About this episode
Mary and Charlotte discuss the cinematic portrayal of Cleopatra with Professor Maria Wyke, exploring its historical and cultural significance.
Mary and Charlotte talk to Professor Maria Wyke, classicist and film historian, about Cleopatra’s rebirth on the screen. By far the most famous Cleopatra film is the 1963 epic starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton - at the time the most expensive film ever made and with a steamy on-set love affair between the two stars to match that of the characters they were playing. Almost as brilliant, in its way, is the parody made the following year - Carry on Cleo - giving Kenneth Williams, as Julius Caesar, one of the greatest lines of all time: “Infamy, infamy, they’ve all got it in for me.” This pair of films hog the limelight, but Maria shows how cinema’s fascination with Cleo goes right back to the early years of silent film through to the 21st Century. Why? On one hand, the Cleopatra story is an opportunity for spectacle and sex appeal - in other words, good business. On the other, the story is reinvented by each generation, playing on the anxieties and desires of the age. Looking at Cleopatra films tells us a lot about changing attitudes to sex, race and politics over the last 100+ years. Mary and Charlotte recommend some further reading: Maria has written about Cleopatra on…
People in this episode
Hosts: Mary, Charlotte
Guest: Professor Maria Wyke
Topics covered
- Cleopatra
- film history
- cinema
- cultural representation
- sex and politics
Keywords
- Cleopatra
- film
- Elizabeth Taylor
- Richard Burton
- cinema history
- cultural representation
- silent film
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Routledge, OUP, Fourth Estate
Books & works: Carry on Cleo, Projecting the Past, The Roman Mistress, Cleopatra: Histories, Dreams and Distortions
Places: 21st Century
More episodes of Instant Classics
- USA 250: America’s Roman Revolution · June 11, 2026 · 52 min
- What did the Romans dream about? · June 4, 2026 · 55 min
- Cleopatra 4: Cleopatra on the Page · May 21, 2026 · 54 min
- BONUS Mary & Charlotte on the latest trailer for Christopher Nolan's Odyssey · May 17, 2026 · 7 min
- Cleopatra 3: Life After Death · May 14, 2026 · 49 min
- Cleopatra 2: Cleopatra Meets the Romans · May 7, 2026 · 46 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Instant Classics podcast page.