16 Times Victoria Made Us Wish History Didn’t Happen
By Lacy Baugher
Photo: (C) ITV Plc
If This Were Fiction, They’d Totally Be End Game
The downside to stories based on real history is that, at the end of the day, they’re confined to the broad strokes of historical fact. As much as we may all want Queen Victoria to up and run off with her dishy older Prime Minister, Victoria isn’t that show. And in a way, that’s good. The real life history of this queen is certainly interesting and exciting enough to carry a story without embellishment.
But let’s be real, if this were pretty much any other story, we’d be wondering when these two crazy kids were going to just suck it up and do something about how they feel about each other. We’d be yelling at our televisions about how they should just kiss already. (I mean, some of us are yelling at the TV about that anyway, but if it weren’t for history, everyone else would be too.) All the standard period drama relationship tropes and trappings are already built into their relationship.
It’s a great testament to the performances by Jenna Coleman and Rufus Sewell (as well as the series’ writing) that so many viewers are this entranced by their relationship. Even when we knew it wasn’t historically accurate. Even when we knew going in that it was going to end in pain and heartbreak for us all. And it’s okay if you too kind of resent the arrival of Prince Albert. It’s hard to imagine how he could ever take the place of Lord M in all of hearts.