As the third iteration of Queen Elizabeth II in The Crown, the actor brings the series to a stunning conclusion.
There are few living actors as celebrated and with as lofty a résumé as Imelda Staunton. The four-time Olivier winner has played characters penned by William Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw, Edward Albee, Anton Chekhov, and Stephen Sondheim. She has terrified students in the Harry Potter films as Professor Dolores Umbridge and warmed hearts with her voice as Aunt Lucy in all three Paddington installments. Most recently, Staunton picked up her second Emmy nomination, for her work playing Queen Elizabeth in the sixth and final season of Peter Morgan’s The Crown laid the character to rest.
Staunton’s portrayal of the queen across the final two seasons of the regal series, for which she was previously nominated for two Golden Globes and a BAFTA TV Award, brought into view the character modern audiences were most familiar with — the woman who put duty above all else as she entered the final chapters of her life. As the cast gathered to film the final season, they and the world were dealt the news that the real-life Queen Elizabeth had passed. Debuting a year after her death, the final ten episodes served not only as a moment for the cast and crew who had built the series into one of the most celebrated television dramas of all time to bid farewell to their characters but also for the world to bid farewell to the longest reigning British monarch in history.
Here Staunton shares her experience in the final season of The Crown and what the show leaves behind.
An edited version of the conversation follows.
Queen Elizabeth II (Imelda Staunton)
Queue: What was it like returning to the set of The Crown for the sixth and final season?
Imelda Staunton: Doing the last season did carry a lot of weight. We started and then, very soon after, the queen died, so it was quite difficult, to be honest. We carried on with as much dignity and grace as we have always done on The Crown but, obviously, there was a very different temperature in the world, in England and even more so on The Crown. I think it informed our temperature, if you like, rather than altering the material at all. But, there’s no doubt, it was different.
Did you find the queen an easy character to reinhabit coming back for a second time, or did you need certain cues, voices, mannerisms to get you back into the role?
IS: No, I didn’t because it wasn’t a long break and I’d been thinking about her for four years. I knew in 2019 I was doing it, so I’ve been living with her for a long time. If anything, I felt more comfortable this time, a bit more grounded really. It’s a luxury to be able to keep with something for so long. I’ve never done a long series before, so that was unusual for me, and it was very nice to be able to come back and think, Oh, I think I’ve got to try and do that slightly differently. You’re within perimeters with the queen and for all of us playing real people, you have to stay within that remit. It’s rather nice to get back in the saddle.
Queen Elizabeth II (Imelda Staunton) and Prince Philip (Jonathan Pryce)
What was it like to film those scenes opposite Bertie [Carvel] who plays Tony Blair?
IS: I love all the audience scenes and that’s probably why Peter Morgan did the play The Audience because they’re fantastic scenes to play. I imagine the queen could not show any true colors that she felt. She always had to be the diplomat at all times, even privately and, of course, none of us know what went on in those rooms. Having played her, I will miss being the person who keeps their own counsel and knows everything that’s going on in a room.
With the queen, whenever she would go to a public event, I loved the way she would get out of the car and just look at the first person she had to shake hands with. There was no getting out of the car, saying, “Hi everyone. I’m here.” She just goes, “I have a job to do and I will just go straight to where I have to be.” I love her stillness and her ability to not be thrown by everything that must have constantly been going on around her.
Even seeing footage from when she was a young queen visiting the commonwealth, we think people today, and, of course, Diana, had all the crowds, but go and watch footage of the queen and Philip in Africa visiting all these places, millions of people turning up. Playing that and then playing that person in a room with one [other] person, I loved doing those scenes. Because I felt like everyone, her whole life, was sitting on her shoulders and I think that’s what people felt when they met her; that they were looking at history. Royalty is a thing, and to remain as dignified as she was was an extraordinary feat.
Queen Elizabeth II (Imelda Staunton)
In terms of the legacy the show will leave, the mark it will leave, what do you think that will be?
IS: I think the ability, the talent, the creativity of Peter Morgan screams from the hilltops. We all want to be part of something meaningful and you want to give people excellence. We want to strive to be better people, to do better work, to be part of something in which everyone feels they are enabled to rise above. And I think this piece of work is the jewel in this crown.
How did you feel when you finally took off the wig and shut the door?
IS: I’ve felt, from the beginning, so utterly proud to be part of this. I think we’ll all say that and we’re all just these parts and no one is better than the other. We’re just parts of this beautiful jigsaw that [Peter Morgan] has made of this fascinating story.
