Bringing History to Life this August Bank Holiday with Meet the Tudors
We’re welcoming historical performers Past Times Living History to Ludlow Castle on Sunday 25th and Monday 26th August for the return of the fantastic ‘Meet the Tudors’ Event. Visitors will be able to enjoy a range of performances across the two days and interact with the characters. We caught up with the force behind Past Times Living History – Elizabeth (Elle) MacPherson, who has a passion for Tudor history and bringing it to life…
We’re very excited to welcome your cast back for the Meet the Tudors Weekend – what can visitors expect?
The visitors can expect to be entertained, engaged with (we are always very accessible) and educated! This August Bank Holiday we are performing brand new shows – created to celebrate characters with strong links to Ludlow Castle. There will be a lot of laughs and many will recognise the inspiration. Unique and original, a fresh and fun interpretation of the age-old story of The Tudors. Despite all the fun and laughter, every show I pen MUST be historically accurate… this is education by stealth!
We intersperse our performances with lots of opportunities to engage with visitors, so whilst we deliver a theatrical performance, unlike the theatre, we are fully accessible. So please don’t be shy come say hi!
Can you tell us the story of how Past Times Living History started?
My love of history stems from childhood, particularly the Tudor era. All down to my late Mum, she was such a fan that with her first 2 daughters she managed to utilise Henry’s Mother & Daughter’s names and ALL six wives!
But the catalyst for turning this love into a career came by accident. My theme for our wedding in 2010 was a no brainer …. TUDOR! So armed and dangerous with a gown, I set about wearing it … often! Probably the only bride that can claim to have worn her wedding dress hundreds of times! Fast forward to 2015 and Past-Times Living History was born.
Who is your favourite historical character to play, and why?
I have been really privileged to portray most of the interesting strong Tudor women from Margaret Beaufort to Elizabeth I – including some lesser-known women, but who have the right to have a voice from the past.
Perhaps the most iconic is Elizabeth I, I have portrayed her in Museums, Castles, Festivals, Schools & groups such as the WI, Towns Women’s’ Guilds & U3A.
But perhaps the woman I feel most connected to is Katherine Parr – I have the honour of portraying her at her final resting place Sudeley Castle.
What sort of King do you think Prince Arthur would have gone on to be, had he not died at Ludlow Castle aged 15?
That is a tough question, full of ‘what-ifs’ and with huge ripple effects, not just for England but for Europe. But let’s hypothesize that he and Katherine had a long and happy marriage with at least and heir and a spare…
England would not have split with Rome and would have remained a Catholic country. We perhaps would not have spent our time fighting the French and Spanish. The 100,000 people that between Henry, Edward, Mary & Elizabeth would have lived .. for the record Bloody Mary as she was unfairly labelled was responsible for only around 500!
And the Stuart dynasty may never have ruled in England? Oh, and no one would have heard of Henry VIII nor his Six Wives and Past-Times Living History cast would all be at home!
It must have taken a strong character to navigate a Tudor Court. What skills would a successful courtier have needed?
Intelligence
Diplomacy (they would need to massage the King’s ego and make him believe he had thought of THEIR cunning solution to a problem!)
Discretion
To be trustworthy
Luck! (to not be in the King’s presence when he was in a bad mood… you would want to keep your head!)
We’re looking forward to the ‘Whose Crown is it Anyway’ when Henry VIII’s surviving children (Mary, Elizabeth and Edward) go head-to-head to argue their case for the Crown. What do you think Henry would have thought about his children’s very different reigns?
Had Henry been a fly on the wall during each of his children’s reigns, I think he would have been upset that Edward was left to rule so young. I am certain he would have wished he had more time to prepare him better. He was perhaps never really in charge, those around him ruled with their own agenda in mind.
He would perhaps have not been surprised at Mary’s stance on religion, she shared her Mother’s strong faith and rightly or wrongly she made it her mission to restore England to the place it was before the break with Rome. Whilst he might not have completely agreed with her tactics, he would have been more sympathetic to her cause than most would think.
As for Elizabeth, I like to think he would have been proud of her strength, resilience, tolerance & her diplomatic and steady course. England flourished under her reign and she refilled the empty royal coffers that her father had left behind!
What is the most surprising question you have been asked by an audience member?
We get asked the same sort of questions regularly. But perhaps the sweetest question I was asked came whilst portraying Katherine Parr. A little girl of 4 had heard one of the guides explaining to her Mother that Katherine’s ghost was said to roam the grounds looking for her lost child Mary. She saw me approaching and ran over and took my hand! I thought her to be lost but instead she said, she didn’t want me to be sad anymore and that she would be my little girl …. She melted my heart!
We can’t wait for Elle and her team of performers to bring courtly entertainment to Ludlow Castle – don’t miss out on this very special event and book your tickets now (Meet the Tudors is included in Castle Admission).