The Taming of the Shrew 

A young harridan MP marries a title in order to advance towards her goal of becoming party leader.

Director:

David Richards

Writers:

William Shakespeare (play), Sally Wainwright (screenplay)

Stars:

Shirley Henderson, David Mitchell, Simon Chandler

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Shirley Henderson	...	Kate Minola
David Mitchell	...	Tim Agnew
Simon Chandler	...	John Naps
Jaime Murray	...	Bianca Minola
Federico Zanni	...	Tranio
Santiago Cabrera	...	Lucentio
Stephen Tompkinson	...	Harry
Twiggy	...	Mrs. Minola (as Twiggy Lawson)
Yves Aubert	...	French Waiter
Rufus Sewell	...	Petruchio
Paul McNeilly	...	Scary Yob
Samuel Oatley	...	Journalist
Bruce Mackinnon	...	Vicar
Kate Russell-Smith	...	Elaine
David Weber	...	Barman

Storyline

Katherine is extremely abrasive in her dealings with everyone, both in Parliament and her personal life. Her sister Bianca couldn't be more different -- a popular model whom everyone loves. Bianca's long time manager wants to marry her; in order to put him off she says she won't marry until her sister is wed (a prospect she knows will keep her safe.) So her manager arranges his friend -- who is a titled Earl -- to meet and marry Kate and the battle is on.

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Plot Keywords:

power play | shakespeare's the taming of the shrew | based on play | parliament | man cooking for woman | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Details

Official Sites:

BBC [UK]

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 November 2005 (UK)

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Drama Group, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), Horsebridge Productions Limited

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

They prepared 3 tables and 3 carpets for the scene in which Katherine flips the table over. Each had glasses made of sugar glass and wax plates. All the meals had to be salad so that the food wouldn't melt the plates. Luckily they did it in one take and were able to move out the restaurant so that it could open for lunch.

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Goofs

Having spent all day in her wedding dress carrying out such activities as changing a car tire and walking down dirt roads, by the end of the day Katherine's wedding dress is perfectly clean and pressed.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Kate: Fathead!
[she slaps him]
Tim Agnew: You hit me!
Kate: You gave me that information. You made me look like a political pygmy, on Newsnight. Your job, in case you weren't concentrating, is to make sure I know what I'm pigging well talking about!
Tim Agnew: You're out of order, Katherine. I'm sorry, but good grief!
Kate: And you're sacked! No wonder this party has been the opposition for the last ten million light years!
Tim Agnew: You can't sack me, and, frankly, I'd appreciate an apology. Otherwise...
Kate: Otherwise?
Tim Agnew: If we're to ...
[...]

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Connections

Version of Kiss Me Kate (1968)

User Reviews

It's what Shakespeare would have wanted!

Great pairing of two wayward psychoses in this TAMING. How can you not fancy a man who'll not only turn up to his wedding wearing high heeled boots, eye shadow and nail polish but but who then has the chutzpah to take on the resultant triplets? No wonder Kate is so smug at the end.

Shirley Henderson is a fabulous fruitcake, bolting on to her THE WAY WE LIVE NOW characterization even more aggression, plus much fruitful searing and wonderful body language. She'd be at home in Sicily if she didn't get knocked off first.

Rufus Sewell crosses every obstacle in presenting Petruchio as a remotely possible twentieth century human being and even makes you think you'd invite him to a dinner party (possibly a major mistake).

The rest of the casting was equally choice (my heart was especially taken by Twiggy) and the wit was sharper than a serpent's tooth!