I'm accepting TDW as something designed for television and for that reason necessarily had to compromise its script, sets and melodrama to please the medium. Even assuming such, the story was captivating, the acting exceptional, and the sets and action convincing, if relatively modest. A few of the commenters herein have far better knowledge of this period of England's history and I cannot pass judgment on historical accuracy, though again, a mass TV audience might be less interested in such. Let me suggest that, if TDW didn't fit the historical facts too well, it certainly presented the intrigue, betrayal, ambiguity, futility and tragedy that certainly resulted from the period's events. But I've a biased view. At fifty-eight I find myself less enamored with kitten-like sexpots and more wooed by earthy beauty like that of Miss Riseborough. I probably would've still clapped at the end if her Angelica had been crowned Queen.
Review of The Devil's Mistress
