'The Tudors' crowns 'Nip/Tuck' co-star Queen

Joe;y Richardson on 'Nip/Tuck'

Credit: FX

Joely Richardson has landed a key role in the fourth and final season of Showtime's "The Tudors."

The cable network announced on Wednesday (July 22) that the "Nip/Tuck" star will play Catherine Parr, Henry VIII's (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) sixth wife.

Was Catherine Parr the woman who finally claimed Henry VIII's heart? Well, she was his last bride, so feel free to hope for a happy ending, "Tudors" fans.

[More historically inclined readers will know that Catherine, nearly as nuptially prolific as Henry VIII, was Queen at the time of Henry VIII's death in 1547 and that their marriage was tempestuous.]

"The Tudors" is currently shooting in Dublin and will premiere in 2010. Richardson will appear in five episodes.

The Showtime press release notes that being part of a royal dynasty isn't foreign to Richardson, daughter of Vanessa Redgrave and Tony Richardson, niece to Lynn Redgrave and sister to the late Natasha Richardson. She's also played Marie-Antoinette in "The Affair of the Necklace" and Princess Anna in the classic "King Ralph."

Richardson has earned a pair of Golden Globe nominations for her performance as Julia on "Nip/Tuck," which returns to FX this fall.