King & Conqueror: Everything We Know So Far
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2 weeks ago
We’ve been waiting (im)patiently for King & Conqueror
With Vikings and Game of Thrones well and truly over and House of the Dragon slated to return in 2026, there’s a hole in our lives ready to be filled by a new medieval-style drama. And the BBC has answered our prayers: first announced at the end of 2023, 1066 drama King & Conqueror is set to launch later this month. Starring James Norton and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in war-torn Britain, here’s everything we know so far.
William, Duke of Normandy (NIKOLAJ COSTER-WALDAU) & Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex (JAMES NORTON) in King & Conqueror. (© BBC/Rabbit Track Pictures/RVK Studios/The Development Company/Shepherd Content/CBS Studios/Lilja Jóns)
King & Conqueror: Plot, Cast, Release Date & More
An epic new historical drama whisking us back to 1066, King & Conqueror tells the notorious tale that led to the foundation of Great Britain as we know it today. In fact, this year of clashes would define the whole continent for 1,000 years: it marked the end of the Viking age in Britain, but quickly ushered in the Norman Conquest.
This age-old tale is brought back to life in this Game of Thrones style epic drama starring James Norton as the English claimant to the throne Harold, Earl of Wessex opposite Thrones star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as William, Duke of Normandy. Watch the trailer below for an idea of the vibe.
‘Power is like a fire: unchecked, it will destroy everything.’ This is how the trailer opens, introducing us to Harold and William, the sons in two interconnected family dynasties separated by borders and a raging sea.
‘Harold, we’re bound together. Normandy and Wessex, together,’ William tells Harold in the trailer. ‘Maybe you and I are better than all of them.’
When the series opens, neither man has any designs on the English throne – but they are forced to pursue it by circumstance and personal obsession. Cue a double-crossing duel for the crown, with each man believing he has the stronger claim to the monarchy, featuring huge battle sequences we haven’t seen the likes of since House of the Dragon.
Odo (LEO LEGRAND), Matilda (CLEMENCE POESY), Baldwin (OLIVER MASUCCI) in King & Conqueror. (© BBC/Rabbit Track Pictures/RVK Studios/The Development Company/Shepherd Content/CBS Studios/Lilja Jóns)
Sound familiar? It’s a story we know well here in the UK. As the BBC’s Sue Deeks puts it: ‘In the UK we learn about William the Conqueror, the Battle of Hastings and King Harold’s gruesome death in our school history lessons – but those headlines are all most of us can remember. King & Conqueror will bring Harold and William to life, depicting their lives, loves and families, and the gripping, high stakes power game that led to their fateful meeting in 1066.’
Filmed in Iceland from March to July 2024 (more on that here), King & Conqueror also stars wives, allies and enemies, and ethical questions pierce through the hubbub, including one we hear in the trailer: ‘What is victory if the whole world burns to achieve it?’
But ultimately as Juliet Stevenson’s character points out: ‘Power isn’t given. Power is taken.’
William, Duke of Normandy (NIKOLAJ COSTER-WALDAU) in King & Conqueror. (© BBC/Rabbit Track Pictures/RVK Studios/The Development Company/Shepherd Content/CBS Studios/Lilja Jóns)
Meet The Cast Of King & Conqueror
King & Conqueror is led by James Norton and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, who are no strangers to high-profile TV. Best known for his roles in Happy Valley and Grantchester, Norton most recently starred in ITV drama Playing Nice and will next be seen in Netflix’s House of Guinness and HBO’s House of the Dragon. It’s the same universe that made a star out of Danish actor Coster-Waldau, who played Jaime Lannister from the very beginning to the very end of Game of Thrones. More recently, Coster-Waldau has starred in Apple TV’s The Last Thing He Told Me and American action thriller God is a Bullet (2023).
In King & Conqueror, our leading men are joined by their respective wives, Edith Swanneck (British star Emily Beecham) and Matilda (French star Clémence Poésy). If you recognise Beecham, it’s probably thanks to recent roles in Into the Badlands and The Pursuit of Love. Poésy meanwhile has recently starred in The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, The Essex Serpent and Tenet (2020), as well as the Harry Potter franchise (as Fleur Delacour) and Gossip Girl back in the day.
Edith Swanneck (EMILY BEECHAM) in King & Conqueror. (© BBC/Rabbit Track Pictures/RVK Studios/The Development Company/Shepherd Content/CBS Studios/Lilja Jóns)
The King & Conqueror cast is rounded out with enemies and allies brought to life by British TV stalwarts, including Eddie Marsan as King Edward and Juliet Stevenson as Lady Emma.
Additional names include Elander Moore as Morcar, Clare Holman as Gytha, Luther Ford as Tostig, Bo Bragason as Queen Gunhild and Geoff Bell as Godwin.
They will be joined by Jean-Marc Barr as King Henry, Elliott Cowan as Sweyn, Bjarne Henriksen as Earl Siward, Oliver Masucci as Baldwin, Indy Lewis as Margaret, Jason Forbes as Thane Thomas, Ingvar Sigurdsson as Fitzosbern, Ines Asserson as Judith, Sveinn Ólafur Gunnarsson as Hardrada and Léo Legrand as Odo.
Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex (JAMES NORTON) in King & Conqueror. (© BBC/Rabbit Track Pictures/RVK Studios/The Development Company/Shepherd Content/CBS Studios/Lilja Jóns)
Will There Be A Second Season?
It’s too early to say whether King & Conqueror will be renewed for a second series, and the BBC hasn’t commented. It all depends on how the series performs both here in the UK and overseas – and, of course, where it ends.
That said, if King & Conqueror gets good ratings, we think the BBC (and its American partners CBS) will be quick to renew it, jumping on the popularity of these war-torn historical dramas exemplified by Game of Thrones, Vikings and even The Rings of Power.
One clue we’ve spotted that hints at good news? The BBC trailer has ‘series 1’ in the title, as if they are preparing for a reprise. Intriguing…
Harold Godwinson, Earl of Wessex (JAMES NORTON) & Margaret (INDY LEWIS) in King & Conqueror. (© BBC/Rabbit Track Pictures/RVK Studios/The Development Company/Shepherd Content/CBS Studios/Lilja Jóns)
Release Date
All eight episodes of King & Conqueror will be available to stream on BBC iPlayer from 6am on Sunday 24 August 2025 – perfect for some bank holiday bingeing. The first episode will also air on BBC One that evening.
Outside of the UK, King & Conqueror will be distributed by Paramount.
