Was there ever a better soap opera than I, Claudius?

Such great performances!

And such great shocking moments:

LIVIA: "I wouldn't touch the figs if I were you..."

LIVIA: "Claudius, I want to be a goddess."

CALIGULA: "Who would make a goddess out of a smelly old woman like you?"

CLAUDIUS: "You're going to let your own daughter st-st-starve to death in there?" ANTONIA: "That's her punishment!" CLAUDIUS: "But... h-h-how can you just stand there listening to her die?" ANTONIA: "And that's mine!"

CALIGULA: "Gemellus's coughing has stopped."

MESSALINA: "NOT MY HEAD! NOT MY HEAD!"

Great list, r1!

That grandson of yours could wreck the empire just by strolling through it.

Superb cast.

We had a thread on this not too long ago, but it's always a worthwhile show to talk about. It had a huge impact in its day and was the forerunner of shows like ROME, The Borgias, The Tudors & Game of Thrones.

Sian Phillips and Derek Jacobi both won BAFTA's for their performances. It's great that Phillips, Jacobi, Patrick Stewart & Brian Blessed are all still here today.

Very memorable cast. I remember when Patrick Stewart was on Star Trek TNG, someone mentioned he’d been in I Claudius and I instantly thought Sejanus! (sp) which I’d only seen in the original broadcast. I read the books afterward and had to draw family trees on the end pages, there were so many characters through the generations.