''Blackbeard'' is a 2006 American

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

television

miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...

based on the pirate

Blackbeard Edward Teach (alternatively spelled Edward Thatch, – 22 November 1718), better known as Blackbeard, was an English Piracy, pirate who operated around the West Indies and the eastern coast of Britain's Thirteen Colonies, North American colon ...

, directed by Kevin Connor from a screenplay written by

Bryce Zabel Bryce H. Zabel (born May 17, 1954) is an American television producer, director, writer, and occasional actor. With hundreds of hours of produced film and television credits, Zabel has scripted a trio of mini-series which aired in the U.S. market ...

. It premiered on

Hallmark Channel The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies and ...

on June 17, 2006. The miniseries was shot on location in

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

and the town of New Providence was built on a coconut plantation, and includes many factual names and places, but it is essentially a fictional story since Blackbeard's most notable exploits took place in North Carolina.

Plot

In the first quarter of the 18th century,

, otherwise Edward Teach was seen as the most notorious and dangerous seafaring pirate of all, plying his trade around the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

and the eastern coast of England’s North American colonies in his ship ''

Queen Anne's Revenge ''Queen Anne's Revenge'' was an early-18th-century ship, most famously used as a flagship by Edward Teach, better known by his nickname Blackbeard. Although the date and place of the ship's construction are uncertain, it was originally believed ...

''. Blackbeard wreaks havoc looking for

Captain Kidd William Kidd, also known as Captain William Kidd or simply Captain Kidd ( – 23 May 1701), was a Scottish sea captain who was commissioned as a privateer and had experience as a pirate. He was tried and executed in London in 1701 for murder a ...

's treasure, and his dark presence causes controversy in the port town of New Providence, especially for Governor Charles Eden and his adopted daughter Charlotte, who is being wooed by Lieutenant Robert Maynard.Vincent Terrace, ''Encyclopedia of Television Miniseries, 1936-2020'' (2021), p. 23

Cast

Angus Macfadyen Angus Macfadyen (born 21 September 1963) is a Scottish actor. His roles include Robert the Bruce, both in ''Braveheart'' and ''Robert the Bruce'', Komodo in ''Warriors of Virtue'', Vice-Counsel Dupont in '' Equilibrium'', Jeff Denlon in the '' ...

as Blackbeard *

Mark Umbers Mark Umbers (born 17 June 1973) is an English theatre, film and television actor. Early life and education Born in Harrogate, West Riding of Yorkshire, Umbers was brought up in Wetherby and was educated at Malsis School before attending Sedber ...

as Lieutenant Robert Maynard *

Richard Chamberlain George Richard Chamberlain (born March 31, 1934) is an American actor and singer, who became a teen idol in the title role of the television show ''Dr. Kildare'' (1961–1966). He subsequently appeared in several TV mini-series, such as ''Shōg ...

as Governor Charles Eden *

Jessica Chastain Jessica Michelle Chastain (born March 24, 1977) is an American actress and producer. Known for primarily starring in films with feminist themes, she has received various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. ''Time'' ...

as Charlotte Ormand *

Stacy Keach Walter Stacy Keach Jr. (born June 2, 1941) is an American actor and narrator. He has played mainly dramatic roles throughout his career, often in law enforcement or as a private detective. His most prominent role was as Mickey Spillane's fictiona ...

as Captain Benjamin Hornigold *

Clement von Franckenstein Clement George Freiherr von und zu Franckenstein (28 May 1944 – 9 May 2019) was an English actor. He was best known for portraying President D'Astier in ''The American President'' (1995), the English Investor in '' Lionheart'' (1990), the Open ...

as Admiral Joseph Pennington *

Rachel Ward Rachel Claire Ward (born 12 September 1957) is an English-Australian

as Sally Dunbar * Anthony Green as

Israel Hands Israel Hands, also known as Basilica Hands, was an 18th-century pirate best known for being second in command to Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard. His name serves as the basis for the name of the villainous sidekick in Robert Louis Steven ...

