Playing Elizabeth Anne-Marie Duff is far from the first actress to play the legendary Virgin Queen on screen, although there aren't many who would try to portray Elizabeth from her young years before she was crowned, right the way through to her death at the age of 70.
She needed expert help from the make-up department to achieve the change, saying, "the prosthetics not only looked amazing but they gave my face restrictions that it wouldn't normally have. Then I worked on obvious things like vocal differences and the physicality. What I wanted to do was to try and find an old brittle bones approach. I hope I've achieved that. I kept thinking in my head, 'why on earth have they cast one actress, not two?' but I just went for it, and I hope it works."
 Certainly in Channel 4's recent adaptation of the life of the Queen (Elizabeth I*), a very different casting decision was made. Dame Helen Mirren took the lead role in a sweeping drama which covered Elizabeth's later years, starting when she was 46 in 1579. Her performance won rave reviews and the drama is hotly tipped to bring home some BAFTAs.
Helen and Anne-Marie follow in a fine tradition. Over the years the role has been played by some of the most distinguished actresses around. One of earliest appearances for the Queen on screen came back in 1912 when she was portrayed by acting legend, Sarah Bernhardt* in the silent film, Queen Elizabeth*. The film was an absolute sensation at the time, and inspired many other stage-acting greats to venture into this new medium.
More versions of the Queen's story went on to appear and by 1939 sound had come to cinema and a new actress was wearing Elizabeth's crown. The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex* focussed on the love affair between the Queen and the Earl of Essex. Errol Flynn* took the role of Essex and Bette Davis* stunned viewers with her portrayal of Elizabeth. She wasn't happy about the choice of co-star, and reviewers agreed that Flynn was a weak link in this production which won five Academy Awards, and proved Bette Davis to be a truly great screen actress.
 It wasn't the only time Davis played Queen Elizabeth. She once again took the role 15 years later in the film The Virgin Queen, which focussed on the Queen's relationship with Sir Walter Raleigh. It was another highly-praised performance from Davis.
Two years earlier in 1953, the book Young Bess* was adapted for the screen. It was the story of Elizabeth's young life, and once again focussed on a romance, this time the gentleman in question was Thomas Seymour, played by Stewart Granger*. Elizabeth's father, Henry VIII was played by Charles Laughton* who had starred 20 years earlier in the same role in The Private Life of Henry VIII. The lady in question herself was played by actress Jean Simmons* who was married to her co-star Stewart Granger. She'd had a successful career in British films, but it was her marriage to the star that prompted her move to Hollywood, and launched her into the big time.
 Interestingly Jean Simmons is said to have turned down the role of Jean Pargetter in the sitcom As Time Goes By*. The role of course eventually went to Dame Judi Dench who took the role of Queen Elizabeth in the film Shakespeare in Love*. This time Queen Elizabeth was not the main focus of the film, but just an incidental character. It didn't stop Dame Judi taking home the Best Supporting Actress Oscar from that year's awards!
In 1971 the BBC made the series Elizabeth R* and Glenda Jackson* won both Emmies and a BAFTA for her performance in the lead role. She had already got an Oscar under her belt for her role in Ken Russell's* Women in Love*, and was to win a second Oscar two years later for A Touch of Class*. Elizabeth R was a six-part series and is now generally considered to be a classic, and one of the finest that the BBC have made.  It's probably the most historically accurate screen-version of the Queen's life, so far. Glenda Jackson played Queen Elizabeth a second time in the same year. She took the role in the film Mary Queen of Scots* which starred Vanessa Redgrave*. She was later to give up acting, and embark on a career in politics.
More recently the film Elizabeth* concentrated on the early years of the Queen's life. Like the Virgin Queen it began during Elizabeth's troubled years during the reign of Queen Mary, but only covered the beginning of her long reign. It was not as historically accurate as some of the other versions of her life, but the Cate Blanchett* still received an Oscar nomination for her performance.
 These are just a few of the performers who have brought the story of the great Queen to life. Of course there have been many other who've played Elizabeth over the years. Certainly worthy of a special mention are Miranda Richardson's* performance as the squeaky voiced Queenie in the comedy Blackadder and the slightly bizarre vision of Quentin Crisp* playing the role in the gender-swap film Orlando!
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