SWORDS AND SAND(ALS)

THE LAST DAYS OF POMPEII (1984 miniseries)

An 80's adaptation of Edgar Bulwer-Lytton's 1834 best-seller The Last Days of Pompeii with (at the time of its making) big budget and spectacular cast (with Sir Laurence Olivier himself as Gaius the Stoic). The series depicts the life and loss of the ancient Roman city and citizens of Pompeii, the decadent coastal playground catering for the rich & famous of imperial Rome, before and during the eruption of volcano Vesuvius 79 A.D.

In Pompeii, cultivated noble Greek Glaucus (Nicholas Clay) falls in love with the noble-born, virtuous and orphaned Ione (Olivia Hussey, "Lonesome Dove"), but the Egyptian Isis-priest and master of deception Arbaces (the handsome, blue-eyed Italian Franco Nero) has other plans for Ione and her fortunes. Meanwhile, the beautiful but blind slave girl Nydia (Linda Purl) falls in love with her kind and noble master, Glaucus, blind to the fact that her master loves Ione - and blind to the fact that the mighty gladiator Lydon (Duncan Regehr) is the one who loves Nydia. Other romantic pairings include Malcolm Jamieson as the persecuted Christian slave Petrus and Lesley-Anne Down ("North and South") as his true love, the belly-dancing courtesan Chloe; Gerry Sundqvist as the noble Roman Clodius and Catriona MacColl as his true love, Julia, the common-born, strong-willed if spoiled daughter of a rich merchant. ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Lydon: "You're a fool. Blinder in your heart than in your eyes!"

Ladies, hold your breaths for SIX STARS:

* Malcolm Jamieson ("The Scarlet Pimpernel", "Sharpe's Rifles") as Petrus the slave who loves Chloe

* Benedict Taylor (b. 1960, "Zorro", "The Duel of Hearts") as Antonius, Ione's noble-born brother, fighting to save his sister from Arbaces

* Franco Nero (b. 1941, of the spaghettiwesterns fame) as the evil Arbaces who covets Ione's and Antonius's wealth and prestige

* Gerry Sundqvist (b. 1955) as the noble Clodius in love with Julia

* Nicholas Clay (b. 1946, "Lady Chatterley's Lover", "Excalibur", "Lionheart", "The Odyssey") as the noble Glaucus in love with Ione and loved by Nydia

* Gladiator Lydon/Regehr (b. 1952, "Zorro") loving Nydia

Missed the series?

Check the dedicated fansite

Or read the original 1834 novel by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, "The Last Days of Pompeii," free download at Gutenberg