As period TV drama Wolf Hall, filmed in the county, reaches its conclusion this week, we look back at the other great TV moments that owe a debt to Kent. Jo Roberts reports.

Sad to say it, but the BBC’s celebrated six-part drama based on author Hilary Mantel’s books Wolf Hall and Bring Up The Bodies is coming to its end.

The lavish series, starring Ashford-born Olivier and Tony Award-winning actor Mark Rylance as Thomas Cromwell, Damian Lewis as King Henry VIII and Claire Foy as the ambitious yet ill-fated Anne Boleyn, finishes on Wednesday, February 25 at 9pm on BBC2.

Key scenes were filmed at Penshurst Place, near Tonbridge, which in reality was used by Henry as a base from which to pursue Anne Boleyn, his second wife, who lived close by at Hever. Dover Castle also features heavily in the final episode, standing in as the exterior for the Tower of London with its Great Tower providing the backdrop for Anne’s execution.

What’s On looks back over what has been a superb and much-talked-about piece of television, and asks whether you can answer our quiz about these other dramas filmed in Kent?

WOLF HALL REVIEW

I have to admit, I can’t tell a tallow candle from a wax one.

But doubtless there are people out there who can, and it is one small indication of the BBC’s quest to make its adaptation of Wolf Hall as authentic as possible that its candles – and they get through an awful lot of them in each dimly lit episode – are definitely tallow.

There may be a few carping souls who grumble about spending the licence fee on such details but ignore them; Wolf Hall is the BBC at its absolute best and if you’ve missed an episode I can only urge you to get on to iPlayer and catch up with the rest of us who think this brilliant six-part series is why we pay a licence fee.

The painstaking research that went into Mantel’s novels Wolf Hall and Bring Up The Bodies is matched by the attention to detail that we see on screen, not least, of course, in the use of some of Kent’s finest buildings in its filming.

But it’s not just about the small details – the storming performances of the entire cast and the towering portrayal of Cromwell by Mark Rylance really mark Wolf Hall out as something special. It might have seemed a tall order to condense two intricate Booker-winning novels into just six episodes but when you have a man who can convey whole chapters with a single glance, it’s a piece of cake.

I was already more than a little in love with Mantel’s version of Cromwell from the books – and now I’ve fallen hook, line and sinker for the charismatic TV version thanks to Rylance’s nuanced performance.

Throw in the likes of Jonathan Pryce as Wolsey and Anton Lesser as More, Damian Lewis as Henry, Claire Foy as Ann Boleyn and Saskia Reeves as Cromwell’s sister-in-law and there isn’t a minute on screen which isn’t a showcase for acting talent.

The political intrigue at the heart of the novels with characters plotting and fighting for their very lives, not just livelihoods, is all there and makes for gripping drama. Sex, power, religion, loyalty and betrayal, humour and tragedy – Wolf Hall has the lot. Nothing else can hold a candle to it – tallow or otherwise.

- Debbie Neech

BACKDROP TO SOME GREAT TV

1. CALL THE MIDWIFE (2012 to present)

Heart-warming and, at many times, heart-breaking, this BBC series depicts the experiences, lives and loves of a group of young midwives and the varied characters they live with at convent Nonnatus House. The much-loved drama, narrated by Vanessa Redgrave, is filmed at the Historic Dockyard Chatham, which doubles for the East London area of Poplar in the 1950s and 1960s.

Trivia: Which actress famous for The Railway Children plays Sister Julienne?

2. SOUTHCLIFFE (2013)

An odd yet powerful four-part Channel 4 drama, Southcliffe told the story of a fictional English town devastated by a spate of shootings that take place over a single day, and was filmed in Faversham, Seasalter and the Shipwright’s Arms pub in Oare. We watched as unhappy journalist David Whitehead (Rory Kinnear) returned to his home town to report on the murders by loner Stephen Morton (Sean Harris), causing David’s own grip on his life to unravel.

Trivia: Which actress who appeared in the Harry Potter movies as Moaning Myrtle played a bereaved mother in Southcliffe?

3. THE PARDONER’S TALE (2003)

A modern-day drama series based on Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales featured a host of famous names in its six-part run, including Julie Walters, Billie Piper, James Nesbitt, Bill Nighy, John Simm and Chiwetel Ejiofor. Though all were set in the county, it was most specifically The Pardoner’s Tale, starring Jonny Lee Miller, that featured the distinctly Kent backdrop of Rochester Castle. The Sea Captain’s Tale was set within the Asian community in Gravesend and The Man of Law’s Tale filmed at the Historic Dockyard Chatham.

Trivia: In which century did Geoffrey Chaucer write the original Canterbury Tales?

4. THE POISON TREE (2012)

Based on the popular book by Erin Kelly, this atmospheric and psychological ITV drama told of Karen Clarke (MyAnna Buring), who had been waiting twelve long years for the release of her partner Rex (Matthew Goode), from prison. But all was not well, as anonymous texts and unwelcome spies pushed Karen to the limit. Filming took place on the Dungeness Estate and specifically at the Pilot Inn.

Trivia: Which building brooded in the background of many outdoor scenes within The Poison Tree?

5. TIPPING THE VELVET (2002)

A lot of excitement surrounded this racy BBC adaptation of Sarah Waters’ novel of lesbian love in Victorian Britain. The story begins in Whitstable, featuring the characteristic Horsebridge area of the beach. As our heroine Nan Astley (Rachael Stirling) grows into womanhood, she realises that she’s attracted to women and sets off for London on a series of steamy romances with mixed results.

Trivia: Who is actress Rachael Stirling’s famous mum?

ANSWERS: 1)Jenny Agutter 2) Shirley Henderson 3) 14th Century 4) Dungeness Power Station 5) Dame Diana Rigg

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