Merlin (2008 TV series)

Lore & Background

The programme is a reimagining of the legend, in which young warlock Merlin is sent to the kingdom of Camelot by his mother because of his 'special gift'. After saving Prince Arthur's life in the first episode, he becomes Arthur's manservant. Merlin soon learns that the reason for his gift is to protect Arthur, but Merlin must hide his powers because magic was banned in Camelot by Arthur's father, King Uther Pendragon, and those caught practising it are executed. Over the years and after several adventures together, Merlin and Arthur become trusted friends and companions, with the former doing his best to influence the latter into becoming the king he is destined to be.

Merlin (Colin Morgan) is a young, powerful warlock who arrives in Camelot after his mother arranges for him to stay with the court physician, Gaius (Richard Wilson). He discovers that King Uther Pendragon outlawed magic twenty years earlier in an event known as the Great Purge and imprisoned the last dragon, Kilgharrah (voice of John Hurt), in the caves beneath the castle. The Great Dragon tells Merlin that he has an important destiny: to protect Uther's only son, Prince Arthur, who will return magic to Camelot and unite the land of Albion. When Merlin meets Arthur, Merlin considers him an arrogant bully, and Arthur is less than impressed with Merlin. After saving the prince's life, Merlin is appointed as his personal manservant. The two experience many adventures, over the course of which they come to respect and trust one another. But when Uther's actions eventually cause his ward, Morgana, to turn against Camelot and pursue a path of evil, Merlin and Arthur must join forces with friends, old and new, to protect their home and secure their destinies.

Reader's Guide

Merlin was nominated for several awards, winning the 2011 British Academy Television Award for best visual effects. Broadcasting rights were sold to over 180 countries. The programme was conceived by Julian Murphy and Johnny Capps. The BBC had been keen on showing a drama based on the character of Merlin for some time. The series went into production in March 2008, with filming in Wales and France (at the Château de Pierrefonds). Two Kent locations were also used: The Barons Hall and Garden Tower at Penshurst Place, and Chislehurst Caves for the first series. The series was produced by Shine in association with BBC Wales. Doctor Who's chief writer Russell T Davies had been an important influence on the tone and style of Merlin. CGI special effects for the series were provided by Colin Gorry Effects and The Mill. The Old English for spells was written by university scholar and medievalist Dr. Mark Faulkner, and later by the script editing team. Capps and Murphy confirmed on 24 July 2011 that BBC had commissioned a fifth series. Filming for the fifth series began March 2012 in Pierrefonds, France and near Cardiff, Wales. 13 episodes were ordered. On 26 November 2012, it was announced that series 5 of Merlin would be the last, with a two-part special concluding the series over Christmas. In later interviews the co-creators said that while there had not been serious consideration of a sixth series, there had been 'advanced talks' about a trilogy of Merlin movies set within the show's original timeline that did not end up being realized.

Did You Know?

• The programme won the 2011 British Academy Television Award for best visual effects.
• Broadcasting rights were sold to over 180 countries.
• The Great Dragon, Kilgharrah, was voiced by John Hurt.
• The series was filmed in Wales and France at the Château de Pierrefonds.

Reimagining the Legend

Merlin, also broadcast under the title The Adventures of Merlin, is a British fantasy-adventure drama that takes the familiar Arthurian mythos and reframes it through the eyes of a young warlock. Conceived by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Johnny Capps, and Julian Murphy for the BBC, the series ran for five seasons on BBC One from September 2008 through December 2012. Its central conceit is deceptively simple: a boy with a "special gift" is sent by his mother to live with the court physician in Camelot, a kingdom where King Uther Pendragon has outlawed sorcery and sentences practitioners to death. The last surviving dragon, Kilgharrah, whispers to Merlin that his true purpose is to shield Prince Arthur, the future king destined to restore magic and bring the land of Albion under one banner. After a single act of heroism saves the prince's life, Merlin is locked into the role of manservant, forced to conceal every spark of power while quietly guiding the man he serves toward his prophesied destiny.

Bonds Forged in Service and Betrayal

The emotional architecture of the series rests on two relationships that move in opposite directions. Merlin and Arthur begin as mutual antagonists—the warlock regards the prince as an arrogant bully, and the prince finds the new servant thoroughly unimpressive. Yet a single rescue in the first episode binds them together, and across five seasons of shared adventures the pair evolve into trusted companions. Arthur, despite carrying out his father's harshest edicts, is written as a deeply compassionate figure who defends the wrongly accused, occasionally defies Uther, and welcomes commoners into his knightly order. His servant, meanwhile, repeatedly saves his life through magic the prince never witnesses. The other great arc is Morgana's. Initially a kind, empathetic young woman under Uther's guardianship, she is later revealed to be his illegitimate daughter. His refusal to accept her magical powers and his broader prejudice against sorcery push her into covert plotting, and by the third season she has become the show's principal antagonist, coveting the throne her brother is destined to claim.

An Ensemble Built Around a Secret

The cast assembles a court in which nearly everyone is keeping a secret. Colin Morgan's Merlin conceals his warlock abilities from a kingdom that executes practitioners, and for most of the run only Gaius, his mother Hunith, and Lancelot know the truth. Bradley James plays Arthur as a man torn between duty to his father's anti-magic regime and his own growing compassion, ultimately marrying Gwen and being prophesied as "The Once and Future King"—a title that ensures his return even after his death in the final episode. Katie McGrath's Morgana transforms from gentle ward to the series' chief villain, while Angel Coulby's Gwen rises from serving girl to Queen of Camelot. Anthony Head brings a stubborn, well-meaning brutality to Uther, Richard Wilson lends quiet wisdom to the court physician Gaius, and John Hurt's voice gives the imprisoned Great Dragon Kilgharrah a gravitas that anchors the show's mythic tone. By the series' end, the circle of those who know Merlin's powers has widened to include Mordred, Agravaine, Morgana, Gwen, and Arthur himself.

A Global Fantasy Staple

Though it aired on a single British network, Merlin achieved a reach that speaks to the universal pull of its storytelling. The five-series run on BBC One concluded on 24 December 2012, and the programme's broadcasting rights were subsequently sold to more than 180 countries, making the adventures of a young warlock and a young prince a shared cultural experience across continents. The show earned multiple award nominations over its lifetime, and its most significant honour came in 2011 when it took the British Academy Television Award for best visual effects—a recognition that the production's commitment to spectacle, from the caverns beneath the castle to the conjured alter-ego "Dragoon the Great," was matched by genuine craft. The series was developed by a quartet of writers whose collaborative vision gave the programme a narrative coherence that carried it steadily from its September 2008 premiere to its holiday-season finale, cementing its place as one of the BBC's most widely distributed fantasy dramas of the decade.