Icon: enlarge
Gillian Anderson as Margaret Thatcher
Photo: Des Willie / AP
Playing historical figures has its pitfalls.
Many viewers know the person portrayed and have expectations of the appearance, facial expressions and behavior of the character.
Gillian Anderson plays Margaret Thatcher in the fourth season of "The Crown", the series about the British royal family.
"First I had to get rid of any prejudices or ideas that I or anyone else might have about her," she told Hollywood Access about the challenge of slipping into the role of the former prime minister.
She didn't use prostheses, not even teeth, but relied on body language and vocal idiosyncrasies.
"It was important to keep my mouth shut," Anderson told Reuters.
Thatcher tilted her head in a special way and bent it forward.
"You start putting these things together and eventually you end up in Margaret Thatcher's realm."
Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1979 to 1990.
She was the first - and until Theresa May took office - the only woman to hold this position.
Her reign marked an era.
In particular, her liberal economic policy divided British society: to this day, the "iron lady" is revered by many Britons - and despised by not a few.
Thatcher died in 2013 at the age of 87.
The new season of "The Crown" deals with the escalation of conflicts in Northern Ireland and the Falklands War, as well as Queen Elizabeth's dealings with Prime Minister Thatcher.
In addition, the relationship between Prince Charles and Diana Spencer, the future Princess of Wales, is in the foreground.
Icon: The mirror
svs / reuters