Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light


Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light is a historical drama television series that first aired in 2024. It is the second and final part of the adaptation of the Wolf Hall novels by Hilary Mantel, covering The Mirror & the Light, the final novel in the trilogy.
Mark Rylance reprised the lead role of Thomas Cromwell from the 2015 series, Wolf Hall. Director Peter Kosminsky and writer Peter Straughan also returned. The Mirror and the Light, like its predecessor, received critical acclaim.

Premise

The series begins with Thomas Cromwell navigating the Tudor court in the aftermath of the 1536 execution of Henry VIII's second wife, Anne Boleyn, and the monarch about to marry his third wife, Jane Seymour.

Cast

In March 2022, Mark Rylance confirmed that a second series was in development with scripts being worked on for six episodes and Peter Kosminsky set to return as director. Hilary Mantel was acting as consultant on the script adaptation at the time of her death in September 2022. Kominsky, who worked closely with Mantel on the first series and had received installments of the original text as Mantel was writing the third installment of her historical trilogy, published in 2020, said that the series would continue as a "memorial" to the author. Peter Straughan had again adapted the book for the series, as he had in season one, with Playground and Company Pictures producing once more. In November 2023, it was reported that broadcaster Masterpiece PBS and the BBC were set to begin production on the series. It is produced by Lisa Osborne and executive produced by Colin Callender and Noëlette Buckley for Playground, Kosminsky and Lucy Richer for the BBC, and Susanne Simpson for Masterpiece. On 3 April 2024, the BBC reported that filming had completed and released new pictures and additional casting information. Dr Owen Emmerson was one of the consultants on the show.

Casting

As well as Mark Rylance returning as Thomas Cromwell, Damian Lewis also returns as King Henry VIII and Jonathan Pryce as Cardinal Wolsey. Kate Phillips also reprises her role as Henry VIII's third wife, Jane Seymour, with Lilit Lesser as Princess Mary. The following month it was reported that Timothy Spall, Harriet Walter and Harry Melling had been added to the cast, as well as Will Tudor, Will Keen and Viola Prettejohn. Timothy Spall took on the role of the Duke of Norfolk, following in the footsteps of Bernard Hill, who had died in 2024.
The casting of the courtiers was more 'diverse' for Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light than it was in the first part of the television series. This provoked some irritation and opposition: For example, the casting of Egyptian-British Amir El-Masry as Thomas Wyatt was criticized as being 'absurd' by Wyatt's descendant, journalist Petronella Wyatt.

Filming

Filming got underway in late 2023. The crew was reported to be shooting at Berkeley Castle in February 2024. The following month, filming took place at Wells Cathedral using it as the Palace of Whitehall, where Henry VIII married his third wife, Jane Seymour. Montacute House in South Somerset was used as Greenwich Palace, the site of Anne Boleyn's arrest. They also filmed at Forde Abbey, and Great Chalfield Manor, near Melksham, Wiltshire, was used for Austin Friars, the home of Thomas Cromwell. Gloucester Cathedral and Horton Court near Chipping Sodbury were also used. According to a PBS article, other locations included Hampton Court's Great Hall, Bishop Palace in Somerset, where Princess Mary is reintroduced to Henry,
Haddon Hall in Derbyshire for a masked ball and an outdoor bowling scene, and Wolfeton House in Dorset as the site of Princess Mary's home.

Broadcast

The series premiered in the UK on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 10 November 2024 and was shown on BBC iPlayer as part of the original Wolf Hall television series. In the US, the series is scheduled to air weekly on PBS' Masterpiece starting March 23, 2025.

Episodes


Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light has an approval rating of 100% based on 24 critics' reviews, with an average rating of 9.3/10. The website's consensus reads: "Wolf Hall returns after a decade away without missing a beat, retaining its razor-sharp intelligence along with the irresistible alchemy of Mark Rylance and Damian Lewis' performances". Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 89 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Accolades

The series was nominated for Best Drama Series with Peter Straughan nominated for Best Writer at the Royal Television Society Programme Awards in March 2025. At the Broadcast Press Guild Award in March 2025, it was nominated for the Best Actor, Best Drama Series, and Best Writer awards, and won the Jury Award for Excellence in British Drama.