<Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> External links </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> Website </Td> </Tr> <P> The Tudors is a historical fiction television series set primarily in the 16th - century Kingdom of England, created and entirely written by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable television channel Showtime . The series was a collaboration between American, British, and Canadian producers, and was filmed mostly in Ireland . Although named after the Tudor dynasty as a whole, it is based specifically upon the reign of King Henry VIII . </P> <P> The series was produced by Peace Arch Entertainment for Showtime in association with Reveille Productions, Working Title Television, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and was filmed in Ireland . The first two episodes debuted on DirecTV, Time Warner Cable OnDemand, Netflix, Verizon FiOS On Demand, Internet Movie Database and on the website of the series before the official premiere on Showtime . The Tudors premiered on 1 April 2007; it was the highest - rated Showtime series in three years . In April 2007, the show was renewed for a second season, and in that month the BBC announced it had acquired exclusive United Kingdom broadcast rights for the series, which it started to broadcast on 5 October 2007 . The CBC began broadcasting the show on 2 October 2007 . </P>

What time period is the tudors set in