, Trainer of Nurses during the Crimean War Hilton McRae as George Combe, Scottish Lawyer who wrote The Constitution of Man Hugh Simon as Colonel Sibthorp, Member of Parliament for Lincoln Bernard Melling as Guard Pandora Clifford as Emily Palmerston, Lord Palmerston's wife David Newman as Henry Cole, Great Exhibition's organiser Tristram Wymark as Lord Taunton, Secretary of State for the Colonies Christopher Brand as Joseph Paxton, The Crystal Palace's designer Ellen Evans as Princess Adelheid "Heidi", Victoria's half-niece Sam Swainsbury as Dr John Snow, the Physician who traced the source of a cholera outbreak in London in 1854 Edwin Thomas as Mr Caine, the Prince of Wales's tutor
Episodes
Series 1 (2016)
Series 2 (2017)
Series 3 (2019)
Production
Development The series was announced in September 2015, following Coleman's decision to leave Doctor Who to join the cast as Queen Victoria. Daisy Goodwin said in October 2016 that a Christmas special episode for the 2016 series had been proposed and was rejected by ITV; one was subsequently commissioned for 2017 after the rising ratings popularity for Victoria.
In September 2016, ITV renewed Victoria for a second series, followed by a Christmas special. In December 2017, Victoria was renewed for a third series, with Coleman and Hughes set to return. Beyond the renewal, ITV administration reportedly expects Victoria to run for a total of six series, although whether Jenna Coleman would remain as the lead actress as the series moves into depicting Victoria's later years was uncertain. After the conclusion of the third series, Coleman stated that the programme would "take a break" while a fourth series was planned. In July 2021, ITV stated "there are no plans presently to film Victoria, but that's not to say we won't revisit the series with the production team at a later date."
Producers Mammoth Screen picked Screen Yorkshire's Church Fenton Studios which is in Tadcaster North Yorkshire, as the central base for the recreation of Buckingham Palace. Church Fenton Studios recently launched, so Victoria subsequently became the first production to film there. It is the first time Yorkshire has needed a large scale studio space to host a major drama. Mammoth Screen spent seven months filming the first series in Yorkshire.
Filming Much of Victoria is filmed in Yorkshire. The interiors of Castle Howard double as Kensington Palace, Harewood House stands in for Buckingham Palace, with Bramham Park and Wentworth Woodhouse also being in use for both royal residences. Carlton Towers is in use as Windsor Castle, while Beverley Minster replaces Westminster Abbey. Other locations include Raby Castle, Allerton Castle, Newby Hall and Whitby West Pier. Church Fenton Studios, a converted aircraft hangar at Leeds East Airport near Selby, was in use to recreate some interiors of Buckingham Palace. Parts of Liverpool's Georgian quarter were used for exterior locations for the filming of the third series.
Filming for first series began in early 2016. The second series was filmed in early 2017 and the third series began filming in May 2018, after filming for The Cry, another series that Coleman starred in, commenced in Australia in February 2018, and concluded in May 2018, so that production on the third series of Victoria could commence.
Music
The theme song is by Martin Phipps, sung by the Mediæval Bæbes. Phipps also wrote and conducted incidental music for the early episodes. For later episodes the conducting role was undertaken by Ruth Barrett. An official soundtrack for the first series was released digitally on 12 January 2017. A CD issue followed in 2018.