BBC Two has announced the cast of its 60 drama chronicling the life and career of legendary Welsh singer Dame Shirley Bassey.
Bassey, famed for the three James Bond themes Goldfinger, Diamonds are Forever and Moonraker, has had a string of chart hits including two number one singles in a career spanning almost 60 years.
Ruth Negga (Misfits, Criminal Justice, Five Daughters) will play the singer in Shirley Bassey: A Very British Diva, part of BBC Two’s Mixed Race Season which will be screened later this year.
Negga said she was “thrilled” to be playing Bassey, adding “it’s an absolute honour to be playing her in such an intimate story of her life.”
Executive Producer Maxine Watson said: “Dame Shirley Bassey is iconic – she transcends age, race and class.
“The big voice and vocal style are unmistakable, but it took so much more than that to take her from Tiger Bay to world class headliner. Hers is a classic story of overcoming poverty through personal sacrifice and I’m thrilled that we have such a fantastic cast to bring this story to life.”
The supporting cast includes Lesley Sharp (The Shadow Line, Scott & Bailey, Afterlife) as Bassey’s mother Eliza, Charlie Creed-Miles (Five Days, Injustice, King Arthur) as her manager Mike Sullivan and Henry Lloyd-Hughes (The Inbetweeners, The Milibands) as Kenneth Hume, her soon-to-be personal manager and future husband.
