- Tyrion Lannister played by Peter Dinklage
Tyrion Lannister, while not a monarch himself, is the hand of the king for much of the series, and belongs to a royal family, the House of Lannister, his nephew Joffrey, rules over Kings Landing and sits on the iron throne. Dinklage's portrayal is fascinating, given his size he is limited from using force, and so he has to fight battles with his tongue and not his sword. Tyrion is quick witted and sharp, and Dinklage gives him a sense of humanity that is missing from the rest of the House of Lannister. Tyrion Lannister is a fascinatingly complex character, and his portrayal by Dinklage is one of the best performances currently on television.
- George, The Prince Regent played by Hugh Laurie
Unlike the other performances on this list, this portrayal is atypically comedic, Lauries portrayal of The Prince Regent portrays him as a buffoon with little respect for the troubles of his subjects. George is seen as a fool, who spends far to much time and money of frivolities like socks and clothes, expressing an attitude that one can never have enough socks, his seem to go missing like teaspoons. Lauries George is a fantastic creation, a bumbling idiot who thinks the dictionary is a terrible idea, and who seems to be astonishingly incompetent, being unable to even put on his trousers by himself, (he eventually winds up putting them on his head).
- Queen Elizabeth II played by Helen Mirren
Mirrens performance as our current queen is one of the greatest of all time, she portrays the queen at one of the most difficult points of her reign, after the death of Princess Diana, when she was being incredibly criticized for her actions. Mirren portrays the queen as an incredibly complex and conflicted person, a woman who wants to do the best for her country and her people, while at the same time struggling to reconcile her feelings for a woman she loathed, and yet who was beloved by her subjects. Mirren allows us to be a fly on the wall, and her portrayal is starkly lifelike, and spellbinding.
- Jadis, The White Witch played by Tilda Swindon
Jadis, while not explicitly stated to be a queen, wears a crown of icicles, and appears to have almost total control over the peoples of Narnia. Jadis wears a robe of icy blue burnt wool, and stands incredibly tall, she seems to be half giant. Swindon paints Jadis to be the picture of evil, and sees no need to give her any humanity. The White Witch is a woman we can really hate, a woman motivated by greed, anger and irascibility. Jadis is a loathsome character, terrifyingly beautiful and rotten to the core, she is the greatest antagonist one could wish for, and Swindon's portrayal of her is terrifying and delightful in the same breath. Swindon portrays a villain we all love to hate.
- Queen Elizabeth I played by Cate Blanchett
Blanchett deserved to win an Oscar for her portrayals, her performances as the virgin queen are visceral and real, she has the advantage of portraying the queen over many years of her reign, playing her in two movies, and so we see the emotional and intellectual growth from a young girl pushed into power to a woman sitting strong on the throne. Blanchett transforms into a formidable queen who, while fair and just, is not to be crossed, and will treat anybody who opposes her with swift justice. We also see Elizabeth take a stand as a warrior helping britain to defeat the spanish armada, rallying the troops, and Blanchetts performance is stirring and moving. In Elizabeth and its sequel, Blanchett is, as always, stellar.
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