Mark Smith's Review of The Pillars of the Earth

The following paragraph caught the eye of forum member, luce, and was too funny not to post here.

"Waleren’s main mission in the first couple of episodes was to get the better of a monk named Philip played by Matthew Macfadyen who’s the opposite of McShane in almost every way. Whereas McShane has a wonderfully scheming kind of face and evil little eyebrows that look as though they’re plotting an uprising against the rest of his face, Macfadyen is all cute and cuddly and has exactly the same features as the bears they sell in shopping malls – middle aged women would, if they could, put him on their bedside table and go “awww”. Fortunately, he’s also a charismatic actor and, lumbered with a character as cardboardy as his, manages to make him sympathetic, likeable and watchable."

The Herald