Merlin Fun Facts
A series of useless but rather interesting facts on the TV show.
And I'm back with a second chapter!
Thanks so much for the reviews, guys. And thanks for the facts that you mentioned yourself; I shall be adding them all to the previous chapter. I'll admit, I did know a couple of them, but I thought they were so well known that they wouldn't interest you (see? Always thinking of you guys :P).
Anyways, here are all the Series 2 facts and errors I could find.
Enjoy!
Series 2
The Curse of Cornelius Sigan
1. Most of Cedric/Sigan's hair isn't actually Mackenzie Crook's.
2. Since Mackenzie had trouble remembering his Old English spell, it was shot in little bits and put together in the edit.
3. The final scene was filmed during the day, and night colours were added in post production. Mackenzie can be seen squinting several times because the sun was in his face.
4. Bradley had trouble remembering his lines for the breakfast scene because he was too busy eating.
5. As Cedric becomes Sigan, his look is designed to imitate a raven, since that is the animal on Sigan's crest.
The Once an Future Queen
1. The sand used during the jousting had to be constantly wetted to make it safe for the horses to gallop on.
2. The blue cloak Arthur wears in this episode is the same one worn by Edwin in A Remedy to Cure All Ills.
3. The green dress worn by an extra sitting near Uther in the tournament is the same dress worn by Lady Vivian in Sweet Dreams.
The Nightmare Begins
1. This is the first episode in which we see physical proof of Morgana's magic.
2. When Merlin hides the flowers behind his back, they are pink, white and purple. However, when he gives them to Gwen they are only pink and white.
3. The filming of Mordred's scenes were delayed slightly until Asa Butterfield turned 12 so he could film for an extra hour a day (because of Child Labour Laws in France, where they filmed his scenes).
4. The gaurds used Doberman Pinschers to follow Morgana's trace, a breed which was first bred in Germany around 1890.
Lancelot and Guinevere
1. The piece of jaw bone worn around Hengist's neck was found by Bradley James during filming for The Mark of Nimueh.It was also worn by Kanan in The Moment of Truth.
2. Lancelot tells Gwen "Live for me", the same line that Gwen says to Arthur during Sweet Dreams.
3. Arthur only carries one sword when he jumps into the fighting ring, but once inside, he then throws one to Lancelot.
4. There is no trace of the cut that Morgana gave Hengist with a sword in the forest.
5. Bradley's stunt double was used for the shot when Arthur jumps into the fighting ring.
Beauty and the Beast Part 1
1. The gold necklace that Catrina wears during her wedding is the same one that Morgana wore during the feast at the end of Valiant.
2. Though she is seen on screen, Gwen does not have any lines in this episode.
3. Sarah Parish is Johnny Capps' favourite guest star of Series 2.
4. The Great Dragon does not appear in this episode, but John Hurt is credited.
5. One of the origonal names considered for this episode was Uther and the Troll.
Beauty and the Beast Part 2
1. The BBC Press Release for this episode listed Bradley James as Bradley Jones.
2. The horse dung that the troll eats was made of chocolate and banana.
3. In this episode, Colin Morgan's brother Neil featured as one of the peasants in the background during the scene where guards collect taxes from an old man.
4. This was the first Merlin episode to be shown in two parts, and the only one until The Tears of Uther Pendragon (coincidental, they both feature Uther as part of the main plot).
5. Beauty and the Beast Part 1 and Part 2 were written by different writers.
6. Sarah Parish found it hard to act in the full prosthetics and fat suit as the episode was filmed during a heatwave, making the costume uncomfortable to wear.
The Witchfinder
the scenes in which Aredian writes with a quill, there is no trace of ink whatsoever, including when he dips in in an inkwell and taps it to remove excess ink.
2. The belladonna petal looks nothing like the ones Aredian keeps in his rooms, or the ones illustrated in the book Merlin finds them in.
3. This episode is Colin Morgan's favourite in Series 2.
4. Charles Dance (Aredian) bought a ring with a claw on it in Camden Market because he thought it suited the part of the Witchfinder.
5. Johnny Capps based the Witchfinder loosely on the character of the Child catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
6. Charles Dance was proud of the fact that cast members felt genuinely intimidated by him.
7. This is the first episode in Series 2 in which Arthur calls Guinevere Gwen.
The Sins of the Father
1. During the Throne Room scene, Morgause's boots are black in the close-ups but beige in the long shots.
2. Footage from The Mark of Nimuehwas used for the shot of Merlin running up the stairs to stop Arthur from killing Uther.
