Thanks to a deal between Sky and HBO, a new four-part drama telling the story of Catherine The Great is set to land on our screens. What’s more, Helen Mirren has been confirmed to take the title role, having coming up with the idea for the programme herself.

It’s going to be based on the real-life story of the Russian empress, with filming set to begin later this year. Nigel Williams has penned the script for the television production, that Philip Martin will be directing.

The focus of the story will be towards the end of Catherine The Great’s reign, when she had an affair with Russian general Grigory Potemkin.

We now learn too that filming on the show – first revealed at the end of January – is set to begin this coming September. Most of the filming is set to take place in Lithuania, with production ramping up in two weeks’ time.

The show is set to screen in 2019.