''A Very British Scandal'' is a 2021 historical drama television miniseries, starring

Claire Foy Claire Elizabeth Foy (born 16 April 1984) is a British actress. She is best known for her portrayal of the young Queen Elizabeth II in the first two seasons of the Netflix series ''The Crown'' (2016–2017) for which she won a Primetime Emmy Aw ...

Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll Ethel Margaret Campbell, Duchess of Argyll (''née'' Whigham, formerly Sweeny; 1 December 1912 – 25 July 1993) was a Scottish heiress, socialite, and aristocrat who was most famous for her 1951 marriage and much-publicised 1963 divorce fro ...

and

Paul Bettany Paul Bettany (born 27 May 1971) is an English actor. He is mostly known for his roles as J.A.R.V.I.S. and Vision in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, recently starring in the Disney+ miniseries ''WandaVision'' (2021), for which he was nominated fo ...

Ian Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll Ian Douglas Campbell, 11th and 4th Duke of Argyll (18 June 1903 – 7 April 1973), was a Scottish peer and the Chief of Clan Campbell ( gd, MacCailein Mòr). He is chiefly remembered for his unhappy marriage to, and scandalous 1963 divorce fro ...

. Its production company,

Blueprint Pictures Blueprint Pictures is an independent production company founded in 2005 by producers Graham Broadbent and Peter Czernin. Sony Pictures Television has owned a small stake in Blueprint Television since 2016. In 2008, Blueprint Pictures produced Ma ...

, previously made ''

A Very English Scandal ''A Very English Scandal'' is a true crime non-fiction novel by John Preston. It was first published on 5 May 2016 by Viking Press and by Other Press in the United States. The novel details the 1970s Thorpe affair in Britain, in which former L ...

'' (2018), about the

Thorpe affair The Thorpe affair of the 1970s was a British political and sex scandal that ended the career of Jeremy Thorpe, the leader of the Liberal Party and Member of Parliament (MP) for North Devon. The scandal arose from allegations by Norman Josiffe (o ...

. Written and created by

Sarah Phelps Sarah Phelps is a British television screenwriter, radio writer, playwright and television producer. She is best known for her work on ''EastEnders'', a number of BBC serial adaptations including Agatha Christie's ''The Witness For the Prosecuti ...

, ''A Very British Scandal'' premiered in the United Kingdom on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

on 26 December 2021. It was released on

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming and Renting, rental service of Amazon (c ...

on 22 April 2022. Foy won "Best Actress", during the

Broadcasting Press Guild Awards The Broadcasting Press Guild (BPG) is a British association of journalists dedicated to the topic of general media issues. History The Guild was established in 1974 as a breakaway of The Critics' Circle. Currently it groups over 100 staff and fre ...

for her performance.

Synopsis

The three-episode series dramatises the marriage of

Margaret Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...

and

Chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

( gd, MacCailein Mòr) of

Clan Campbell Clan Campbell ( gd, Na Caimbeulaich ) is a Highland Scottish clan, historically one of the largest and most powerful of the Highland clans. The Clan Campbell lands are in Argyll and within their lands lies Ben Cruachan. The chief of the clan be ...

, and the media frenzy surrounding their 1963 ''Argyll v Argyll'' divorce case. Ian Campbell, 11th Duke of Argyll, is a member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

in the 1960s. He meets Margaret Sweeny and falls in love with her while he is still married to his second wife Louise. After marrying Margaret, Ian Campbell announces that he intends to leave his estate to his oldest son. Margaret―who stands to gain nothing if her new husband passes away―starts rumors that Ian's children are

illegitimate Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as ''b ...

. It became a notorious and scandalous legal case, featuring accusations of adultery, forgery, theft, violence, drug use, and bribery. The series explores the social and political climate of postwar Britain, and attitudes toward women in the 1960s.

Cast

Production

In March 2021, it was announced that

and

had been cast in the lead roles of ''A Very British Scandal'', a follow-up to 2018's ''

'', and that

would write and executive produce, with

Anne Sewitsky Anne Sewitsky (born 12 January 1978) is a Norwegian film director. Her 2010 film '' Happy, Happy'' was selected as the Norwegian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 84th Academy Awards, but did not make the final shortlist. In 2015, he ...

directing and executive producing. The series was filmed in Scotland and England, including at Scotland's

Inveraray Castle Inveraray Castle (pronounced or ; Scottish Gaelic ''Caisteal Inbhir Aora'' ) is a country house near Inveraray in the county of Argyll, in western Scotland, on the shore of Loch Fyne, Scotland's longest sea loch. It is one of the earliest ex ...

(home of the Duke of Argyll),

Glen Etive Glen Etive ( gd, Gleann Èite) is a glen in the Highlands of Scotland. The River Etive ( gd, Abhainn Èite) rises on the peaks surrounding Rannoch Moor, with several tributary streams coming together at the Kings House Hotel, at the head of Gl ...

in the

Scottish Highlands The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Sco ...

, Edinburgh's Parliament House, the

Sheraton Grand London Park Lane Hotel The Sheraton Grand London Park Lane is a star (classification), 5 Star hotel on Piccadilly, London. The hotel opened in 1927 as The Park Lane Hotel to designs by architects Adie, Button and Partners, in a grand Art Deco style, and was construc ...

Kimpton Fitzroy London Hotel The Kimpton Fitzroy London is a historic five-star hotel, located on Russell Square, Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. From its opening in 1900 until 2018, it was known as the Hotel Russell. History The Hotel Russell was built in 18 ...

Goldsmiths' Hall Goldsmiths' Hall is a Grade I listed building at the junction of Foster Lane and Gresham Street in the City of London. It has served as an assay office and the headquarters of London's goldsmith guild, the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, one o ...

in London, and the

Rivoli Ballroom The Rivoli Ballroom is the only intact 1950s ballroom remaining in London, England. It is famed for its original decor and interior fittings, including red velvet, flock wallpaper, chandeliers, glitter balls and oversized Chinese lanterns. The ...

in London.

Episodes

Release

The series premiered in the United Kingdom on

on December 26, 2021, and released in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand on

Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered as a standalone service or as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service prim ...

on April 22, 2022. In the United States, Amazon has entitled ''A Very British Scandal'' as the 2nd season of ''

''.

Critical reception

Lucy Mangan Lucy Katherine Mangan''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' (born 1974) is a British journalist and author. She is a columnist, features writer and TV critic for ''The Guardian''. A major part of her writing is related t ...

of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' gave the series five out of five stars, praising the writing and casting of the leads, as well as the portrayal of Margaret Campbell as an independent woman but not as a heroic figure. Ed Cumming of ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' also gave the series five out of five stars, writing that Foy and Bettany are "both exceptional." Carol Midgley of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' was less complimentary, awarding three out of five stars, but also praising Foy. Anita Singh of ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

'' gave it two out of five stars, criticising the shift in tone and style from ''A Very English Scandal'', and feeling that it failed to make Margaret a sympathetic character.

Awards and nominations

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Very British Scandal, A 2021 British television series debuts 2021 British television series endings 2020s British television miniseries BBC television dramas English-language television shows Television series by Amazon Studios Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television series set in the 1960s Television series set in the 1950s Television shows filmed in the United Kingdom Amazon Prime Video original programming