Charles Dance To Play Michelangelo In BBC-PBS Docu-Drama

Charles Dance is to star as Michelangelo in a BBC–PBS docu-drama about the renaissance.

Dance is leading Renaissance: The Blood and the Beauty, examining how some of the greatest works of art in the Western world were born out of an era of violence, power politics and rivalry.

The BBC said the show will “reveal an unfamiliar side to the Renaissance,” with Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael also represented along with their patrons in 16th-century Italy.

Dance is well known for playing villains and authoritative characters on screen. The Emmy-nominee’s past credits include The Crown, in which he played Lord Mountbatten, Game of Thrones and The Imitation Game.

With Renaissance, the BBC is embracing the current penchant for historical docu-drama, which has seen Netflix make similar shows on the likes of Cleopatra, Alexander the Great and the Russian Tsars.

Renaissance will be unveiled tonight at a glitzy BBC arts event in London alongside a Jane Austen series and a Simon Schama show about the history of the culture wars.

The BBC is keen to be seen to still be a big player in the arts genre. Speaking to the Guardian this morning, arts boss Suzy Klein hit back at criticism from broadcasting stalwarts David Dimbleby and Melvyn Bragg over the corporation’s commitment to culture shows. “There’s an incredibly strong and passionate commitment to the arts at the BBC, and myself and my team are defending that every single day of the week,” she said.