The Scandalous Adventures Of Lord Byron

The choice of Rupert Everett to host this minor biopic of the infamous poet is unsurprising - the "mad, bad and dangerous to know" literary hero is someone that Everett is obviously besotted by.

Madonna's one time BFF has rather retreated from the celeb circuit of late and so it's entertaining to have him back on the small screen, enjoyably getting his teeth into the "exoticism and sexual adventures" of one of the original bad boys of verse. It's also unsurprising to see this quickie knocked out at the same time as Byron and his chums are enjoying fictionalised tales on BBC2 in the disappointing Desperate Romantics.

There's lots of poetry spouting from the tops of Albanian mountains and as the 200th anniversary of the Lord's legendary travels is suitably reverenced, Everett calls Albanian rulers "screaming old queens" and suggests to the children of the country to rise up and embrace communism once again, there is a brazen recklessness to the piece which makes for bizarrely compelling viewing and his viewpoint of modern celebrity in comparison to Byron’s stellar trajectory is entirely accurate ("Anyone can be a star these days, it’s really quite common”).

It's perhaps not entirely all Everett's own words ("There are two things that taste like fish, and one of them is fish") and his encounters with Portuguese prostitutes and his visit to a VD Clinic tends to suggest a little more laddish angle to the continent hopping. However, he is a unique guide and whilst you learn little of the great man himself (other than his penis size and sexual predilections), you are always entertained. We've already seen Everett retrace the steps of Victorian explorer and sexual adventurer Sir Richard Burton; it will be interesting to see which voracious talent Everett will devour next.



Airs on at 9pm on Monday 27th July 2009 on Channel 4.

Written by Simon Cole.