Elizabeth I 

Miniseries about the the public and private lives of the later years of Queen Elizabeth I.

Stars:

Helen Mirren, Hugh Dancy, Toby Jones

Won 3 Golden Globes. Another 24 wins & 26 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Helen Mirren	...	Elizabeth I 2 episodes, 2005
Hugh Dancy	...	Earl of Essex 2 episodes, 2005
Toby Jones	...	Robert Cecil 2 episodes, 2005
Patrick Malahide	...	Sir Francis Walsingham 2 episodes, 2005
Ian McDiarmid	...	Lord Burghley 2 episodes, 2005
Toby Salaman	...	Dr Lopez 2 episodes, 2005
Ann Firbank	...	Lady Anne 2 episodes, 2005
Jeremy Irons	...	Earl of Leicester / ... 2 episodes, 2005
Ewen Bremner	...	King James VI 2 episodes, 2005
Barbara Flynn	...	Mary Queen of Scots 2 episodes, 2005
Will Keen	...	Francis Bacon 2 episodes, 2005
Jérémie Covillault	...	Duke of Anjou 2 episodes, 2005
Eddie Redmayne	...	Southampton 2 episodes, 2005
Erick Deshors	...	Jean de Simier 2 episodes, 2005
Ben Pullen	...	Sir Walter Raleigh 2 episodes, 2005
Charlotte Asprey	...	Frances Walsingham 2 episodes, 2005
Simon Woods	...	Gifford 2 episodes, 2005
Diana Kent	...	Lady Essex 2 episodes, 2005
Malcolm Terris	...	Chaplain 2 episodes, 2005
Douglas Reith	...	Judge 2 episodes, 2005
Geoffrey Streatfeild	...	Sir Anthony Babington 2 episodes, 2005
John McEnery	...	Jesuit Priest / ... 2 episodes, 2005
Martin Savage	...	Stubbs 2 episodes, 2005
Anna Steel	...	Lady in Waiting / ... 2 episodes, 2005
David Delve	...	Sir Francis Drake 2 episodes, 2005
Ramunas Rudokas	...	Thomas Burghley 2 episodes, 2005
Martin Marquez	...	Don Bernadino de Mendoza 2 episodes, 2005
Charles Millham	...	Priest 2 episodes, 2005
Mykolas Dorofejus	...	Davison 2 episodes, 2005
Geoffrey T. Bersey	...	Hatton 2 episodes, 2005
Rimantas Magdzevicius	...	Howard of Effingham 2 episodes, 2005

Storyline

Miniseries about the the public and private lives of the later years of Queen Elizabeth I.

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Plot Keywords:

robert dudley earl of leicester character | earl of sussex chsracter | queen elizabeth i character | year 1579 | verse | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | History | Romance

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Official Sites:

HBO [United States]

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 April 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Elizabeth I

Filming Locations:

Lithuanian Film Studios, Vilnius, Lithuania

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Films,Channel 4 Television Corporation,Company Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

223 min (2 parts)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Jeremy Irons's role was previously played by Joseph Fiennes in Elizabeth (1998). Irons and Fiennes appeared together in The Merchant of Venice (2004).

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Goofs

When Leicester says to Elizabeth 'Kiss me, Bess' his hand is placed on the back of her neck. When the camera changes angle his hand has moved to her cheek.

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Quotes

Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester: [to Elizabeth] What do you imagine Monsieur will do with me after he has your hand?
Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester: [faking a French accent] Shall I be Catholic?
[stronger French accent]
Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester: Shall we all be Catholic?

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Alternate Versions

When the series was repeated on British TV in 2006, the footage of the Babington plotters being tortured was cut, and the execution of Queen Mary was cut so that she was beheaded with one stroke, although the scene of Leicester telling Elizabeth that it had taken two strokes was left in.

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Connections

Featured in The 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (2006)

User Reviews

Fantastic - plays like a medieval version of the Sopranos!

The colourful later life of England's famous "Virgin Queen." Helen Mirren takes on the role of her lifetime (she has cleared a shelf for the awards already I bet!) as Elizabeth I the last of the Tudors. Queen of England during war, peace and everything that goes in-between.

Notable support comes from Jeremy Irons, Hugh Dancy (as her later life "love interest" - the Earl of Essex), Ian McDiarmid and Patrick Malahide.

Part of the official blurb reads: "Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII, reunited a nation divided by religious strife, faced down the Spanish Armada and, after an unprecedented forty-five year reign, died one of England's best-loved monarchs. During her time as Queen, poets and playwrights wrote about her, artists painted her, composers dedicated their work to her, all contributing to the legend of GIoriana, the Virgin Queen.

But Elizabeth I looks beyond the myth, at the woman behind the crown. The woman subjected to a humiliating gynaecological examination when contemplating marrying a French prince, to ensure she was still able to have children. The woman who ran a country and yet who wasn't allowed to marry the man she loved. The woman who, in her mid-fifties, conducted a passionate affair with a man half her age, a man whose arrogance eventually led him to mount a desperate challenge for Elizabeth's throne. " Couldn't have put it better myself.

What a fantastic piece of work this is. There may be 240 minutes (the UK TV version was shown in 2*120 minutes) of it, but I wasn't bored by a single minute. Indeed I wish there had been more.

Helen Mirren might no longer be up to prancing around nude in semi-exploitation movies - so she has to turn to her acting talent. And boy what a role to get her teeth in to: One minute chamber flirt and the next a kind of Tony Soprano signing the death warrant of anyone who displeases - even if they once held special place in her heart.

I bet I am not the only one to notice the lead role is a bit like Margaret Thatcher!

A word of warning this is very bloody indeed. When someone has their head cut off the camera doesn't actually pan away. American HBO viewers look out for it in the listings or you will miss out on a treat.