Born to be King

This Episode: Season 1, Episode 2
Black Adder Overall: Episode 2
Airdate: 22 Jun 1983
Written by Rowan Atkinson & Richard Curtis
Directed by Martin Shardlow

Notes

• This is a remake of the original unaired pilot.  The original felt more like the second series than this released series, both in setting and in Black Adder’s portrayal. There is a longer list of the differences available here.
• The castle scenes were filmed at the real life location “Alnwick Castle“.  The same castle appeared in Downton Abbey as Brancaster Castle.
• The first use of “a cunning plan” by Baldrick, which becomes a staple (although the term turned up in the lyrics to the closing credits in the prior episode).
• Alex Norton guests here as MacAngus. He played a similar character in the unaired pilot (Lord McAngus).  He’s known for a lot of movies, the most notable probably being Braveheart & Les Misérables. He also did voices in Pixar’s Brave.
• The director (Martin Shardlow) was credited here in this episode when he wasn’t in the prior, despite directing them both.
• Some repeats of this episode and an earlier DVD release swapped this episode with the fourth for some reason.

Links