The Tudors
Checkmate
TV Flash files “Checkmate” as hour 13 of 38 in the TV Flash guide — The Tudors (2007–2010) on Showtime, season 2, episode 3, aired 2008-04-13, 60 min.
From the desk
How this hour is filed
This leaf is S02E03: listed hour 13 of 38 in the The Tudors guide, hour 3 of 10 in season 2. It aired 2008-04-13 (60 min). The listed hour before it is “Tears of Blood” (S02E02). Next is “The Act of Succession” (S02E04).
Catalog log
Broadcast listing — not a TV Flash recap.
Henry destroys all ties with authority and the past. After many failed attempts to have his marriage to Catherine annulled by the Catholic Church, Henry runs out of patience and marries a pregnant Anne Boleyn in secret. He appoints the young Lutheran Thomas Cranmer to succeed the deceased William Warham as Archbishop of Canterbury and strips Queen Catherine of her title and status, along with Princess Mary; they are hence to be known as the Princess Dowager of Wales and the Lady Mary, respectively. As Sir Thomas More has resigned as Chancellor, Henry hands the position to the pro-Lutheran Thomas Cromwell. Anne Boleyn is crowned Queen of England to a small and uneager crowd and escapes an assassination attempt. Pope Paul III threatens to excommunicate the king and the church of England from the Roman Catholic Church if Henry does not return to Catherine, but Henry tears the papal edict in half. Henry is also disappointed when Anne Boleyn gives birth to a daughter, Elizabeth, instead of his desired son, and soon resumes his philandering with ladies of the court despite assuring Anne they will still have a son.
Viewer FAQ
Where does Checkmate sit in the The Tudors guide?
S02E03 is listed hour 13 of 38 — hour 3 of 10 in season 2, season 2 episode 3.
When did The Tudors S02E03 air?
Checkmate aired 2008-04-13 and is listed at 60 minutes.
How accurate is The Tudors?
Looser than some prestige cousins. Accuracy arguments are the aftertaste; the series never slowed the seduction to wait for them.
In the series
Why this series still plays
Henry VIII with movie-star abs, wives as foreign policy, and a court that dresses viciousness in velvet. The Tudors is Showtime historical soap — Jonathan Rhys Meyers smolder, Natalie Dormer's Anne Boleyn, and accuracy arguments that never once slowed the seduction.
The group chat has been in a Henry VIII discourse for four seasons and it is not going to stop because a history department typed in all caps. Michael Hirst's The Tudors (2007–2010) is Showtime historical soap: Jonathan Rhys Meyers in the crown with movie-star abs, Henry Cavill, Natalie Dormer's breakout Anne Boleyn, Sam Neill's Wolsey, Maria Doyle Kennedy, James Frain. Wives as foreign policy. Court intrigue as weekly addiction. Looser with history than some prestige cousins; accuracy arguments never once slowed…
Filed against
- Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Henry VIII
Jonathan Rhys Meyers’s Henry VIII turned The Tudors into Showtime historical soap — movie-star abs, wives as foreign policy, a court that dresses viciousness in velvet. Natalie Dormer’s Anne Boleyn, accuracy arguments that never once…
- Henry Cavill as Charles Brandon
Henry Cavill's Charles Brandon smoldered through The Tudors as court muscle — Henry VIII with movie-star abs, wives as foreign policy, Showtime historical soap dressing viciousness in velvet. Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Natalie Dormer's Anne…
- Natalie Dormer as Anne Boleyn
Natalie Dormer’s Anne Boleyn made The Tudors’ velvet viciousness a seduction — 2000s Showtime historical soap, Henry VIII with movie-star abs, wives as foreign policy, Jonathan Rhys Meyers smolder, accuracy arguments that never once…
- Sam Neill as Cardinal Wolsey
Sam Neill's Cardinal Wolsey dressed The Tudors' viciousness in velvet — Henry VIII with movie-star abs, wives as foreign policy, Showtime historical soap, Jonathan Rhys Meyers smolder, Natalie Dormer's Anne Boleyn. Accuracy arguments…
- Maria Doyle Kennedy as Catherine of Aragon
Maria Doyle Kennedy held the first marriage as Catherine of Aragon on The Tudors — Henry VIII with movie-star abs, wives as foreign policy, a court that dresses viciousness in velvet. Showtime historical soap, smolder, accuracy arguments…
- James Frain as Thomas Cromwell
James Frain’s Thomas Cromwell worked The Tudors like foreign policy in velvet — Henry’s court, wives as strategy, Showtime historical soap that never let an accuracy argument slow the seduction. Quiet menace with a ledger. TV Flash files…