Helen Mirren plays the lead role of Queen Elizabeth I in Elizabeth I--a two-part Channel 4 drama written by award-winning screenwriter and acclaimed novelist Nigel Williams ("The Wimbledon Poisoner", "Bertie and Elizabeth" and "Uncle Adolf"). The drama begins in 1579 and portrays Elizabeth--daughter of Henry VIII--during her later years. It exposes the conflict between her sense of duty and the instincts of her heart, her doomed affair with the Earl of Essex, and the struggles of a powerful and independent woman battling to survive in a male-dominated world. During her reign, Elizabeth became one of England's most admired monarchs, having resisted the Spanish Armada and having reunified the nation after it was divided by religious factionalism. Her successes and popularity led to the creation of the 'Virgin Queen' legend, but this drama, for the first time, delves beyond this myth and attempts to uncover the real woman behind the crown.