which is why she prefers Edmund Blackadder to Lord Melchett. Richardson appears in later series as characters not explicitly stated as being descendants of Elizabeth I (but may share common ancestors with her). In the fifth episode of Blackadder the Third, she plays Amy Hardwood, the seemingly-delicate wealthy industrialist's daughter, whom the Prince Regent courts to get out of serious debt with her dowry, later revealed as a highwayman, the Shadow; and in the episode "General Hospital" of the fourth series, she plays Nurse Mary Fletcher-Brown who enjoys a fling with Blackadder, before being falsely accused of being a German spy. Non-recurring major characters Prince Ludwig the Indestructible Prince Ludwig the Indestructible (Hugh Laurie) appears in "Chains", the final episode of Blackadder II, as a German master of disguise who kidnaps Lord Blackadder and Lord Melchett, in 1566 and imprisons them in his dungeon under the watch of German guards and a Spanish inquisitorial co-conspirator. Though his initial plans to infiltrate Richmond Palace and kill Queen Elizabeth I are foiled by Blackadder and Melchett, he resurfaces moments later, disguised as the Queen, and has murdered the entire main cast. From a real-world point of view, this is part of Hugh Laurie's continuous set of appearances in Blackadder, but the last of those in which he is only credited as a guest actor, as he would later join the main cast for Blackadder the Third and Blackadder Goes Forth; possibly, they all share a common ancestor (considering that Lt. George had relatives on both sides of the war, this possibility is not out of the question). King Richard IV of England King Richard IV (Brian Blessed) is the father of Prince Harry and Prince Edmund Plantagenet ("The Black Adder") and features in the first series. The character is very loosely based on the historical figure Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York, one of the Princes in the Tower who disappeared in 1483 (as the real-life Richard would have been approximately twelve if still alive in 1485). In the alternate chronology of The Black Adder, King Richard III of England (played by Peter Cook) is introduced as being a "kind and thoughtful man" who cherishes his nephews (the two princes) placed into his care, in contrast to the common historical portrait of Richard III as an usurper who likely murdered the princes. Richard, Duke of York grew into "a big strong