Philip Winchester in King Lear (Act I, Scene II)

[SpaceVisionTV]

No 'villain' can approach the text wanting to be a Villain. If this is the case, he comes out boring and contrived like this one did. Not too mention, there is little to no service done to the script. If you read Edmund's speech, this on in particular, there are direct places where Shakespeare dictates how the actor should be approaching the text. Like John Barton says, the tools to form the speech are given to the actor by Shakespeare; it is up to the actor to recognize and use them.

[CymbalRush]

Boring. Edmund doesn't see himself as a villain, he is merely doing what he thinks is right in order to get what he believes he deserves: civil rights. I should empathize with Edmund, not view him as a generic, plotting villain. Also, Shakespeare is all about discovering the thought word by word, this actor delivers the speech as if he has thought out everything he is going to say ahead of time. This is toward the purpose of being "cool", which is in no way unique or an interesting choice.

[TinselFairy]

I remember watching this film adaptation in English and having a huge grin on my face whenever he came on. Such a good English accent though. I had no idea he was American until I read the comments.

[mmgringoire2]

Breathtaking performance. Is it wrong that I kind of want him to win just so I can hear talk. Really sexy villain. He would be great as the villain Cymbeline.

[loreney65]

so attractive

[Meadowgirl1901]

I haven't seen any other versions to compare it too, but he's certainly a very pretty Edmund, which helps... :P

[rloveruns]

I love how he has that grin on his face of pure mischef!  Brilliant!

[SleepyChocolateNinja]

Whilst I have seen this production in it's entireity,and quite liked Edmund, I must say that this speech is a tad...bland. It's kinda emotionless- even a bit more sarcasm would be appreciated

[banjoteeth]

Just stopping by for my daily dose of Winchester. Once again, awestruck.

[chocotier]

@banjoteeth well put!

[banjoteeth]

Just viewed this once again and, once again, incredible.

[sawblade5089]

So bad. Boring and unoriginal.

[banjoteeth]

First and foremost... WOW. Philip Winchester's performance as Edmund in this monologue is the most moving and sexually charged delivery a Shakespearean rendition has ever seen. Note the way he draws out the final consonant with such longing and power in words like 'wake' and 'legitimate.' It is awe inspiring. I know I'm not alone in thinking this.

[HowlandGirlsStudios]

Philip is truly amazing! And just like everyone else I would never guess he was American. The accent was flawless and the emotion in he eyes was fantastic. I cried when Crusoe was cancelled :'(

[KnightofDuroch]

Hard to believe this guy is American.

[ukdeejay]

I haven't seen this adaptation (I missed it first time round) and was curious enough to look at clips on YouTube - while others have piqued my interest, this one has left me cold. It follows a similar reading that Kenneth Brannagh directed in the 80's, too foppish for me. If you want to see Edmund with a nasty streak and this speech delivered with some self-justified venom, check out the 1982 Jonathan Miller with Michael Kitchen playing the role - the outfits are a little Blackadder II, but...!!

[hbobrien]

"check out the 1982 Jonathan Miller with Michael Kitchen playing the role - the outfits are a little Blackadder II, but...!!"

I suspect it's the other way around. That is, I think Blackadder II is specifically riffing on that particular production of Lear.

[tischeno2]

Best version of the monologue on youtube. really inspirational and relevant to Edmund and not the actor

[heman86]

I would say this was alot more relevant to the actor Philip and not Edmund. as for this being the best version on youtube, once again I'd completely disagree. As ukdeejay said Michael Kitchen's is considerably better.

[baileyboy12345678910]

he says the last line really gay lol

[Mateezy]

Wonderfulllllllllll work!

[Nurisbaby]

favorite line of life now! "Now gods! Stand up for bastards!" just makes me giggle...this performance is FANTASTIC! totally swoon worthy

[MegGem1]

You are so right...Philip Winchester definitely does not get enough attention!!!

+ King Lear rocks my socks. *nods*

[hwuoahc]

I couldn't agree more. He is very good. Just notice the accent! Where have you ever seen an american actor dominating a perfectly convincing British accent so damn well?? I think I can say it is unprecedented. Well done, Mr Winchester. I definitely want to see more of him!

[MegGem1]

YES YES YES...Too bad "Crusoe" was canceled...fantastic show as well!!

[hwuoahc]

I actually wasn't a big fan of the show, even though I loved most of the actors in it! Unfortunately, it is possible to have a great cast and still botch things a little... I only saw it for Philip Winchester, and the snippets we got of Sean Bean... And they certainly didn't disappoint. ;)

[MegGem1]

I thought it was a pretty good show, considering the fact that they kept it clean, haha! It's a step above the rest in terms of that.

Philip Winchester (or Philly Winny as I call him) was pretty darned great in it...especially the parts where he just *had* to take his shirt off...:P

And Sean Bean was awesome as well. :) :)

[WildQueenie]

You're so right about the accent. I was convinced he was from England, I never even thought otherwise. Then, when I looked up a bio of him and it said he was from America, I actually thought it was lying to me. =] Most people slip up at least once or twice with accents, but his is just flawless.

[joshchopin]

@WildQueenie

His British accent is good and so is his rendition of the monologue; however, a contemporary British accent for Shakespeare is no more historically accurate than an American midwestern one. Neither accents nor language or, really anything else for that matter, are static.

On the other hand, perhaps the other actors in this production are British and his accent was required for continuity's sake?

[thefletchishere]

@hwuoahc thought he was absolutely brilliant too, but no surprise that he can speak with a perfect english voice as he trained at LAMDA, one of london's most prestigious drama schools.