Julian Glover reads Beowulf

[GreenSlates]

Genius , so original

[HyaenusDominae]

I'd love to hear Beowulf recited by Max von Sydow. Please, please thumbs-up or reply if you agree!

[darthvadersith514]

He tells this very well. It gave me goosebumps more than once.

[TheSnowballEarth]

It's rather a pity that Julian Glover's talents weren't used by Peter Jackson in the LOTR or Hobbit films. He would've made a great addition to the cast.

[jasonbeam]

There are so many amazing long takes in this video - it really shows Glovers talent and skill at reading this epic. Wow.

[transtremm]

An amazing recitation, excellent entertainment!  Do you have the rest of poem?

[medievalgirl002]

I mean no disrespect or offence, but I really wish people would stop discussing Hollywood movies here, and instead revel in the delights of this magnificent epic poem.

[The123pest]

weird and boring but at least i could do me homework

[iorixs]

AWESOME! when he said "grendel's mother" the blood ran out of my head

[Simpson654]

I think a lot of people thought this a quaint relic of the past until Gilgamesh tablets were found in the 19th century. I know Tolkien lamented that, even in the last century when he made his study of Beowulf. But to find its roots, you only have to look at Gilgamesh, a tale that is stronger than the ages that buried it, as they say, to see the might of the heroic tale, and how it never ceases to captivate our hearts. I've no doubt that it was preceded by just as great tales, like all tales are.

[Jammed9000]

Well, Beowulf IS Chuck Norris' great great great great grandfather. And Kratos The God of War is his ancient ancestor.

[The2010SnowDay]

I want morgan freedman to read this to me.

[ThomasRowsell]

@The2010SnowDay morgan freeman can barely speak modern english let alone old english

[zooeyhall]

I've come across more of these videos on Youtube, where famous British actors are reciting from classic English literature. It appears to be part of some series. Can anyone tell me where it is from?

[lichtbroeder]

Our ancestors would gather together and LISTEN to stories and poems being read aloud. Or they'd gather together and sing. These things weren't simply entertainment - they were social acts which bound people together and gave them a sense of continuity. Now we have Net Flix, which we can enjoy in isolation. Advanced my foot.

[celticrose67]

Wonderful reading, I have enjoyed this very much. =)

[whpriol1]

This man does a masterful job. Reading Beowulf was always too much for me.Anything before Shakespeare is just too difficult for me. I enjoy the story much better learning about it watching videos such as Michael Wood's series and this one on Youtube.

[RealityChickRCRU]

This old man telling the tale of Beowulf is many times better than that worthless animated movie. It's sad that they raped the story so hard in Hollywood.

[medievalgirl002]

@RealityChickRCRU Too true I loved to peom but could't stand the movie. 

[JorEl7771]

He is so intense. I love this! Is there more to this performance? If so, where can I find a video of it?

[Pawnbroker00]

Too bad they can barely pronounce the words correctly.

[McBrannon1000]

@Pawnbroker00, it's like he's trying to turn it into Latin. I have no idea what a Gay-ette is. But I doubt Beowulf was a Lesbian. lol.

[Pawnbroker00]

@McBrannon1000 What?? =.=

[medievalgirl002]

@McBrannon1000 It is 'Geat' or 'Geate' it is the name of a person who came from 'Geatland'.

[bazzatheblue]

@Pawnbroker00,sounds fine to me,how do you think they should sound,like a swede i suppose.They were Anglo Saxons not scandi.

[Pawnbroker00]

@bazzatheblue I was referring to the "bayowulf" fad going around as a result of the film

And 7th century english would have had accents similar to frisian accent, not 21st century english accents

[bazzatheblue]

@Pawnbroker00 oh i see.I understand .

[medievalgirl002]

@bazzatheblue Actually, The East Anglian royal line did claim descent from Scandinavian rulers. Many of the figures mentioned in Beowulf are actually mythic figures from Saxon king lists.

[andylowings]

hypnotic



[englishfrenchgerman]

He was brilliant in Star Wars, wasn't he?

[JonnyRic07]

@englishfrenchgerman

Yeah, he was General Veers in Empire Strikes Back.

[hugh0221]

Was Julian's Greek accent(in For Your Eyes Only) a good one?

[Radians51]

Excellent!  Very enjoyable.

[ronlikesthecure]

lame

[Thorpwnsjesus]

That was great,.

[sspdirect02]

I would love to here him read Shakespeare.

[WA2JSG]

Very well done!

[JediHobbit89]

Holy crap! It's General Veers from the Empire Strikes back!

[sspdirect02]

@JediHobbit89 And Walter Donovan from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

[Anneka]

Holy crap, you're right! xD I was driving myself crazy trying to figure out who it was, and then I looked at the comments.

[Carter1422]

thank this is great for my English class

[ItsCourtenayMmkay]

Whaa... that's it?

[narufansupear]

Beowulf is an AMAZING epic. I mean, truly. It's like Chuck Norris, it just can't be beat.

[Gargantupimp]

@narufansupear avatar is better

[HelloFade2]

That's great Julian, are you thirsty? Here drink from this false holy grail.

[anton1990]

Julian Glover is an extraordinary actor. I have met him, and he is a very kind man.

[Dalek1230]

i would love to meet him

[anton1990]

He is very friendly toward his fans, we discussed Dr. Who and other classics.

[aquares]

Wonderful stuff. I saw Julian Glover do a reading of the poem in a reconstructed Saxon hall in Michael Wood's Beowulf program recently - brilliant!

[chip5511]

Hmmmmm. He reads this peace so bad it is almost tedious. Of course he has good diction and a decent range in his voice. Can I believe this guy would take on Grendle. So predictable...yawn!!!

[aquares]

@chip5511 What a foolish, puerile remark. Julian Glover is the pre-eminent proponent of spoken Beowulf in modern times. Clearly if you had truly found it so tiresome then you wouldn't have bothered to write anything. "This piece" and "Grendel", by the way.

[chip5511]

Hmmm. Thanks for the lesson. Of course he hit the words in all the right places, SLASHES! etc

....Yawn...And I don't want to be unkind to the dead, but I find him as boring as sir John!

[medievalgirl002]

@aquares I saw that too, I thought he was brilliant, though maybe a beard would have looked a bit more authentic.

[Kasino80]

I would just love hearing Sir John Gielgud speaking more. Doesn't matter waht, just listening to his precise prenunciation of the english language.

[gronktyst]

wow Julian is intense :)

[acerb45666555]

im happy these old stories still exist!

[bryangb62]

This would have been filmed in the early 1980s, I think - I saw it live in 1981 when he toured with it as a one-man-show. The whole thing, in one go. It was amazing.

[vidz1988]

Wow, this is awesome...!

[e6e2e3e1]

I love his voice, Is amazing, best Star Wars and Last Crusade, wow.

[Snolliot]

He is the best I've heard in old english and yes I've heard Benjamin Bagby

[crepesoftime]

Does anyone know when this was filmed? I'd say before Indiana Jones.

[ignoranceandwant]

I would guess late '70s.

[jeannevdb]

Love it! thanks for uploading!