She may be acting royalty, but Imelda Staunton says playing the Queen has been the crowning glory in her career.
The actress is in line to pick up the Best Actress in a Drama Series award for her portrayal of Elizabeth II in The Crown at the Golden Globes on Tuesday.
And the Netflix series itself is odds-on favourite to win the Best TV Drama gong.
Imelda will be going up against Ozark’s Laura Linney, Euphoria’s Zendaya, House Of The Dragon’s Emma D’Arcy and Alaska Daily’s Hilary Swank.
Ahead of the awards, Imelda told how taking on the role in The Crown from Claire Foy and Olivia Colman was “a huge responsibility”. She also said Her Majesty’s motto of “never explain or complain” resonated with her.
“It is really good discipline to hold things back,” she said. “We live in a time where all people want is emotion… all people want is to see someone crying.
“But here are people who go, ‘I don’t need to share my innermost angst with you as it is for me to sort out privately’.
“I love that control and ability to try and process it out of the limelight.” Like many people, the Bafta-winning actress was left “inconsolable” by the 96-year-old Queen’s death in September.
But it made her even more determined to do the monarch justice on screen.
“One was saddened and thrown off course, but one knew we had to continue,” she said.
Imelda, who is married to Downton Abbey star Jim Carter, 74, also revealed she had been fascinated by the relationship between the Queen and her late husband, Prince Philip.
“They were lucky they were very much in love when they married,” she said. “It was an arranged marriage, but they adored each other.
“To stay connected and tolerant and still enjoy each other’s company with all the other stuff going around is testament to their strength as individuals.”
Imelda is currently filming the final season of The Crown – and although the show has been criticised for being inaccurate and insensitve, she couldn’t be happier with it.
“We are all so proud and hopefully we will please the audiences,” she said.
“We have to make the bar higher. I feel very responsible that I have to lead from the front.”
