In 1660, the most beautiful woman on the London stage is played by a man. Ned Kynaston is the most feted “actress” in the country, dazzling everyone as Desdemona in “Othello”. But when Charles II bans men from playing women, Ned is out of a job and has to watch as his lovelorn dresser Maria takes to the stage. How will he cope? And can his acting talents stretch to playing men as well as women?

Billy Crudup should be up to his eyes in work – he’s talented, good-looking and has bags of charisma but appears to be happy playing good roles in ensemble casts. Here he shines as Edward ‘Ned’ Kynaston a man who is both ambivalent and ambiguous. He plays women and has a sexual relationship with the Duke of Buckingham, but he is attracted and attractive to women. He is subject to the same petty professional jealousies as all other actors, but these are compounded when he has to contend with playing women on the same stage as real women. Crudup deals excellently with the excesses of the character, swinging from acid wit to wounded pride and misery without making it appear difficult. He has a very strong hold on his English accent too, only slipping very occasionally into American intonation.

Rupert Everett gives a splendidly buffoonish turn as King Charles II, the playboy king more likely to listen to his mistress than his ministers. Thankfully the Botox has finally worn off and Everett is once more able to emote to hilarious effect. His balding wig deserves an acting award on its own. Zoe Tapper is sparky as his mistress Nell Gwynne, who though initially irritatingly shrill, later displays plenty of charm. Richard Griffiths is excellent as ever as the lascivious Sir Charles Sedley (“A scuff is a terrible thing, sir”), who unaccountably doesn’t make advances on his protégé Maria. Hugh Bonneville is quietly convincing as the celebrated diarist Samuel Pepys, one part letch to ninety-nine parts silent observer of humanity (“If two mice were f***ing in a nutshell, he’d find room to squeeze in and write it down”). Ben Chaplin also impresses as the Duke of Buckingham, displaying real warmth in his relationship with Ned and the cold-heartedness of the self-preservationist.

This is a film that should appeal to a wide demographic. It has elements of comedy, drama and romance in a period setting. It is pithy and literate and jam-packed with great performances from a huge range of actors. It features some unwarranted partial nudity on Danes’ part (besides the portrait scene) and rather more four-letter words than you might expect from a period film (“Give me back my f***ing merkin!). But that is part of what makes this film so gratifying to watch. It isn’t afraid to tell an ambiguous, unpredictable story complete with earthy language. Though it may not have as many scenes that make you laugh out loud as “Shakespeare in Love” or a clearly happy ending it is in many ways more fulfilling to watch. If you love the theatre, have an interest in historical trivia, like a good period drama or comedy or just want to see an intelligent comedy drama with fantastic performances, this should be your cup of tea. Sit back, soak up the quality and congratulate yourself on a good choice of movie.