3. For some of the still shots before her fight against Arthur, Emilia Fox (Morgause) had to stand on some books.
4. For the scene in which the rope goes up Merlin's body, Colin Morgan was poked in the ribs so he would make the right faces.
5. Whilst filming the scene at Morgause's chapel, Bradley James tripped over and almost fell on Emilia Fox.
6. The first and last scenes of Morgause and her crystals were not in the origonal script.
7. This is the second episode in which Colin Morgan's brother Neil features as an extra.
The Lady of the Lake
1. Markers were attached to Laura Donnelly's (Freya) body so they could match her physical movement to that of the beast she transforms into. Simularly, they do the same with John Hurt for the Dragon's movements.
2. This is the third episode in which Colin Morgan's brother Neil features as an extra.
3. The post production and editing for this episode was only finished on the day it aired.
4. Angel Coulby (Gwen) wasn't features in the Press Release for this episode, but she does appear in it.
5. This is the second episode in which Camelot's tavern, The Rising Sun is featured. It first appeared in The Curse of Cornelius Sigan.
6. During the scene in which Merlin casts Freya's body out onto the lake, Colin Morgan was staring emotionally at a rock.
Sweet Dreams
1. Arthur's shield is more chipped at the beginning of the mace fight than it is at the end.
2. At the begining of the episode when the camera view is on the castle, there is a trail of an aeroplane in the sky.
3. An hourglass is used to time different stages of the fight between Arthur and Olaf. However, the earliest known record of an hourglass in Europe is in the late 13th century.
4. Bradley James is not keen on wearing his crown because it gives him a headache.
5. David Tennant directed the scene in which Arthur hits Merlin for mistaking his love for Gwen instead of Lady Vivian.
6. Bradley James intended to prank Colin Morgan during a scene by slamming a door in his face, but unfortunately, the director yelled cut before he got the chance.
The Witch's Quickening
1. Although a stunt woman was used for certain scenes, Katie McGrath galloped on a horse for the first time during this episode.
2. The scene where Merlin follows Morgana was filmed the day after Colin Morgan fell and hurt his back, so they were concerned about him having to jump from the gallery into the castle's courtyard.
3. It was on the first day of filming that they shot the jail scene between Morgana and Alvarr, and on the last day of filming which they shot the quarrel between Uther and Morgana.
4. Asa Butterfield is Katie McGrath's favourite guest star.
The Fires of Idirsholas
1. When the dragon flies free, there is no trace of the severed chain that should still be attached to his leg.
2. A raven was supposed to deliver the message from Morgause to Morgana, but because of costs and timing, this had to be scrapped.
3. When Arthur examined the cut on Merlin's arm, some blood can be seen, but none on Merlin's shirt.
4. This is Katie McGrath's favourite episode in Series 2.
5. The scene where Morgana meets Morgause in the forest was filmed during the day with special filters to make it look like night.
6. It was Katie McGrath's idea to wear black eyeliner to make her look more like Morgause.
7. During the scene in which Merlin, Arthur and Morgana drag Uther, Colin Morgan fell and bruised of coccyx, Katie McGrath tripped over her skirts several times and hurt her shoulder, and Bradley James injured his back from pulling too hard.
8. This is the 12th episode of the series, and was aired on the 12th day of the 12th month.
9. iTunes UK made the episode available to watch online several hours before it aired on BBC1.
The Last Dragonlord
1. When he rides out to fight the dragon with Arthur and the knights, Merlin is not provided with any kind of armour. Unlike in The Moment of Truth, where he wears chainmail.
2. This episode is Johnny Capps' favourite episode in Series 2.
3. The Series 2 wrap party was held on 11th October, which was also Bradley James' 26th birthday.
4. The battle against the dragon was filmed in a large football pitch near Pierrefonds castle.
5. The US channel Syfy cut the scene where Merlin tells Arthur he is going to fight the dragon with him because it overlapped broadcasting schedules.
6. The scene in which Balinor dies was the scene Colin Morgan found hardest to film.
7. Gwen's house was redressed as the tavern.
8. The spell Merlin uses to tame the dragon translates as: "I command you to stop this reign of terror. You have caused enough pain and suffering to these people. You must obey me and follow my will. For I have you under my power. You shall no longer bring death and destruction to this land"
Aaaaand, that's Series 2 done! If anyone knows anymore facts, let me know and I'll add them.
I won't bother doing Series 3, as the full series hasn't been seen yet and I can't find much trivia, but maybe in the future I will update again with Series 3 facts and trivia.
Until then, I hope you enjoyed reading all the pointless yet interesting facts and trivia I have uncovoured!
Luuurve from your dedicated author,
Maltese-Sapphire xxx
