It has been rumored that Thomas More tortured heretics on his property - sometimes tying them to trees. It has not been proven, though. Henry allowed Anne to have an expert executioner who appeared to be one of many other people on the platform so she wouldn’t be unduly alarmed by the sight of a masked man. As shown in Wolf Hall, he distracted her as well. That scene was beautifully done and Claire Foy was excellent as always.
I thought the BBC’s Wolf Hall was very well done and I thought Claire Foy was a very good Anne Boleyn.