Taboo – All Roads Lead to China

Naturally there’s been some moaning and quibbles but generally the reviewers seem to like the new Stephen Knight drama starring Tom Hardy on BBC1, Taboo….I have to confess that I LOVE it personally….here’s the synopsis….

Adventurer James Keziah Delaney, long believed to be dead, returns home to London from Africa in 1814 in order to inherit his late father’s shipping empire. All is not what it seems, however, as Delaney encounters numerous enemies intent on making his life back in the United Kingdom very difficult. Focused on building a shipping empire to rival the imperious East India Company, Delaney’s other wish to seek vengeance for his father’s death means conspiracy, betrayal and bloodshed are also in the cards. As he works to accomplish that, Delaney must also navigate increasingly complex territories in order to avoid his own death sentence.

I make note of the programme here because China Rhymers may like to know that ultimately Delaney’s ambitions, his fights with the perfidious East India Company, the British Government, those pesky American rebels, and all manner of other strange types, are all in the service of securing a monopoly on the tea trade between Canton and the new United States of America….