Movies at Manly – The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex (1939)
“Australians, Errol Flynn and multi-Oscar winning costume designer, Orry-Kelly, lend their considerable talents, with Bette Davis and Olivia de Havilland, to this lavish production of the ill-fated love between the ageing Elizabeth I and the dashing Earl of Essex. Thoroughly unglamorous here, eyes and hairline shaved, face painted chalky white… Davis exudes such intelligence, energy and ardour that her romance with the decades younger Essex (Flynn at the peak of his remarkable good looks and athletic verve) is completely believable. Bette Davis was born to play Elizabeth I and like the legendary queen she rules the screen.”
Location: St Matthew’s Church (Darley Smith Building), Manly