Emilia Schüle's portrayal of Marie Antoinette has turned history on its head — and excitingly, Marie Antoinette season 2 has just dropped on BBC iPlayer as a box set.
I have to admit that back in 2022, when I first heard that France's last ever queen was going to be the subject of a glossy new period drama, I was slightly underwhelmed.
After all, we all know the story — spoilt, selfish royal of "let them eat cake" fame gets her much deserved comeuppance thanks to the French Revolution — so I wasn't keen to waste my time on a series when I already knew how it would end and it seemed unlikely that I'd feel any empathy for any of the lead characters. But I'm happy to admit I was wrong.
The period drama — if you've not seen it yet, the first series is also available now on BBC iPlayer — hasn't been particularly well received by critics, scoring just 60 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes, but its viewers disagreed, giving it a popcornmeter rating of 83 per cent. And, quite frankly, I’m with them.
The show was written by Deborah Davis, creator of The Favourite, which saw Olivia Colman scoop an Oscar for her role as Queen Anne. And Marie Antoinette has exactly the right dose of Davis’ acerbic wit and trademark dark humour.
It’s a sumptuous costume drama, focusing on real-life events in the same vein as Mary & George, which starred Julianne Moore and Nicholas Galitzine and boasts a 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but for me it has more bite and is far more entertaining.
Starring Emilia Schüle as the eponymous queen, the drama introduces us to her as a wide-eyed, 14-year-old innocent who is devastated at the thought of leaving Austria to move to France, where she must marry her equally terrified spouse, the 15-year-old heir to the French throne, Louis-Auguste (played by Louis Cunningham).
There, Marie Antoinette is thrust into the vipers’ nest that is the Palace of Versailles, where everyone from the king’s daughters, Adelaide (Crystal Shepherd-Cross) and Victoire (Caroline Piette), to the mistress of the house, Madame de Noailles (Laura Benson) and the king’s mistress, Madame du Barry (Gaia Weiss) are unwaveringly cruel to her.
Even the King’s brother Provence (Jack Archer) clearly hates his sibling and hopes to usurp him and his young bride as heir.
Emilia Schüle forces you to have empathy for Marie
It's here that Emilia Schüle comes into her own, and as we watch Marie Antoinette struggle with the baffling rules of court, those around her who are planning her downfall and the loss of her independence as she lives life under a microscope, her portrayal of the young queen as a sensitive yet feisty woman, determined to do whatever it takes to make her life at Versailles bearable, gets under the skin.
In fact, it seems she has achieved the impossible and forced us to have some empathy for a woman who is one of the most maligned characters in history.
As she tears up the rulebook in her battle to protect herself and those she loves, both from her enemies and a wholly patriarchal society, you can’t help but root for her. Somehow, Schüle has managed to transform a woman derided as "Madame Deficit" for allegedly causing France’s spiralling debt crisis with her frivolous attitude to money, into a relatable feminist icon. And that’s no mean feat.
More back-stabbing among the nobility than Bridgerton!
Schüle’s performance is by no means the only good thing about Marie Antoinette. Louis Cunningham adeptly sees King Louis XVI go from a reclusive and slightly odd teen to a grown man with a sense of vulnerability and a touching affection for his wife. And as for the villains, and there are many, there’s a whole host of delightfully awful characters to choose from, from Oscar Lesage’s Chartres, to the Queen’s self-serving "favourite" Yolande (Liah O’Prey).
If you love the drama and back-stabbing among the nobility in Bridgerton (and who doesn’t?) then Marie Antoinette takes devilry to a whole other level. Amidst the fabulous costumes and wigs and the beautifully shot opulent surroundings of Versailles itself, there are steamy affairs, faked pregnancies, treachery, lies and more lies. And what makes it even more gripping is the fact that it’s all based on truth.
The 'diamond necklace affair'
In season two, we’re introduced to the "diamond necklace affair", a scandal that is so outrageous and far-fetched that it couldn’t possible by real. Except it was. Skins' Freya Mavor joins the show as the ruthless and manipulative con woman Jeanne de Valois.
She's determined to make her fortune in the courts of Versailles and will do anything to do so. So, Jeanne conjures up a plot to steal the world’s most expensive diamond necklace and blame it on the luxury-loving Marie Antoinette. And Mavor plays the ballsy Jeanne with the perfect blend of smooth-talking silk and inner steel.
As things progress, and the French public begins to turn on the monarchy, you know exactly what is heading Marie Antoinette’s way and yet you can’t help but hope for a different outcome for the royal couple. I surprised myself by how invested I had become which is clearly the sign of a good drama. So if, like me, you love history but don’t want it served dry, then I’d urge you to give Marie Antoinette a try. Trust me, you won’t regret it.
Marie Antoinette season 2 will begin on Thursday, May 8, on BBC Two at 9.00 pm. It's already available on BBC iPlayer as a box set along with the first series. It's available via PBS in the US.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
