Books: The Arthurian Legend: Books / Movies / TV

[kdb209]

For the New Year, I've decided to do a thorough (but non completist) read/reread/watch of the King Arthur canon from the first historical references & medieval sources through modern re-tellings.

I've got a pretty good handle on the books through the mid 20th century.

Do you have any recommendations of good modern books/movies/TV shows?
Any important or interesting earlier works that I've misssed?

From various course notes, reading lists, recommendations, and my bookshelves:

c. 6th-century Gildas "On The Ruin of Britain (De Excidio Britanniae)"
c. 731 Bede "Ecclesiastical History of the English People (Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum)"
c. 9th-century Anonymous "The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles"
c. 821 Nennius "History Of The Britons (Historia Brittonum)"
c.10th century Anonymous "The Welsh Annals (Annales Cambriae)"
c.1125 William of Malmesbury "Deeds of the English Kings (Gesta regum Anglorum)"
c. 1136 Geoffrey of Monmouth "The History of the Kings of Britain (Historia regum Britanniae)"
c.1150 Geoffrey of Monmouth "The Life of Merlin (Vita Merlini)"
c. 1350–1410 (from earlier sources) Anonymous "The Mabinogian"
c. 1155 Wace "Roman de Brut"
c. 1190 Layamon "Brut"
c. 1170 Marie de France " Lanval"

c. 1170-1191 Chretien de Troyes "Arthurian Romances (Eric et Enide, Cligès, Yvain, Lancelot, Perceval)"
- Erec and Enide
- Cligès
- Yvain, the Knight of the Lion
- Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart
- Perceval, the Story of the Grail

c. 1210-1230 anonymous "Vulgate Cycle"
- Estoire del Saint Grail (The History of the Holy Grail)
- Estoire de Merlin (Prose Merlin)
- Lancelot propre (Lancelot Proper)
- Queste del Saint Graal (Quest for the Holy Grail)
- Mort Artu (Death of Arthur)

c. 1230-1240 anonymous "Post Vulgate Cycle"
- Estoire del Saint Grail
- Estoire de Merlin / Suite du Merlin
- Queste del Saint Graal
- Mort Artu

c. early 13th Cent Wolfram von Eschenback "Parzival"
c. late 14th century Thomas Chestre "Sir Launfal"
c. late 14th century Anonymous "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight"
c. 15th century Anonymous "The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle"
c. late 14th century Chaucer "The Wife of Bath’s Tale"
c. 14th century Anonymous "Stanzaic Morte Arthur"
c. 1400 Anonymous "Alliterative Morte Arthure"
c 1460-1480 Anonymous "Prose Merlin"
1485 Sir Thomas Mallory "Le Morte D'Arthur"

1859-1885 Alfred Lord Tennyson "Idylls of the King"
1882 Richard Wagner "Parsifal"
1889 Mark Twain "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court"
c. 1934-1937 J.R.R. Tolkien "The Fall of Arthur"
1939 T.H. White "The Once and Future King"
1941 T.H. White The Book of Merlyn
c. 1956-1959 John Steinbeck "The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights"

1970 Mary Stewart "The Crystal Cave"
1973 Mary Stewart "The Hollow Hills"
1979 Mary Stewart "The Last Enchantment"
1977 Richard Monaco "Parsival, or a Knight's Tale"
1979 Richard Monaco "The Grail War"
1981 Richard Monaco "The Final Quest"
1982 Marion Zimmer Bradley "The Mists of Avalon"

1995-1997 Bernard Cornwell "The Warlord Chronicles"
1995 Bernard Cornwell "The Winter King"
1996 Bernard Cornwell "Enemy of God"
1997 Bernard Cornwell "Excalibur"

1987-1999 Stephen R. Lawhead "The Pendragon Cycle"
1987 Stephen R. Lawhead "Taliesin"
1988 Stephen R. Lawhead "Merlin"
1989 Stephen R. Lawhead "Arthur"
1994 Stephen R. Lawhead "Pendragon"
1997 Stephen R. Lawhead "Grail"
1999 Stephen R. Lawhead "Avalon"

1992-2005 Jack Whyte "Camulad Chronicles"
1992 Jack Whyte "The Skystone"
1993 Jack Whyte "The Singing Sword"
1994 Jack Whyte "The Eagles' Brood"
1995 Jack Whyte "The Saxon Shore"
1999 Jack Whyte " The Fort at River's Bend (The Sorcerer, Volume 1)"
1999 Jack Whyte "Metamorphosis (The Sorcerer, Volume 2)"
2001 Jack Whyte "Uther"
2004 Jack Whyte "Clothar the Frank"
2005 Jack Whyte "The Eagle"

Movies:
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1949) - Bing Crosby
Knights of the Round Table (1953) - Ava Gardner, Robert Taylor
The Sword in the Stone (1963) - Disney animated
Camelot (1967) - Richard Harris, Vanessa Redgrave
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) - Monty Python
Excalibur (1981) - Nicol Williamson, Nigel Terry, Helen Mirren
The Fisher King (1991) Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams
First Knight (1995) - Richard Gere, Julia Ormond, Sean Connery
King Arthur (2004) - Clive Owen, Keira Knightley

TV:
Merlin (1998)
The Mists of Avalon (2001)

Any other recommendations?

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[Jumptheshark]

When I get home I will post a few non-fiction books that I have that are about the history, folklore and other stuff on Arthur/Merlin

 

[sabresfan129103]

There was also the Camelot TV series that was on STARZ. I actually enjoyed that and was sad it didn't get a 2nd season, despite some questionable acting. Eva Green and Joseph Fiennes were good though.

 

[kihei]

Growing up, I loved The Once and Future King. It is still among my all-time favourite books. I'd recommend it to anybody.

 

[NyQuil]

There's kind of an interesting twist on the tale in the comic book series "Camelot 3000".

 

[WarriorOfGandhi]

1995 Bernard Cornwell "The Winter King"
1996 Bernard Cornwell "Enemy of God"
1997 Bernard Cornwell "Excalibur"

I cannot speak to any more of your quest, OP

but I can tell you that this is my absolute favorite book series of all time, and I envy that you can read it for the first time

 

[kingsholygrail]

I love Excalibur(the movie). Patrick Stewart was an awesome knight. Good luck on your journey. That's a lot of material to get through and some of it in the reading is pretty difficult. "Le Morte D'Arthur" took me forever.

 

[Tawnos]

The Jack Whyte stuff is some of my favorite.

Also, there's a new Arthur movie coming out that, if I can see a little through the poorly cut preview, looks intriguing.