
King Henry II of England and his children. (British Library, Royal 14 B VI), c. 1301-40
English King Henry II (1154-89) has been on screen A LOT, mostly because of marrying Eleanor of Aquitaine and that whole Becket thing. Henry was the son of Empress Matilda, whose civil war with King Stephen ended with the compromise of her son inheriting the throne. When he clashed with his good friend Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, about royal authority over the English church, it ended in Becket’s murder and Henry having to settle with the pope.

Henry was also Duke of Normandy and controlled Anjou, Maine, Touraine, and Aquitaine. He battled a lot with the French and expanded his empire as a result, but he also battled his sons who revolted against him a lot — along with their mother, who supported them. Those children included Henry the Young King (crowned co-ruler along with his father, but predeceased him), Richard the Lionheart, and the infamously “evil” King John, among others.

Let’s run down King Henry II on screen! As always, there are a few productions that I can’t find pictures for:
- A.V. Bramble in Becket (1924)
- Dominic Roche in Richard the Lionheart (1961-63)
William Shea in Becket (1910)
A silent film focused on the clash between Thomas Becket and Henry II.

Alexander Gauge in Murder in the Cathedral (1951)
An adaptation of a T.S. Eliot poem about Henry II and Becket.
Peter O’Toole in Becket (1964)
You’re going to be shocked when I tell you what this one’s about…


Peter O’Toole in The Lion in Winter (1968)
An adaptation of a stage play (hence the sparkling dialogue) about an older Eleanor of Aquitaine, who is released from captivity to visit her husband, Henry II, and her adult children.


Brian Cox in The Devil’s Crown (1978)
A BBC TV series that dramatized “the reigns of three medieval Kings of England: Henry II and his sons Richard I and John,” per Wikipedia.


Patrick Stewart in The Lion in Winter (2003)
An updated adaptation of the play/film.


Freddie Boath in The Pillars of the Earth (2010)
An adaptation of a modern historical fiction novel about the building of a cathedral in a fictional English town during the civil wars between Henry’s mother and King Stephen.

Malcolm McDowell in Richard The Lionheart (2013)
A feature film biopic of Henry’s most famous son.

Derek Allen in Richard the Lionheart: Rebellion (2015)
A sequel to the 2013 film.
Jim Howick, Jalaal Hartley, and Naz Osmanoglu in Drunk History (2013-19)
The comedy TV series in which modern famous people get drunk and try to retell history, while actors reenact and lip sync the story.

Which is your favorite depiction of King Henry II on screen?
I am now deeply, deeply sorry that nobody ever thought to cast Mr Malcolm McDowell as King Henry II opposite Ms. Jane Seymour as Eleanor of Aquitaine – now that would be a pairing fit to breed a Devil’s Brood.
Also, I am now deeply interested in seeing Mr Brian Cox as Henry II – one suspects the role would suit him beautifully.
Honorable mention to Horrible Histories and their ABBA-inspired take on the Anarchy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuZsueUBvdU
As a massive lifelong Abba fan, I’M DEAD
ME TOO!!!!!
Oh God, that was a hoot! And completely accurate.
I just can’t bring myself to watch the Stewart/Close Lion in Winter after the masterclass in acting that is the O’Toole/Hepburn one. Even with all it’s browns, which are probably more historically accurate, it’s simply the best!
Agreed.
I will watch Patrick Stewart in almost anything, but not this.
Gotta be Peter O’Toole–I’ve always thought he and Katharine Hepburn really nailed what Henry and Eleanor were probably like in real life, plus the stories of the two of them behind the scenes are hilarious! I’d still like to see Stewart and Close because they look as if they Get It as well, but Pete and Kate still take the cake.
(Probably mentioned this before somewhere, but it turns out that Eleanor and Henry are my 26th great-grandparents on my mother’s side of the family–both Katharine Hepburn and Glenn Close are also descendants, FWIW–and I joke about The Lion in Winter qualifying as home movies for my family! At least we’re not all trying to kill each other any more…)
Thank you! Henry II is my favorite English monarch. His reforms of the court/jury system were ahead of their time.
Peter O’Toole should have won his Best Actor Oscar for The Lion In Winter.
Would love to see Brian Cox; he’s physically right and could also convey H2’s many kingly qualities as leader, administrator, politician. (He was no Henry VIII.)
Yes, Henry II had his faults as a husband and father but he was an excellent king.