TV Goodness Reports: Michelle Fairley Cast in Starz’s The White Princess 

When Starz aired The White Queen back in 2013, I fell in the love instantly. I always seem to find tales of the royals fascinating and it was both different and refreshing to have this miniseries revolve around a woman. The next chapter in Philippa Gregory‘s best-selling series is The White Princess. This limited series will tell the story of England’s War of the Roses from the perspective of the women.

Although she’s had a long and acclaimed career, Michelle Fairly didn’t come to my attention until she played the fierce Catelyn Stark on HBO’s Game of Thrones. After Catelyn’s untimely murder during The Red Wedding, I was thrilled to learn Michelle would be spending some with Harvey Specter and Mike Ross over on USA’s Suits. She’s done a few other projects in the interim, but at the end of the day we love that she’s working; she’s so talented.

In The White Princess, she’ll play Margaret Beaufort, Henry Tudor’s mother and mastermind behind his ascent to the Throne of England. She’s a philanthropist, a benefactor for the Church and a murderer. Margaret knows that getting the throne and keeping it safe for the Tudor line are two different things, especially as York rivals continue to plot against them with increasing success.

Jodie Comer‘s Princess Elizabeth of York (Lizzie) is forced into marriage to unite the Houses of York and Tudor, realizing that she has no choice but to do her duty for England and marry the new King, Henry VII. The union brings Lizzie in direct conflict with Henry’s strong-willed mother. As Margaret’s influence over her son begins to wane and Lizzie’s star rises, Margaret beings to unravel as the sins of the past and present weigh heavily on her conscience and her relations with Henry are at risk of potentially imploding.

Series synopsis, from Starz:

The year is 1485 and Henry Tudor is king, having snatched the crown from Richard III in a surprise victory at the Battle of Bosworth. Elizabeth of York, The White Princess, is faced with marrying Henry, the man who has just killed her lover. While Elizabeth’s mother Dowager Queen Elizabeth The White Queen encourages her to marry to preserve the York claim of title and ensure her family’s safety, Henry’s mother Margaret Beaufort detests the idea, but knows it is the only way for her son to stay on the throne and unify a country divided by war.

In the court of Burgundy, the Duchess rules over a new enemy stronghold for disenfranchised Yorkists and all of Henry Tudor’s enemies. It is from here that a Pretender is mustering an army. He claims to be brother to the Queen, and the true heir to the throne. But is he the missing prince from the tower sent by his mother, the White Queen? Or a counterfeit prince – a low-born enemy to Henry Tudor and his York princess wife?

Princess Elizabeth must choose between Tudor wife and York princess – between her new husband and baby son, and the boy who claims to be her beloved lost brother. Has the rose of York come home at last and at what cost to her?

The White Princess tells the story of one of the most fascinating periods of British history, spanning the winter court of Henry Tudor – uniquely from the women’s point of view. The most ruthless players in history will stop at nothing to support their own causes and those of the ones they love.

The White Princess premieres in 2017 on Starz. All 10 episodes of The White Queen are available to watch on demand.