Mirren Visits Sick Child In Character As The Queen

While a visit from the Queen of England is something few of us could ever dream of experiencing, it would be nearly as big a pipe dream to imagine rubbing elbows with Hollywood and theatre royalty like Helen Mirren - yet, that is precisely the wish that 10-year-old cancer patient Oliver Burton expressed and the starry substitute player he received.

When the Queen herself unfortunately could not pay the terminally ill boy a visit due to her busy schedule, Mirren took her current onstage character in the West End's THE AUDIENCE - a follow-up to THE QUEEN, also about Queen Elizabeth II also written by Peter Morgan (directed by Stephen Daldry) - off-stage and came to see him, still in character.

Of course, Mirren famously received an Academy Award for her work in THE QUEEN in 2006, so her comfort in the role after initially bristling at taking it on in the first place is widely known, particularly now with this new Queen Elizabeth II-themed stage sequel of sorts (which has also been filmed for broadcast on NT Live).

After all, if theatre is indeed life and life theatre, it seems that Mirren certainly is putting a lot of thoughtful, heartfelt theatricality into it all!

For more information on THE AUDIENCE, visit the official site here.

Check out the original story on the matter here.

View the touching visit between Mirren and Burton below.

Photo Credits: The Sun