Your Reviews
You sent in your comments about Episode, read a selection below.
"A tangle of intrigue and political action."
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"Cracking start to the series. Kevin McKidd and Ray Stevenson make an excellent duo. One a strong leader with a solid set of morals, the other a comedic drunken fighting goliath.
Ciarán Hinds as Gaius Julius was excellent, very dry and solemn. James Purefoy as Mark Anthony was excellent, let's banish those images of him falling on his sword for Cleopatra. This shows him in a smart intelligent light with good political knowlege and knowhow.
All in all the story has been given a good solid base with introductions to each of the main characters and a beginning of the main plot. The Caesar/Pompey division will no doubt kick off into a tangle of intrigue and political action. How will Titus get out of this little pickle. I never saw the whole dagger/neck thing coming.
Carry on Rome.... you're off on a good foot."
Tom Price, Leeds
"Credit where credit's due, there were one or two very cool moments in this programme. But really, I don't think I've seen such a self-indulgent, pointless, over-the-top and poorly directed programme since Big Brother*. Please don't just throw the words 'epic drama' around, because they leave a lot to live up to - and this piece of rubbish didn't even come close to 'vaguely entertaining piece of not hugely dramatic film'. I've seen more drama in the supermarket. A waste of great potential, and a shameless and tasteless attempt to try to keep up with Channel 4's* Banned Season."
Nick Lang, London
"My wife and I were really looking forward to Rome. Maybe the press set our expectations too high, but we found it so lacking in story we switched off and went back to listening to the radio well before the end of the first episode. It was wonderfully produced, but that that means little without a good tale to tell."
John Walker, Oxfordshire
"One of the most beguiling and authentic looking dramas I have ever experienced. Somewhat shocking in parts, but it's that integral honesty that will keep me hooked until the end of the serial. Well done 'brave' Auntie Beeb."
Bryan Wall, Manchester
"I saw the first ten minutes of Rome and was impressed by the lavish production and the vigour with which the tale was being told. Then I was unexpectedly faced by two people revelling in the joys of fornication, with nothing left to the imagination. Fortunately I had finished my meal or I am sure that my appetite would have been spoiled. I felt that this scene was well beyond the limits of decency or good taste. I switched off, my evening disrupted, fearing that more ill-judged direction was to come. If the BBC anticipated complaints of this kind why did they set out to offend, which seems to be the implication?"
Ernest Potter, Huddersfield
"The BBC managed to destroy many of the scenes."
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"I feel very fortunate to have seen the first six episodes of this series on HBO*. Fortunate because I have seen the first half of a superb, quality drama, worthy of the BBC at it's best. Unfortunately, the badly edited and confusing mess broadcast on Wednesday evening will leave most viewers with the wrong impression; that every episode will be just as bad.
The BBC managed to destroy many of the scenes by hacking out key parts and bits of dialogue, reducing the scene to bare minimum, killing the atmosphere and causing it to fast-cut to the next like a pop video. Other scenes have been ripped out in their entirety.
It then fast-cut to the beginning of episode 2 (showing the entire set-up for the story How Titus Pullo brought down the Republic*) which means episode 2 is now messed up because it was originally a self-contained story within a story.
I have read the BBC's response and, quite frankly that makes about as much sense as Rome did last night. I've been raving about this series since the first airing on HBO, and now all my friends here in the UK are saying 'well it was ok but I had trouble following it.'
I'm just relieved that they don't appear to be planning the murder of any episodes after 3, because I'm back in the UK and I only saw up to episode 7."
Steve, South Yorkshire
"I fear I will not be alone when I say that Rome was quite simply the worst drama I have ever witnessed on the BBC - they should be ashamed. Where to start? Ham acting, very poor script, disconnected and too short scenes, poor character development, I could go on ... The result was a hotchpotch of seemingly random amateur dramatic out-takes that engendered no character empathy and no compelling plot. How this series passed any sort of BBC quality control I have no idea.
PS: Is it an historical fact that all Romans grunt like wild boars during sex?"
Tony Blin-Stoyle, London
"This was great. People in the press need to stop worrying about the nudity and violence and realise it is all part of the story and the grit of Rome. It makes it more real, and even if people were only tuning in to watch these bits at least they might learn something about history drama as well. How on earth can The Sun* newspaper say there is too much nudity in this? Have they never looked at page 3 of their own newspaper?"
Matty, Hull
"I can't wait to see the next one."
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"Excellent. I can't wait to see the next one and will probably watch this episode again on Sunday night. Well done on another fabulous show - the BBC really is the best in the game at these one hour weekly drama series"
Andrew, Yorkshire
"What a fantastic series. I was tentative on tuning in, expecting a cavalcade of titilation and cliches. Instead this is top-drawer stuff, with an interesting and new spin on portraying this time. It's the acting that makes it, though. Everyone was very convincing. I can't wait for episode 2."
