Anne Whateley of her, but cannot resist his sexual urges, getting Hathaway pregnant. In Karen Harper's novel "Mistress Shakespeare" (2008) Anne Whateley is the central character. She is once more portrayed as Shakespeare's true love. She narrates the story of her life as the dusky-skinned daughter of a Stratford businessman and an Italian acrobat. She and Shakespeare are married in a "handfast" ceremony which is known only to them. In London she carries on a secret parallel marriage with him while Hathaway and her children stay in Stratford. She inspires many of his works and shares his feelings, triumphs and fears. Anne
Anne Hathaway and the piano. She moved to England a month before production began to improve her English accent. The film received mixed reviews from critics; some reviewers negatively focused on Hathaway's performance and accent. Regardless, Hathaway received a British Independent Film Award for Best Actress nomination for the film. In October 2008, Hathaway hosted the NBC late-night sketch comedy "Saturday Night Live". She also starred in Peter Segal's film adaptation of Mel Brooks' television series "Get Smart," in which she played Agent 99, a role she describes as "narcissistic—downright selfish". Considering the role to be "a childhood dream come true", Hathaway