# The Pillars of the Earth (miniseries) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 13, 2016, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806 "2016-07-13T13:18:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806/1 "2016-07-13T13:18:13Z")
Has anyone seen this? I just rented it on Amazon Prime. Wow, this is like the original Game of Thrones except without the dragons! Donald Sutherland, Haley Atwell, Ian McShane. Paraphrased from [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pillars_of_the_Earth_(miniseries)): The Pillars of the Earth is an eight-part 2010 TV miniseries, adapted from Ken Follett’s novel of the same name. It debuted in the US on July 23, 2010. In 2011, the series was nominated for 3 Golden Globes, including Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, Ian McShane for Best Actor and Hayley Atwell for Best Actress at the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards. The miniseries centers on the construction of a cathedral in the town of Kingsbridge during a tumultuous period of English history known as The Anarchy in the 12th century. I’m half way through it now. It’s fantastic. Much like The Princess Bride it has almost all of the requirements of a good story: Fencing (OK, sword fighting), fighting, torture, revenge, giants (ok, will big people do?), monsters (treacherous people?), chases, escapes, true love, miracles (It’ll be a miracle if the cathedral gets built)! ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806/2 "2016-07-13T14:09:47Z")
I thoroughly enjoyed it, having similarly enjoyed the book 5-6 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806/3 "2016-07-13T15:46:49Z")
Fantastic series! The characters are so much fun to see succeed and fail and attempt to survive in that world. And that intro music! The second series: A World Without End is pretty great too, though I liked Pillars more. Man, I gotta watch this again now… ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806/4 "2016-07-13T16:53:56Z")
I enjoyed it a lot. Certainly more than I’m enjoying Game of Thrones. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806/5 "2016-07-13T16:55:03Z")
REALLY liked McShane in his role. A great depiction of the abuse of power and the inequalities of the world. I liked _World Without End_ as well. Really blew my friend away when I pointed out that the spiteful, evil queen was the same woman that Sophie Marceau played in _Braveheart_. Or that the guy she overthrew and supposedly had murdered in jail was the mincing little son of Longshanks. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806/6 "2016-07-13T19:45:06Z")
I saw it several years ago. It was a pretty good adaptation of the book, and a fairly accurate depiction of the period. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2016, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-pillars-of-the-earth-miniseries/759806/7 "2016-07-13T20:32:22Z")
Nudity?