POWER AND PRINCIPALITY: "CAMELOT"

High stakes for Arthur (Jamie Campbell Bower) and Morgan (Eva Green) in the new interpretation of CAMELOT. Image: STARZ

Just in time to cash in on the heavy dollops of sex and swordplay on offer in the hugely successful GAME OF THRONES HBO adaptation comes the US STARZ channel's ambitious new series CAMELOT to CHANNEL 4 this Saturday evening, based on, you guessed it, the birth and evolution of the Arthur legend (isn't it great that the UK has produced so many iconic characters and legendary heroes ripe for continual re-imagining? If there had been a publicist like Max Clifford back in the day when all these heroes, villains and myths were being formulated and perpetuated-passed through the generations- the film and TV purchasing rights would have been enormous!). It all looks glossy and enjoyable in its own way, with the fresh acting blood of Jamie Campbell Bower in the title role of the young man who will be king, and, as its produced by the people behind THE TUDORS, its more than likely to contradict, for its own story needs, everything that's ever been iconized about the character/saviour of the Dark Ages -if such a man could ever have existed- and his noble part in Ye Olde England's history. Whether such dramatic license will prove to be a good thing, and whether it can even top the likes of such quality works on the subject as John Boorman's superb and enchanting movie, EXCALIBUR, remains to be seen. I think we'll probably end up with a version of the tale one step up from Richard Gere and Sean Connery's 1995 attempt, KING ARTHUR, but with a bit more gritty realism, lots of gore and violence and the aforementioned bed hopping...

Watch your back, Arthur: that Morgan's a deadly lady!

There's definitely one major difference, however, between this and any other prior versions of the Arthur and Merlin legend: namely that it's got the rather lovely Eva Green in it, surely one of the most popular of James Bond girls in recent years after her performance as 007's doomed love Vesper Lynd in the hit Daniel Craig premiere CASINO ROYALE, and she's an actress with the kind of hypnotic and sexually beguiling, dangerous look in her eyes that's absolutely perfect for this kind of storytelling. She plays the important role of Morgan, the series principal antagonist, ambitious to claim the rightful throne that once belonged to her late father, King Uther. No doubt, as the series goes on, she'll make Helen Mirren's sultry and vindictive version of the role in EXCALIBUR look like a convent girl!

Joseph Fiennes as a slightly revised version of Merlin.

Arthur puts his point across to the masses...

The kind of all-star cast needed to propel this series into the public eye, described in the press publicity as being heavy on drama, politics and idealism, continues with the addition of FLASH FORWARD's Joseph Fiennes as a younger and more action heroic version of Merlin than we've been previously accustomed to, Claire Forlani as Arthur's mother Igraine, ROME's James Purefoy, lovely Tamsin Egerton as Arthur's tragic love Guinevere, Sean Pertwee and the always dependable action-hero Vincent Regan, so I'm sure they'll be enough eye candy to be enjoyed by both girls and boys as the story unfolds amongst the no doubt beautiful location backdrops of Ireland and Canada.

Trailer: YouTube - "Camelot" - NEW, long trailer STARZ

Fire and blood make their bedfellows with Arthur as he becomes King of England.

However many seasons it ultimately goes to, will CAMELOT make the kind of long term phenomenal impact that GAME OF THRONES has so quickly reached? Unlikely, I think (and English scripter Chris Chibnall, whose previous credits include LAW AND ORDER UK, DOCTOR WHO and TORCHWOOD, has hardly proved himself as one of the all-time great TV writers yet), but I certainly reckon it will have a good innings existence for the next few years at least across the world's digital TV platforms, their channels always desperate to have well made series in their schedules so as to bolster out their portfolios and viewing figures.

King Arthur remains an immortally interesting and enduring character across the world, and I have no doubts that this won't be the last time we'll see another romanticised series bearing either his name or legacy...