ITV casting trans woman to play ‘leading role’ in series about Queen Elizabeth I
A casting call for a ‘young trans woman’ to star in Majesty has been shared by ITV.
The six-part series about Queen Elizabeth I is searching for a ‘leading role’, as per its call-out.
In 2024, it was announced that the broadcaster had commissioned a period drama about the late royal.
Now, the ITV casting call says it is ‘particularly encouraging submissions from actors who identify as transgender women’.
ITV previously said about the programme: ‘Far from being a historical account of Elizabeth’s early years, Majesty is a bold, intriguing reimagining of her life based upon conspiracy theories which surrounded her as a youth.
‘Was the Virgin Queen hiding a profound secret? And how did this overlooked, embattled princess become the most powerful ruler England has ever known?’
The call-out describes the characters’ traits as ‘intelligent, compassionate, brave, witty, charming, and likeable’. It also states she ‘begins as a bright child and grows into a strong young woman’.
It’s currently unspecified whether the role ITV is seeking to fill is Queen Elizabeth I herself. However, it has been widely reported by various publications, including Attitude, that it does, indeed, suggest as such.
Showrunners William Harper, Joan Rater, and Tony Phelan previously remarked of the drama: ‘Majesty is an emotional, funny, and contemporary-feeling alternate history about how three outsiders try to stay alive while hiding a secret that, if discovered, would rock England to its foundations.
‘Majesty allows us to have fun with history while illuminating who we are now. This show is pure wish-fulfilment of how people devoted to the public good suddenly find themselves in a position to make a difference.’
Was Queen Elizabeth I trans?
Elizabeth I ruled from 1558 to 1603 and was known as the Virgin Queen. She is reported to have been resistant to marriage, and she did not have children.
Of course, given the time period, it’s nearly impossible to know for certain whether the Queen identified as trans. While accounts of transgender people have been identified going back to as early as 1200 BCE Egypt, historians have only traced the first use of the word ‘transgender’ to a 1965 psychology textbook.
However, Chief Minister Sir Robert Cecil is recorded to have once said about Elizabeth I: ‘More than a man, and, in truth, sometimes less than a woman.’
Additionally, the ‘Bisley Boy’ myth is an old legend that claims, aged nine, Princess Elizabeth I was killed by the plague in London and ‘replaced by a young boy’.
According to the story, the child grew up to rule as Elizabeth I.
She is still widely considered one of the most famous monarchs in history, partly because of her defeat of the Spanish Armada and the ‘golden’ period for culture during which she ruled.
Filming for the series chronicling her life will take place between July 20 and the end of October this year, with applicants needing to be 16 by the time this begins.
Metro has reached out to ITV for comment.
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