BBC sets King & Conqueror premiere date
August 13, 2025
By Nik Roseveare
King & Conqueror is coming to the BBC this August, with all episodes of the historial drama available on BBC iPlayer from 6am on August 24th and the first episode airing on BBC One that same evening.
King & Conqueror is the story of a clash that defined the future of a country – and a continent – for a thousand years, the roots of which stretch back decades and extend out through a pair of interconnected family dynasties, struggling for power across two countries and a raging sea. Harold of Wessex and William of Normandy (AKA William the Conqueror) were two men destined to meet at the Battle of Hastings in 1066; two allies with no design on the English throne, who found themselves forced by circumstance and personal obsession into a war for possession of its crown.
The series stars James Norton (Happy Valley, McMafia) as Harold, Earl of Wessex, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Game of Thrones, Against the Ice) as William, Duke of Normandy, Emily Beecham (Cruella, Rise of the Footsoldier) as Edith Swan-neck, Clémence Poésy (Harry Potter, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon) as Matilda, Eddie Marsan (Ray Donovan, Deadpool 2) as King Edward, Juliet Stevenson (Wolf, Bend it Like Beckham) as Lady Emma, Clare Holman (Treason, Sherwood) as Gytha, Luther Ford (The Crown, Black Doves) as Tostig, Bo Bragason (The Radleys, Renegade Nell) as Queen Gunhild and Indy Lewis (Industry, La Fortuna) as Margaret.
King & Conqueror is produced by The Development Partnership, Rabbit Track Pictures, Shepherd Content, RVK Studios and CBS Studios, in association with the BBC. The 8×45’ series is created and executive produced by Michael Robert Johnson and executive produced by Norton and Kitty Kaletsky for Rabbit Track Pictures, Baltasar Kormákur and Magnus Sigurdsson for RVK Studios, Robert Taylor for The Development Partnership, Dave Clarke and Richard Halliwell for Shepherd Content, Lindsay Martin for CBS Studios, Ed Clarke and Coster-Waldau. Baltasar Kormákur directed the premiere episode and also serves as executive producer.
The BBC has acquired broadcasting rights for the series in the UK and it is distributed outside of the UK by Paramount Global Content Distribution. The series will stream on Prime Video in the US and HBO Max in multiple international territories.
Speaking on the series’ conception, Norton said: “Initially it was the story, rather than specifically Harold, that drew me to the project. We chatted about the idea for this show seven or eight years ago, and the first reaction I had was ‘how has this story not been told before in TV or film?’ It’s one of the biggest dates we learn in history at school. It has defined so much of our culture, politics and law, the fabric of this country.”
“Over the development process the character [of Harold] became more and more nuanced, and the relationships he has with Edith and his family allowed us a way into the complexity of this man and the reasons behind his relentless pursuit of power. Luckily by the end of the development process, it was a complete no-brainer for me – I was so right for Harold and Nikolaj, who came on a little bit later than I did, was so right for William,” he continued.
Coster-Waldau commented: “It’s such a compelling story about these two men who at first you think that could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship, and then it becomes something quite different. I didn’t know anything about this history, and once I started doing my research and reading about it, I was really surprised by how different Europe looked back then and how the influence of the Normans, the Vikings, how great that was at that time. I love history, I find it very interesting.”
“On the surface, it’s a very macho world with men trying to claim what’s theirs and reach their objectives through violence and war. It’s important that you don’t get caught up in that too much. It has to be grounded in a reality, the emotional stakes have to be real. Mike [lead writer] did a great job of finding these moments where you get behind what might be a very one-dimensional portrait of people going to war. It plays much more in the relationships that are within a family and the various characters. And we know, at the end of this, there might be a battle in some place called Hastings…” added Coster-Waldau.
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