Walter Raleigh in popular culture

Raleigh's First Pipe in England, 1859

Sir Walter Raleigh (c. 1554 – 29 October 1618) was an English gentleman, writer, poet, soldier, courtier, spy, and explorer, well known for popularising tobacco in England.

In fiction

• He is one of the principal characters in the historical novel The Grove of Eagles by Winston Graham.
• He is a character in Gloriana's Torch, the third of the Elizabethan spy thrillers by Patricia Finney.
• He is the main character in the historical novel The Voyage of the Destiny by Robert Nye.

Film

• In 1939 Vincent Price was cast as Sir Walter Raleigh in The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex. The cast also included Bette Davis and Errol Flynn.^[1]

• In late 1940s to early 1950s, actor and comedian Andy Griffith appeared as Sir Walter Raleigh with other cast members in the stage play The Lost Colony.^[2]

• Raleigh was also portrayed in films by Richard Todd in The Virgin Queen in 1955,^[3] and by Clive Owen in Elizabeth: The Golden Age in 2007.^[4]

Television and Games

• In 1986, Simon Jones portrayed Raleigh in the episode "Potato" of the BBC sitcom Blackadder II.^[5]
• The Historie of the World, of which only the first volume was completed before Raleigh's execution, is the source of the title of the Mel Brooks comedy film History of the World, Part I.
• Raleigh is a playable character in the video game Jamestown.^[6]
• Raleigh is the default character of England in the Microprose game Sid Meier's Colonization.
• According to 1066 and All That, James I, with his "logical and tidy mind" had Raleigh executed "for being left over from the previous reign."
• Bob Newhart's monologue "Introducing Tobacco to Civilisation" takes the form of a telephone conversation between "Nutty Walt" Raleigh and a sceptical business associate.
• Raleigh Cigarettes were a popular brand during the 1950s and 1960s ^[7] as was Sir Walter Raleigh Tobacco during the 20th century.^[8]
• Simon Farnaby / Mathew Baynton portrayed Raleigh in the educational comedy Horrible Histories.

In music

• The Beatles describe Raleigh as "a stupid git" in the song "I'm So Tired" due to his popularization of smoking on their 1968 release, The White Album.^[9]
• Raleigh is a main character in the opera Merrie England by Edward German;^[10]
• Raleigh appears as a character in Benjamin Britten's Gloriana.^[11]
• Raleigh is mentioned in the second "commercial" on P. D. Q. Bach's Report from Hoople: P. D. Q. Bach on the Air, and credited with providing the composer with a recipe for a special blend of tobacco that will "give no end of reason to be jolly".

Other

Raleigh allegedly laid his cloak over a puddle so Queen Elizabeth I would not get her feet wet.^[12] The story is generally considered to be apocryphal.^[13]

References

Notes

1. "The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939) – Acting credits". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
2. Thomas, Bob (6 February 1957). "It All Happens To Andy Griffith!". Sarasota Journal. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
3. von Tunzelmann, Alex (31 December 2009). "The Virgin Queen: red tights, black teeth and a kitten-fight". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
4. Lawrence, Will (26 October 2007). "Clive Owen: 'Sir Walter Raleigh was a real charmer'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
5. "BBC Two Programmes – Blackadder II – Potato". BBC. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
6. Polansky, Lara. "Review: Jamestown". killscreendaily.com. Retrieved 17 August 2011.
7. Raleigh cigarettes
8. RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co. history
9. Cadogan, Patrick (2008). The Revolutionary Artist: John Lennon's Radical Years. Lulu. p. 206. ISBN 978-1-4357-1863-0.
10. "'Merrie England' Show Presented On Monday". Calgary Herald. 7 June 1958. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
11. Rockwell, John (25 June 1984). "OPERA:BENJAMIN BRITTEN'S 'GLORIANA'". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
12. My gallant attempt to imitate Sir Walter Raleigh, The Telegraph, 15 Jan 2013
13. 10 Historical Misconceptions, HowStuffWorks

Bibliography