Imelda Staunton admits she is "terrified" of Queen role in The Crown

(Image credit: PA)

published 22 October 2020

The actress is taking over from Olivia Colman in the Netflix drama.

Imelda Staunton has admitted she is "terrified" about taking up her role as the Queen in the final two series of Nextflix drama The Crown, which recently gave the first glimpse of Princess Diana.

The 64-year-old actress, is taking over from Oscar winning actress Olivia Colman to portray the British monarch in the popular drama series, and whom actress Claire Foy played in the first two seasons.

But ahead of her new role, Imelda admits she is feeling the pressure to be good.

"I'm following two extraordinary actresses but one extraordinary human being," she told Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford on This Morning.

"She is so much in a lot of our lives we know how she looks and sounds, of course, I have to be like her as much as I can but also tell a story and the story of her day."

Ahead of filming, Imelda, who played Maud Bagshaw - the Queen's Lady-in-Waiting, in ITV hit drama Downton Abbey, revealed she had been swatting up on how the Queen acts by watching old archive footage clips.

"We've all got so much footage of the queen but the strength of The Crown has been going inside those private lives and making," she explained.

Imelda continued, "I don't start filming until next July but I'm working on it now listening to her, watching her.

"I'm very excited and terrified but so looking forwardto take the baton and move it on."

The Crown recently finished filming Season 4 but they wrapped up early due to the Coronavirus outbreak back in March. Netflix confirmed good and bad news about the drama, but the new series it's expected to be aired on 15th November.

Meanwhile as Olivia Colman teams up with Normal People writer for new film. And until her new role starts, Imelda is starring in Alan Bennett's Talking Heads Live, which will be making a socially distanced theatre tour.

Selina is a Senior Entertainment Writer with more than 15 years of experience in newspapers and magazines. She has covered all things Entertainment for GoodtoKnow, Woman&Home and My Imperfect Life. Before joining Future Publishing, Selina graduated from the University of Sheffield in 2006 with a degree in Journalism. She is fully NCTJ and NCE qualified and has 100wpm shorthand.