David O MacGowan, Chorley, Lancs
"I enjoyed the first episode of Rome a great deal. However, I gather from the HBO bulletin boards* that the first two episodes have been conflated into one, which explains a great deal of the rushed and confused feeling that the episode possessed.
I feel that it is ridiculous and somewhat insulting that the BBC would think that the British public could not cope with the full episode. It would have made more sense in its full form, and it seems bizarre that such a thing would be done when so much licence-payers' money has been put into the production of this drama."
Jamie Crowther, Oxford
"Great stuff. But why oh why did the BBC feel the need to edit the first two episodes into one? I know they said it was because British audiences didn't need the extrenuous material. Whoever said that can't have seen the show, or is assuming we're all scholars in the political workings of ancient Rome.
To cap things off it was cut extremely badly. Luckily I had seen the first 3 episodes when I was out in the States so I know what's missing. Since when did character fleshing material become 'historical'? Why cut the scene of Kevin McKidd returning home? They cut a 10 minute scene down to about 3 lines.
There's a lot lot more missing. But hey, I'm sure it'll give them a great chance to plaster 'uncut' on the front of the DVD release when it comes out."
James, Cardiff
"I eagerly awaited the first episode of Rome and was not disappointed. The costumes, sets and acting were intense. I do feel that the violence and sex scenes were a little vivid, but without them you would not obviously gain an insight into the intensity of how life was in those days. I'm looking forward to the next episode."
Patricia Bowers, UK
"The violence and sex scenes are not excessive."
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"Fantastic! I think the story will get darker and darker as the weeks go on. James Purefoy's portrayal of Mark Anthony is fasinating and by far the best character. I think he and Kevin McKidd could quite easily have been the next James Bond* (possibly better than the choice of Daniel Craig). The violence and sex scenes are not excessive and fit perfectly with the time and era. Bring on more."
Ian Curlett, Liverpool
"The story, acting and sets were great. It was highly enjoyable, but I felt it was completely let down by having the pornographic sex scenes. They were soft porn, not entertainment and totally unnecessary. I can understand if they wanted to show how the Romans felt about sex and nudity but there are far less graphic ways of showing this while still getting the message across. Very disappointing, in the end I felt the rest of the programme was just being used as an excuse to show the sex and nudity and I gave up watching."
Mandy, Croydon
"As intellectually challenging as The Sun crossword and about as interesting. A bit of Boy's Own adventure in parts, with some nakedness thrown in. It had some quite funny bits, especially Atia of the Julii (reminded me of Dawn French at times) but I will be avoiding it at all costs in the future. What a waste of money."
Paul, Hove
"I wanted to be gripped, but I wasn't."
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"Boring is the word that springs to mind. How can Rome come across as boring? I should have been gripped, I wanted to be gripped, but I wasn't. Having said that Rome is beautifully filmed, the costumes and sets are wonderful, but there was just something missing. I particularly wasn't impressed by Polly Walker, was she doing it for laughs?"
Julie Maude, West Yorkshire
"A fantastic programme, one to lose oneself in. Based on fact but interestingly interpreted, good strong gutsy stuff. I have not been able to see how many episodes there are going to be, but if the following ones are of the same standard and quality as the first, then my Wednesday nights are booked for the foreseeable future."
Edward Marshall, Nottingham
"Would it be cynical to suspect that HBO and the BBC fitted as much sex, violence, animal sacrifice, full-frontal nudity etc as possible into the first episode in order to generate a slew of complaints, which in turn would boost the viewing figures?
We had it on in the background, and it seemed that every time we looked at the telly there was someone humping or fighting. I suspect that we will continue to watch, though, as it’s on in a good slot, and it does look pretty entertaining (plus it’s always good to see Kevin McKidd playing the big hard man).
It was good to see that Polly Walker looks like a real woman rather than your usual emaciated dolly-bird; but I’m not sure about James Purefoy's rather actorly acting."
Kirsten Fleetwood, London
"The costumes were splendid. Kevin McKidd and Polly Walker were good.
But why all the humping scenes? Did they actually add anything to it? Don't think so. We all know it goes on and we all know it's sometimes faked, but do we really need to see it faked on the BBC?"
Susan Wakefield, Petersfield
"Let's see more drama of this quality, but without resorting to explicit sex scenes."
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"This was a great piece of drama - but a shame to spoil it with such explicit sexual scenes. Whilst these may be historically accurate, it was completely unecessary to show them; many programmes allude to such things without showing them. Rome would be brilliant for my son who is studying ancient history at school - but not when it stoops to the depths of pornography. This programme would have attracted huge audiences on its own merits, without the sex. Let's see more drama of this quality, but without resorting to explicit sex scenes."
Steve Short, Buxton
"I didn't know that the Romans invented the Brazilian wax."
