BBC: King Lear (2018) part 6

Read the previous post here: http://lilliteraturereviews.blogspot.com/2018/06/bbc-king-lear-2018-part-5.html

Act III, Scenes 1-4

Plot Summary

Act 3 scenes 1-2 appear to be omitted from BBC's production. In Shakespeare's play, Kent is shown searching for Lear, and learns of his whereabouts from a knight. He tells this knight secret information: of unrest between Albany and Cornwall, and that there are French spies within the English courts. Kent tells the knight to go to Dover in search of allies, and gives the knight a ring to give to Cordelia so that she knows who has sent the message. Kent then searches for Lear, who is still wandering in the storm with his Fool and cursing his daughters. Kent finds them, and urges them to take shelter in a nearby hovel.

Scene 3 returns to Gloucester in his castle with Edmund. Gloucester shows worry for the King and recounts how Lear had been locked out in the storm to Edmund. He then reveals news of a conflict between Albany and Cornwall to Edmund, and tells that a French army is invading. Gloucester takes the King's side and decides to search for him in the storm, while Edmund distracts the Duke of Cornwall so that Gloucester's absence goes unnoticed. However, when Gloucester leaves, Edmund betrays his father and immediately tells Cornwall, hoping to inherit Gloucester's fortune after he has been executed for treachery.

We are transported back to Lear for scene 4, where he is refusing to enter the hovel in shelter of the storm. He stays outside and prays, reflecting that he did too little as King to protect the homeless who had no shelter from storms such as this. The Fool runs out of the hovel in horror, claiming that it is haunted - but it is Edgar disguised as beggar Tom O'Bedlam. "Tom" claims he is being chased by the devil, and Lear sympathises with him. They share stories, and Lear removes his own clothes to match Edgar's nakedness. Gloucester finds the King, and attempts to persuade him to return to the castle. Lear is persuaded, but decides to bring his new friend, "Tom", with him.

BBC Production

Given that much of scenes 1 and 2 are missing, England's political situation is not at the forefront in this production. Jim Broadbent shows a serious face as Gloucester reveals to Edmund that France are invading, however there is no more information than this up to now. Gloucester hands a letter to Edmund and embraces his son before leaving in search of Lear. There is also no sign that Edmund plans to betray his father, and no suggestion that he is thinking of sentencing his father to death by telling Cornwall of his treachery.

The "hovel" is a group of tents, seemingly where homeless families take refuge from the storm. This clarifies Lear's monologue about the poor homeless citizens that he has let down in his rule. It is a huge contrast from the grand castles we have previously seen, and symbolises the King's mental downfall while suggesting that this is where Kent has had to stay since being exiled. It serves as a reminder that, although this play follows the effect of Lear's actions on his family and friends, a King's attitude and actions (or lack thereof) will also impact the lives of everyone under his rule.

This moment of reflection is interrupted all too quickly by the sound of snarls and the Fool's outcry of a spirit inside the "hovel". Edgar (Andrew Scott), half naked and covered in dirt and mud, is shooed out by Kent with a long stick. Scott is good at playing a madman, so I looked forward to seeing how he would embody this character. His eyes are wide, his arms are flailing, and his voice is high-pitched and hysterical: "Poor Tom!". As always, his performance is very physical, grabbing at himself, the ground, and other characters. He huddles and flinches like a puppy when Gloucester arrives with a torch, and Lear puts his arm around him in protection as he leads him back to the castle with him.

Read part 7 here: http://lilliteraturereviews.blogspot.com/2018/06/bbc-king-lear-2018-part-7.html