Anne Boleyn star Mark Stanley believes Henry VIII made a ‘humane’ choice to behead wife

Anne Boleyn actor Mark Stanley has said that King Henry VIII’s decision to chop his wife’s head off was done out of love.

The Game Of Thrones star portrayed the Tudor Royal alongside Jodie Turner-Smith in the three-part Channel 5 period drama, which charted the Queen’s final weeks before she was beheaded.

Anne, who was Henry’s second wife, was found guilty of high treason in 1536 and was later executed.

‘The choice would have been to burn her or behead her, and he chose the more humane choice,’ Mark said.

‘He brought a particular executioner over from France with a certain blade as he wanted it done cleanly.’

Mark added to the Mirror: ‘I think that does show how he felt about her, as weird as that sounds.’

Anne Boleyn follows the final days of Anne’s life as she tries to establish a future for her daughter as the powers that surround her begin to threaten her life.

Queen & Slim actor Jodie is the first Black star to portray Anne and said she knew her casting would be ‘a stretch for some people’ ahead of the launch of her new Channel 5 drama.

Commenting on the inclusive and colour-blind approach when it came to signing the actors, Jodie said: ‘It’s much more approachable and appealing to a contemporary audience when you cast this way because we are distilling this down to a human experience.

She continued to Radio Times: ‘If you ask anyone to watch a film or to observe any art, you are asking them to suspend their beliefs.

‘I am aware it’s going to be a stretch for some people because they will feel too distracted by that, but I think for a lot of other people who are finally ready to see the world in a different way, they’re going to see that this is a human story we are telling, and a fascinating one at that.’

If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.

For more stories like this, check our entertainment page.

Follow Metro.co.uk Entertainment on Twitter and Facebook for the latest celeb and entertainment updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.