DIVERSITY IN PERIOD DRAMAS: ARE BLACK PEOPLE HISTORICALLY INACCURATE?

And why are audiences so opposed to seeing them in this genre?

Picture this: You’re watching a period drama as a way to escape the stress of modern-day living. Perhaps you’ve been transported to a candlelit ball straight out of an Austen novel. Or maybe you’re holding a bejewelled chalice at a medieval feast in an ivy-covered castle. This is your escapist adventure. You decide.

No matter where (or when) you are, these are simpler times with lush open fields and flowery language, free from the burden of smartphones and not a Covid-mask in sight. But wait! Doth your eyes deceive you or is that… A Black person? Here? Immediately, you’re snapped back to a reality plagued with political correctness, where you can’t even turn your head without cries of “Black Lives Matter” being shoved down your throat. It seems you’ll never be able to truly escape.

Stories of the past have always captured the imagination of creators and audiences. Since their translation onto the screen, the decadent costumes, sweeping romances and historical intrigue of period dramas have allowed them to maintain their popularity. But as modern audiences become increasingly more expecting of onscreen diversity, one question remains: Where are all the Black people?

According to The Guardian, The British Film Institute for Research has found that of all UK films released between 2006-2016, 59% had no Black actors in any role. For period dramas, which constitute a significant part of the British film industry, this amount increases to a whopping 80%. This makes it incredibly difficult for Black actors to find work in the UK. Actress Thandie Newton told the UK’s Sunday Times in 2017: “I can’t work [here in the UK], because I can’t do Downton Abbey, can’t be in Victoria, can’t be in Call the Midwife - well, I could, but I don’t want to play someone who’s being racially abused.”

She makes a fair point. For years, it has seemed the only place for Black people in period dramas is in narratives about slavery and racism. From the plantation setting of Gone with the Wind, one of the highest grossing films of all time, to the unflinching violence of the critically-acclaimed biopic 12 Years a Slave, Black audiences are repeatedly sold depictions of their trauma as entertainment and are expected to be thankful to have any representation at all.

If Netflix’s original show Bridgerton is any indication, there is hope on the horizon for meaningful change. Tag-lined as Pride and Prejudice meets Gossip Girl, Bridgerton is based off Julia Quinn’s Regency-era romance novels, with one key difference: it is set in a racially diverse 1813 England. The show quickly became one of Netflix’s biggest hits of all time; 82 million households watched Bridgerton in its first 28 days, far surpassing Netflix’s initial estimation of 63 million households.

Bridgerton stands out as a period drama, due to its use of “colour-conscious” casting, where race and ethnicity are positively recognised and thoughtfully considered when choosing actors. This approach has been lauded as a means to increase job opportunities for marginalised groups in the film industry, while providing a greater scope of representation for viewers. It acknowledges and combats the bias that presumes “white” is the default race of characters.

Regé-Jean Page, who portrays Bridgerton’s dashing romantic lead, expressed to Entertainment Weekly how colour-conscious casting gave him and his character a chance to “exist as a Black person in the world” and to move away from depicting trauma towards depicting Black joy and humanity. He remarked on the vast and significant difference between the two most prominent roles of his career so far – namely Simon Basset, a Duke who rides horses in rich, embroidered clothing and Chicken George, the son of a slave master and his slave, in the 2016 remake of Roots. Despite existing at the same period of time, these characters inhibit very different social positions, showing the range of narratives Hollywood can tell about Black people if they take the leap like Bridgerton did.

Local up-and-coming actor and self-proclaimed Bridgerton fan, Anton David Jeftha, provided his insight on the importance of representation in moving beyond narratives rooted in oppression: “We are only as powerful as our stories. Through telling stories, you can get a better sense of who you are and you feel a sense of pride in your culture and your people. The white community is as powerful as they are because they tell their own stories, so we need to tell our stories and put people on screen who resemble us, so that our culture is strengthened.”

On the reimagined society created by Shona Rhimes in Bridgerton, Jeftha had this to say: “Whatever stories you keep telling is where the culture is going to be stuck at. So why shouldn’t we reimagine what the past could’ve looked like, in order to create a future where people of colour feel more [confident in their power]? As people of colour, we also want in on those stories of power and victory. Now more than ever, the artist needs to change the narrative and create worlds that they deem inclusive and beneficial for those who have been [historically oppressed].”

Not everyone is welcoming this disruption of the narrative of white superiority and Black subjugation. Industry experts (such as the producer of Downtown Abbey, Julian Fellowes) and audiences alike have used “historical accuracy” as a justification for the lack of diversity in the genre. By that logic, we should be seeing more Black people in period dramas; Britain of the past wasn’t as white-washed as the history books would like you to believe. David Olusoga’s book Black and British: A Forgotten History points out that Black Britons have existed in Europe as early as the ancient Roman period, while Dr Miranda Kaufmann highlights case studies of free African individuals living in 16th century Tudor England in her book Black Tudors: The Untold Story.

It’s important to note that period pieces are rarely 100% historically accurate – nor do they claim to be. There is a clear distinction between documentation for education purposes and dramatized stories told in a historical setting for entertainment. Furthermore, liberties with costuming, hair and make-up are taken all the time to appeal to modern day beauty aesthetics. Most viewers do not notice or care, because even with these inaccuracies, the story remains believable. So what they actually mean by “historical accuracy” is “believability” and apparently, it is not believable to see people of colour in an equal standing with white people. We need to evaluate why that is.

Diversity in period dramas challenges the assumption of the supremacy and homogeneity of European culture. Acknowledging that a diverse British population is not a recent phenomenon goes against anti-immigration rhetoric that implies that societies are better when they only consist of white people. It also raises uncomfortable questions about the reality of race relations in the past: How were Black people actually treated at that point in time? How would beloved protagonists have contributed to the system of racial oppression? What role would white audience members themselves have in that system, if they were alive back then?

Anton encourages creators to not shy away from pushing people out of the comfort zones that white privilege has afforded them. “Art is supposed to shake up the dust and make people think. And if we’re not making people think, and we’re playing it safe all the time trying to make everyone happy, then what are we doing? And why do we have this industry?”

Audiences are expected to suspend their belief and engage with the characters in a piece imaginatively and empathetically. People of colour have been doing this with white characters for years, despite the way the entertainment industry has mocked, scorned and excluded them. Black people deserve to partake in the fantasy of living in the past, particularly the fantasy of a past in which they have always been respected and valued by society. Bridgerton is just the first step towards making this a widespread reality.