Elizabeth Kerri Mahon

You guys, this show is twisting itself in knots to try and figure out ways to keep Mary and Francis from getting married.  As you probably recall, Nostradamus predicted that marriage to Mary will be the death of Francis. And Henry, for some reason, decided that it's vitally important that Mary stake her claim to the throne of England. Diane de Poitier's plot to have Bash legitimized was discovered, so she convinced Bash to leave the court. I can't even begin to recap these episodes.  Both of them hit new heights of ridiculousness.  "In For King and Country," Mary decides that there is only one way for her to keep Francis safe.  She tells King Henry that she will stake her claim to the English throne but there is a catch.  Henry has disinherit Francis and legitimize Bash, who she'll marry him instead. Henry hesitates for only a minute before agreeing.  Seriously? This plot is so ridiculous, I can only imagine the writers were smoking something when they

I'm so sorry for getting behind with my REIGN recaps.  I went to England for a week, and I forgot to set my DVR to tape "Left Behind" and then I was so jet-lagged when I got back that I totally forgot that there was a new episode before the holidays.  In the meantime REIGN inexplicably won 'Best New Show' at the People's Choice Awards, which means that this show will probably be getting a second season.  Truthfully, it was really hard to watch these two episodes. I get so frustrated with this show! It has moments where it's decent, but for the most part these episodes are execrable for different reasons. The biggest problem that I have with this show is the lack of atmosphere. The French court should be teeming with people, the royals should have no privacy whatsoever. Instead, Mary and ladies wander around the halls of the palace in their nightgowns at all hours of the day and night.  Where are Catherine's ladies-in-waiting, her flying squadron o

Just caught up with REIGN this morning. OMG you guys, so much drama! Archery contests, whipping boys, ghosts, intrigue, romance. Where do I begin? - Tomas and Francis competed in an archery contest because a joust would have been too exciting I guess. Tomas cheated, and then gave Mary a favor of a pink rose. In front of everyone! - Mary's uncle Claude de Guise showed up again to basically tell her stuff. This time it was to tell her that King Henri wasn't yet willing to end her betrothal to Francis. - Catherine de Medici admitted to Mary that she wanted her gone, gone, gone. - Francis, now that Mary was about to get engaged to another man, got all handsy and jealous. - Lola flirted with a wounded Bash. - Tomas showed his true colors by telling Mary every time she disobeyed him, Miguel the whipping boy, would be punished. - Simon, Lord Westbrook, was accused of being a spy for the English and almost executed in the middle of a masquerade ball. -

  I finally got a chance to watch last week's episode of REIGN. OMG, you guy, so much happened to our girl Mary this week. - England sent troops to the Scottish border which sent Mary into a tizzy when her cousin Claude de Guise showed up to tell her. (Given how long it took news to arrive, are we to assume that the English troops just camped out on the border hoping for a fight?) - She asked King Henri for troops to help Scotland and he said 'no way.' - She kicked a ball around with Prince Charles. - She climbed a tree and then got stuck. - She met Tomas, the sexy illegitimate son of the King of Portugal. - She broke the girl code, spending time with Tomas, even though she knew Greer liked him. - She offered to sell Tomas timber in exchange for troops. Instead he wanted to marry her. Something about her 'wildness' appealed to him. - She did a sexy dance with Tomas at a ball, which consisted of a lot of dipping and lifting, wearing a dress that look

There are many great things about living in New York, and one of them is the Paley Center in midtown.   The Paley Center is a museum that is dedicated to one thing only; television.   For the past several years, they have given members as well as the public the chance to get a first look at the new fall television season.   This year, I was lucky enough to get to view the pilot for the new CW series about Mary, Queen of Scots, called appropriately enough, REIGN.    (Mary and Francis have a tense moment)    I tried desperately to check my brain at the door and throw away and preconceived notions that I might have had from watching the extended preview online.   However, that proved difficult once the show started.   Granted, I’m clearly not the intended viewing audience for this show.   The CW tends to skew hella young and most of the shows are geared towards teenagers and twenty-somethings.   REIGN is definitely skewed towards teenage girls; there is man candy, pr

Diane (1956) Produced by: MGM Directed by:  David Miller Screenplay: Christopher Isherwood based on a story by John Erskine. Cast: Lana Turner - Diane de Poitiers Pedro Armendáriz - King Francis I of France Roger Moore - Prince Henri (later King Henry II) Marisa Pavan - Catherine de' Medici Sir Cedric Hardwicke - Ruggieri Torin Thatcher - Count de Brèze Taina Elg - Alys John Lupton - Regnault Henry Daniell - Gondi Ronald Green - The Dauphin Sean McClory - Count Montgomery Geoffrey Toone - Duke of Savoy Michael Ansara - Count Ridolfi Melville Cooper - Court Physician Synopsis (from Wikipedia): The action is set in 16th century France. Diane de Poitiers (Lana Turner), mistress of Prince Henri (Roger Moore), the future King Henry II, rises to a position of absolute power through her manipulation of the men in her life. Those men include King Francis I (Pedro Armendariz) and Diane's husband, the Count de Brèze (Torin Thatcher). Diane's principal foe is the

The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner Ballantine Books, May 2010 From the Publisher: To some she was the ruthless queen who led France into an era of savage violence. To others she was the passionate savior of the French monarchy. The last legitimate descendant of the illustrious Medici line, Catherine suffers the expulsion of her family from her native Florence and narrowly escapes death at the hands of an enraged mob. While still a teenager, she is betrothed to Henri, son of François I of France, and sent from Italy to an unfamiliar realm where she is overshadowed and humiliated by her husband’s lifelong mistress. Ever resilient, Catherine strives to create a role for herself through her patronage of the famous clairvoyant Nostradamus and her own innate gift as a seer. But in her fortieth year, Catherine is widowed, left alone with six young children as regent of a kingdom torn apart by religious discord and the ambitions of a treacherous nobility. I confess