Horatio Hornblower Series

Jason M. · Post by **Jason M.** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:27 am

Is anyone else here a huge fan of this movie series? I have not read the books yet, but I know that the movies were just awesome. I was really hoping that they would make more someday, that contiue Hornblower's career into the Admiralty....

ingura · Post by **ingura** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 12:49 am

MichelB · Post by **MichelB** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 2:06 am

Yeah, Hornblower is great... remember that they were written in another day and age then more recent books: certain things were still left unmentioned. My favorite is the story where he escapes after his imprisonment in France. Somehow, at the end of that book, all that he has toiled for since his Midshipman's days, worked for, had to unfairly wait for, was conned out of... he finally gets it all with interest and few people deserved it more, I felt.

Books are better then the series. Somehow the currect (well, current) technology cannot display the majesty of the Age of Sail.

Laurence Batchelor · Post by **Laurence Batchelor** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 3:19 am

I'm a huge fan of the ITV series, at the time and it still maybe now it was the most expensive British TV drama ever.

I have every episode on DVD as well as Sharpe.

I've read that quite a few RN Destroyer Captains had one of these Forrester books by their side during WW2.

Dino Carancini · Post by **Dino Carancini** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 5:42 am

Another fan here! First time I saw the TV serie, it was in English language... you could guess how much I understood

but having read the books was of big help!

Sir Pellew is the best!

Dino

Laurence Batchelor · Post by **Laurence Batchelor** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 5:53 am

I also think Robert Lindsay played Hornblower's mentor very well in the series.

The sets were well done, character actors such as styles also were well played, shamed series like this are really no longer made by ITV in the UK.

They have never had the viewing figures and hence the money from advertising since cable/sky tv became so popular here in the UK.

FrancisMcN · Post by **FrancisMcN** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 6:34 am

If you want to fill in the gaps in the Hornblower series there is a book by C Northcote Parkinson called "The Life and Times of Horatio Hornblower". It gives some very interesting background but doesn't have the pace and action of the Forester novels though.

What is a good read is Forester's "Gold from Crete" with various short stories from WW2 in the Med and also "The Man in the Yelow Raft" which is USN in the Pacific. Both are long out of print but should be available secondhand via Amazon or similar.

Francis Macnaughton

Jason M. · Post by **Jason M.** » Mon Jun 04, 2007 2:37 pm

It seems clear to me that I need to read the book series. I have never been much of a reader, but this may be good enough for me to spend some real time in...