King Henry VI, RSC 1977: Alan Howard as Henry VI; Helen Mirren as Queen Margaret

One of the problems in playing Henry VI is that he suffered from madness inherited from his French grandfather (shown by the French king in Olivier's film of Henry V), to the point that he was often catatonic for months. While almost certainly well-meaning (he built King's College's famous chapel in Cambridge) he was disastrously incompetent politically, which is why his Queen Margaret became so significant. However, Howard sought to play him as morally profound, and deeply respected by his Queen, Helen Mirren. Farrah, designer; Terry Hands, director. Tom Holte : photographer. Rights: Thos. F. and Mig Holte Collection (Copyright Shakespeare Birthplace Trust): courtesy of AHDS.ac. ukPerformance Collection.