‘Shardlake’ is a Tudor-era mystery series. It’s also a win for disabled characters, its star says
By HILARY FOX
Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — Matthew Shardlake steps out of the pages of the late C.J. Sansom’s popular historical mystery novels and into a Disney+ show, bringing with him disability representation. He’s played by Arthur Hughes, who himself was born with radial dysplasia. Hughes notes that audiences don’t tend to see a lot of leading disabled characters, or at least not those played by disabled actors. Shardlake is a clever lawyer who solves puzzles and problems during the reign of King Henry VIII. Anthony Boyle plays a codpiece-wearing rogue and Sean Bean portrays Thomas Cromwell.