Jasper Britton Jasper Britton (born 11 December 1962) is an English actor. Early life and education Britton was born in Chelsea in London, and educated at Belmont Preparatory School, Sussex House School and Mill Hill School, north London. Britton is the onl ...

as William Howard *

Niko Nicotera Niko Nicotera is a German-born American actor best known for playing George "Ratboy" Skogstrom in the television series ''Sons of Anarchy'' (2011–2014). Early life and education Niko was born in Giessen, Germany, on an American military base, a ...

as Moses Hobbs *

Robin Strasser Robin Victory in Europe Strasser (born May 7, 1945) is an American actress, best known for her role as Dorian Lord on the ABC daytime soap opera ''One Life to Live''. Life and career Strasser's middle name is a tribute to her being born the day ...

as Felice Richmond *

Nicholas Farrell Nicholas C. Frost (born 1955), known professionally as Nicholas Farrell, is an English stage, film and television actor. Education Farrell was educated at Fryerns Grammar and Technical School in Basildon, Essex, followed by the University of ...

as Tobias Knight * David Winters as Silas Bridges *

Dom Hetrakul Dom Hetrakul ( th, ดอม เหตระกูล; ; June 18, 1974 in Bangkok, Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of ...

as Seng *

Nigel Terry Peter Nigel Terry (15 August 1945 – 30 April 2015) was an English stage, film, and television actor, typically in historical and period roles. He played John, King of England, Prince John in Anthony Harvey's film ''The Lion in Winter (1968 f ...

as Calico Billy *

Steven Elder Steven Elder is an English actor and screenwriter, known for his roles in the feature films ''Good'' (2008) and '' The King'' (2019), and the BBC television series '' Apple Tree Yard'' (2017). Filmography Films Television Audio drama ''H ...

as Lt. Jack Spector *

Paul Brightwell Paul Brightwell is an English actor and director. He has acted in many different plays, films and TV shows since the late 1980s. Theatre direction includes the British premieres of Heiner Muller's '' Hamletmachine'' at the Gate Notting Hill, and ...

as Captain Ellis Brand *Andrew Smith as Benjamin Dow *Love Nystrom as Captain William Kidd *Stuart Lounton as Cordingly *Wendy Mae Brown as Lulu *Jake Curran as Joseph Prescott *Robert Willox as Snake Leavitt *Patrick Regis as Thatch *Alan Shearman as Enoch Sanborn *Danny Midwinter as Elias Ransom *Bill Fellows as Dr Peter Bruce *Christopher Clyde-Green as Black Caesar *Ken Forge as Phillips *Marion Valtas as Maddy *Greg Jorgensen as Panhandler *Jonathan Samson as Woodward *James Moody as Two-Face Askin *David Ismalone as Captain Jean D'Ocier *Jake Anthony as Minister *Greg Stefaniuk as Merchant Captain *Shaun Delaney as John Noble *James David McClurg as Shiny *Keith Lounton as Carlton *Johann Bento as French First Mate *Thomas Kollon as Big John *Emma Passos as Mother *Damian Mavis as First Robber

Production

Despite being about the miniseries, the serial is largely a remake of '' Captain Blood'' (1935). It was filmed by Living Films on location around

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

Home media

It was released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...

by Echo Bridge Entertainment on July 11, 2006. It was later released in an international DVD edition re-titled ''Pirates: The True Story of Blackbeard'', though by the writers own admission little of the screenplay was actually true.

References

External links

''Blackbeard''
at Echo Bridge Entertainment's website * *
''Blackbeard''
on HallmarkChannel.tv

– review & behind-the-scenes information

Elite Magazine {{Kevin Connor 2006 American television series debuts 2006 American television series endings 2000s American drama television series American adventure television series 2000s American television miniseries Cultural depictions of Blackbeard English-language television shows