Domina has claim to being the most historically accurate period drama ever made – even though its characters might be completely unrecognisable to the real people it portrays.
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Livia Drusilla: 3rd Wife of First Roman Emperor Augustus
Livia Drusilla was born on the 30th of January 58 BC and was the daughter of Marcus Livius Drusus Claudianus and his wife, Alfidia. The former was a Roman senator , and the adoptive son of Marcus Livius Drusus, the tribune of 91 BC. Around the time of Julius Caesar’s assassination , i.e., in 44 / 43 BC, Livia married Tiberius Claudius Nero, who is said to have been her cousin. In 42 BC, Livia gave birth to her first son, Tiberius.
In 39 BC, Livia was pregnant with her second son, Drusus. At the same time, Octavian (who later became known as Augustus) arrange for her to divorce her husband, so that he could marry her. Augustus himself was married at that time, to his second wife, Scribonia. In any case, after Livia gave birth to Drusus in January 38 BC, she divorced her husband, whilst Octavian divorced his wife. Apparently, Octavian arranged this marriage as he needed the political connections of Livia’s family.
TV tonight: Domina – a game of thrones in Ancient Rome Ammar Kalia, Graeme Virtue, Ellen E Jones, Phil Harrison and Simon Wardell
Domina
9pm, Sky Atlantic
It’s back to ancient Rome for this psychological drama examining the rise to power of Livia Drusilla (Kasia Smutniak), wife and adviser to Augustus Caesar. We open in the aftermath of Julius Caesar’s assassination and young Livia’s marriage to Tiberius Claudius Nero – a political alliance that sees the couple forced to flee Italy. Seeking to return home, Livia begins to plot how she could ascend the ranks of society. Co-starring Isabella Rossellini and Game of Thrones’ Liam Cunningham.