Anne of Cleves

Anne of Cleves was the favourite of Thomas Cromwell to be Henry VIII's new bride. (PROSE: God Send Me Well to Keep) The King himself disapproved of his prospective next wife, in 1539, seeing in her portrait a woman "ugly as my privy!" He had not yet met her in person at the time.

Having only just been cured of cataracts by the Third Doctor, and so only recently capable of proper sight, Henry VIII remarked, "Did you think I would not notice when I saw her close? Do you think I have the tastes of a farmer's horse for its mare?" The King commissioned a new portrait to make her more appealing, and planned to learn the truth of her appearance on finally meeting her for the first time. (PROSE: Hiccup in Time)

Behind the scenes
Henry's marriage with Anne of Cleves was never consummated. Henry had urged Cromwell to find a way to avoid the marriage in the first place.