Some scenes in episodes of the series have been edited for airing on the BBC in order to remove some of the stronger language which is deemed unacceptable for prime-time viewing on terrestrial British television (specifically the use of the word "cunt"). This has been criticised by many, who point to the fact that other HBO programs such as The Sopranos and Oz have been broadcast uncut on British network television. However, Rome is broadcast at an earlier time than the other two programmes and the BBC was aiming at a more general audience than Channel 4 was with The Sopranos and Oz.

In a separate move the BBC also decided to re-edit the first three episodes (all directed by Michael Apted) into two episodes. The BBC claimed that this was because the British audience were more familiar with the history of Rome than their American counterparts and so much of the backstory was unnecessary. However, Apted claims that the purpose was to boost the ratings by increasing the prominence of the scenes of sex and violence. In an interview with The Times ^*, Apted was quoted saying:

I'm really pissed off with the BBC for bringing down my first three episodes to two and, in doing so, taking out much of the vital politics. What also makes me very grumpy is that I was told that the cuts had been introduced by the BBC because they thought British viewers already knew the historical background. But all that's happened as far as the viewer is concerned is that it has made Rome hard to follow.

Apted also said that he only found out about the cuts by accident claiming:

I only found out by chance a couple of weeks ago when one of the actors told me.

Trivia

• Rome is the first English-language series to be shot entirely in a non-English-speaking country.
• Battle scenes in Rome depict authentic Roman infantry fighting techniques including the tightly-packed "Roman Wall" of shields, gladius thrusting techniques above and below the "shield wall", and the rotation of troops on the front lines every 30–45 seconds.
• Prior to filming, Kevin McKidd and Ray Stevenson trained for over a month, learning authentic Roman fighting techniques from swordmaster Giorgio Antonioni.
• Rome's five acres of outdoor "period" sets comprise the largest standing set in the world to date.
• The series used 250 chain mail tunics (each weighing 36 pounds) — as well as 40 leather cuirasses for legionary officers.
• Rome's armor, helmets, and other metal costume elements were handcrafted by metal designer Luca Giampaoli. He hand-made all metal costume elements for the principal actors, although "mass-produced" items (such as legionary armor) was replicated by metalwork companies in India.
• The series required over 4,000 items of wardrobe — designed by Oscar-nominated costume designer April Ferry.
• "The Stolen Eagle" and "How Titus Pullo Brought Down the Republic" used 2,500 items of wardrobe due to the large crowd scenes.
• Approximately 1,250 pairs of period shoes and sandals were made in Bulgaria.
• Leatherwork for the principal actors was done on set by Augusto and Giampaolo Grassi, using the traditional techniques used by their father to create the leatherwork for such classic films as Cleopatra.
• The series is developed by a mostly British cast and crew.
• The actors' regional British accents were used with effect to enhance the portrayal of the social distinctions of ancient Roman society; however after initial previews, some of the stronger accents were re-dubbed and toned down for American audiences.
• The recreation of the Forum set is about 60% of the size of the original.
• The olive trees in the Sacred Grove of the Forum set are over 200 years old.
• References were taken directly from the ruins of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Ostia Antica to determine the proper colors of the temples, statues, streets, as well as graffiti and street signage.
• Authentic period fabrics — wool, linen, cotton and silk — were imported from Prato, as well as India, Tunisia and Morocco. Fabrics were purchased in a "raw" state and dyed at the production site.
• As many as 40 horses at one time were used in a scene.
• 750 actors and extras were used for Caesar's "Triumph" scene.
• 55 local extras were cast as "Roman Legionaries" and sent to a two-week boot camp, living in tents, to train as Roman soldiers. "Boot Camp" included military discipline (up at 5 a.m., bed by 9 p.m.), marching, swordsmanship, camp building and dismantling, group training and maneuvers (day and night-time training), and bathing restricted to the local lake without soap at night. 43 of the 55 completed "Boot Camp".

Historical deviations

• The adventures of Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo, while not violating any known historical records, are completely fictional. The only historical account of Lucius Vorenus and Titus Pullo is in Caesar's writing.
• Much of the language is modernized in expression, or converted to modern equivelants. Roman concepts, units of measurement, and even profanity were quite different.
• Octavian was not in Rome when his adoptive father Julius Caesar was assassinated in the Senate. Octavius was studying in Apollonia, Illyria.

For further inaccuracies, see the individual episode entries.

Broadcasting

DVD

season 1 of Rome will be released in the UK july 24 , 2006.

References

• The Stage article quoting Bruno Heller
• New York Times article
• TV guide.com
• The Star eCentral interview with Ray Stevenson
• Dark Horizons reporting on the 2nd season production of Rome
• Timeonline reporting on Michael Apted's opinion on the BBC re-editing.
• "New $100m TV epic set to rewrite history" - the Independent (UK), 25 July, 2005
• "HBO enlists Firefox for series promotion" - CNet News.com, August 15, 2005
• Slant Magazine Review
• Lindsay Duncan (Servilia) interview - BBC Five Live, November 11, 2005
• "Rome's bloody climax wins 3m" - Report on the final episode viewing figures for "Rome", Guardian Unlimited, 5 January, 2006 (Subscription needed)

External links

• Rome - Official HBO site
• Rome - Official BBC Drama website
• Roma - Official RAI website
• Rome Episode Guide at the TV IV Wiki.
• and Discussion Forum at TV.com.
• Historical writings about Vorenus and Pullo
• Roma - Cuatro

2000s TV shows in the United States | BBC television dramas | HBO network shows | TMN network shows | Rome (TV series) | Period piece TV series

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