Olivia Colman reveals she accidentally swore while meeting the Queen

Actor was attending a party at Windsor Castle, but apparently wasn't expecting to meet the real-life royal

Olivia Colman has revealed that she accidentally swore when meeting the Queen, after being ushered into a queue to meet her.

The star of The Crown explained that she was attending a film party at Windsor Castle when “a man in epaulettes” began herding guests together.

“I didn’t think she’d be there and suddenly we all ended up in a big queue,” Colman told The Mirror.

“I thought somebody was using the rooms for the bash and then suddenly we looked down the corridor and went, “Oh f***.’”

She revealed the man organising the queue told them, “Just do a little bow, don’t overdo it”.

“He sort of shuffled us forward saying, ‘Your Majesty, then Your Royal Highness, then keep moving because she has hundreds of people to get through,’” Colman said.

Colman as Queen Elizabeth II in Netflix's The Crown (Sophie Mutevelian/Netflix)

Colman will play the Queen for one more series of The Crown, before the role is taken over by Imelda Staunton, for the final season.

Among her forthcoming projects is a starring role in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut, The Lost Daughter, based on Elena Ferrante’s 2006 novel of the same name.

The story follows Colman’s character, a college professor who becomes obsessed with a young mother and her daughter while on holiday, at the same time recalling her own, troubled memories of early motherhood.

Normal People star Paul Mescal recently joined the cast, alongside Colman, Dakota Johnson, Peter Sarsgaard and Jessie Buckley.

The Crown is available to stream on Netflix.