Peaky Blinders star, Amber Anderson, voices Annie Garthwaite's 'The King's Mother' for audio book

Film, TV and theatre actress Amber Anderson, who played the villainous Lady Diana Mitford in ‘Peaky Blinders’ and Ciara Porter in BBC crime drama ‘Strike’, records the audiobook of Annie Garthwaite’s much-anticipated second novel, The King’s Mother.

Amber Anderson

The King’s Mother, which reimagines the lives of four 15th century women at the forefront of royal family feuds and regime change during England’s bloodiest civil war, will be published in hardback, e-book and audiobook by Viking, Penguin on 11 July.

Seen here on the first day of recording, Amber Anderson said of the commission: “I’m so honoured to be asked to narrate The King’s Mother – the first novel to bring to life the crucial power play between four determined mothers that brought the Middle Ages to an end and ushered in the Tudor age. Cecily Neville, Marguerite of Anjou, Elizabeth Woodville and Margaret Beaufort – I’ve been immersed in their world for some time now and am in love with them all. I’m sure this story will make for gripping listening and I hope I do it justice.”

Anderson is also a Director of Just John Films, an all-female production company that has optioned TV rights for Garthwaite’s debut novel, Cecily. Also set in the 15th century, Cecily recreates the early career of Cecily Neville, matriarch of the House of York and mother of Edward IV and Richard III, during which the tragic seeds of war were set.

Anderson says: “We expect Cecily to translate into a thrilling piece of television drama to and we can’t wait to bring it to the screen.”

I addition to her many TV roles, Anderson’s film credits include ‘Tell That to The Winter Sea’ alongside Greta Bellamacina, currently on cinema release. She also played Jane  Fairfax in the 2020 adaptation of Jane  Austen’s ‘Emma’, and won a Best Supporting Actress Award for her role in ‘White Lie,’ at the Vancouver Film  Critics Circle Awards.