Alison, Kent
"Dull, incoherant, badly shot, pedestrian pacing, terribly acted and simply boring. No decent music. Too many characters introduced right from the start, none of whom were particularly interesting. No-one to identify with. The scrappy editing interfered in your understanding of the story, if there was one. Gratuitous and over-hyped.
If this is Rome they must have been a dull bunch. Surely they could have conceived a better plot from such an amazing (and long) period in history. The only bright spark was Kevin McKidd, who deserves better material. What a terrible waste of BBC money."
Robin Johnston, Watford
"Very disappointing. A weak storyline held together by graphic extreme violence and ponography. To say it was a "bit rude" (Fiona Bruce, Radio 2) seems to be an attempt by the BBC to make light of the ponography. We have, in this country a major problem with attitudes to sex and women. It is not necessary to show the nudity and sex scenes to convey the morals of Roman society at that time. This is simply ratings chasing. The scene where the shepherdess was being raped was not funny and deeply inapproptiate. Rape is dreadful and is not the macho act it was portrayed as. So sad so much of my money has been squandered on this rubbish."
Keith Forget, Surrey
"An awesome and exhilarating tale of intrigue and lust."
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"How refreshing - an awesome and exhilarating tale of intrigue and lust. Ciarán Hinds seems to have got the character of Caesar down to a 'T', along with a with a brilliant supporting cast who played off him perfectly.
Brilliant work - my Wednesday evenings are now complete once more."
Pete Knowles, Berkshire
"I was really looking forward to this series but the gratuitous use of tomato ketchup pouring all over that poor unfortunate woman was just too much for me, and I am not unduly squeemish.
Off it went.
Such a shame with 10 more episodes that I had been looking forward to. I wonder just how many other viewers were lost at that moment. This added nothing to the storyline and can only have been included to shock. Such a shame."
John E Oliver, Capel-le-Ferne, Kent
"This is no more than a Roman version of EastEnders with a touch of Midsommer Murders*. Little historical accuracy and quite difficult to follow. How can this fulfill the remit for Public Service Broadcasting, when I, a reasonably educated man, can merely draw parallels with Robin Hood* starring Errol Flynn?"
Lawrence Kelly-Jones, Oxon
"Rome is a utterly fabulous series, but why is the BBC showing an edited version of it? Important scenes of dialogue and primary character development have already been cut, only twenty minutes into the first episode. I and my family are very disappointed - this series has been trailed to death as a flagship programme, yet the Americans get to see a more complete version of it than we do. Why?"
Tim Pollard, Nottingham
"Why spend the licence fee on a show that the BBC then cut to bits? Both HBO and the BBC have a history of good drama and by making these cuts they are assisting in the growth of illegal downloads."
Michael Harvey, Maidstone
"Lavish sets but lacking soul."
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"Lavish sets but lacking soul. Having two parallel storylines between the soldiers and the politicians confuses matters and does not allow enough time for character development. Having said that, it was generally enjoyable and I will probably watch it all the way through."
Mack Parker, London
"This more than lived up to my expectations notwithstanding the hyped trailers and prequels.
Fantastic sets and period detail, interesting characters, all kinds of supposedly authentic Roman mannerisms and traits. Plenty of good old fashioned 'tit and bum' sex recalling the heady days of '70's TV productions. It's all there and from Episode 1 promises a future series of 'must watch' evenings.
As with the recent Golding tri-part series, To The Ends of The Earth, this is what TV should always be like. The licence fee should continually be invested in this kind of quality, it justifies every penny of it.
It looks like the BBC is trying to move back to its great days of the past. Absolutely great."
Bernie, Whitby
"Every cheap sensationalist trick in the book.
Little but a taudry toga soap opera.
I shall be digging out the I, Claudius* tapes next Wednesday."
John H, Manchester
"Every so often along comes a series that is so good it is not forgotten more than 30 years on. Remember Roots*? I do.
From the first episode, Rome appears to the big one for this decade. This series makes history so accessible through serious production investment, superb acting and an up-to-date script that requires no translation. It does not dwell on the lives of the privileged either; here we see a far broader range of Roman life.
Hype is anathema to me, has me running in the other direction. I don't watch much drama on screen these days, it's just not good enough. But I became hooked. I believe I'll be with this series every week through to the final episode."
R Davies, Wales
"Boring, boring, boring!"
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"I looked forward to watching this programme with my husband and two teenage sons. How disappointing to find pornography masquerading as something of more interest. Boring, boring, boring! I'm off to tackle a Su Doku and the rest of the family have switched to Star Wars* - a seriously bad film, but better than Rome."
Ann Worthington, Devon
"Everyone had frightfully neat 'laydee-gardens'. Should the Brazilian be re-named the Roman?"
Jean Molloy, Rochester
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Actor Biographies
Kevin McKidd
Lucius Vorenus
Ray Stevenson
Titus Pullo
Ciarán Hinds
Julius Caesar
James Purefoy
Mark Antony
Polly Walker
Atia of the Julii
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