Anne Reid to star as Queen Elizabeth II in By Royal Appointment stage show

Former Coronation Street star Anne Reid is to play Queen Elizabeth II in a new stage show examining the late monarch’s relationship with her dresser, called By Royal Appointment.

The play will see Men Behaving Badly actress Caroline Quentin take on the role of the dresser, as it shows how she helped to craft the public image of the late Queen.

It will also provide a light-hearted look at how the Queen used her dress to express what she was thinking when she was unable to say it.

By Royal Appointment follows the dresser as she goes from advising the Queen on lipstick colour to having real power behind the throne.

The play is the first to be written by Daisy Goodwin, who created the hit ITV series Victoria, and is directed by former artistic director of Shakespeare’s Globe, Dominic Dromgoole.

Reid, 89, is best known for portraying Valerie Barlow in the ITV soap opera, and Jean in the sitcom Dinnerladies, as well as for her role as Celia Dawson in Last Tango in Halifax which saw her nominated for the Bafta for best actress.

Newcastle-born Reid was recently made a CBE in the New Year Honours for her services to drama.

By Royal Appointment opens at Theatre Royal Bath on June 5 and runs until June 14, before touring to Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham, Leeds Grand Theatre And Opera House, Malvern Festival Theatre, the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton, and Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford.

More casting and further venues are to be announced shortly.