Romola Garai takes on aristocratic role in Queen Anne

Romola Garai is to star in a play about the life of England's little-known monarch Queen Anne.

She'll play aristocrat Sarah Churchill, the Duchess of Marlborough, alongside Emma Cunniffe as the queen.

Helen Edmundson's play - simply titled Queen Anne - examines the long and intimate friendship between the two women.

The Royal Shakespeare Company production will open at London's Theatre Royal Haymarket in June.

Directed by Natalie Abrahami, the play was first seen in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2015.

The story begins in 1702, with Princess Anne soon to become queen. She went on to rule for just 12 years.

Announcing the play's transfer to London, RSC director Gregory Doran said: "It was a challenge to find and commission a play with great roles for women beyond the age of 40, who were at the centre of things and not defined by the men in their life."

Garai's screen appearances include the film Suffragette and TV drama The Hour.

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