Claire Foy says she was ‘honoured’ to have portrayed the Queen in The Crown in heartfelt tribute

Claire Foy has paid a heartfelt tribute to Queen Elizabeth II following her death last week at age 96 in Balmoral, Scotland.

The actress, 38, who played a young version of Her Majesty in the first two seasons of Netflix drama The Crown, described the opportunity to play her life as “an honour.”

The star gave a gushing tribute this week at the Toronto Film Festival and also noted how she considers the Queen “a mother and grandmother.”

Claire described the Queen as ‘incredible’ and told the BBC: ‘I think she was an incredible monarch. She united people and she was a huge symbol of continuity, dignity and grace.

“My main feeling is that I think of her as a mother and a grandmother and a great-grandmother, really, and I’m very honored to have been a tiny, small part of her story,” the actress continued.

The Crown follows Her Majesty’s reign over a number of decades, starting from the late 1940s – with a fictional twist.

And Claire portrayed the Queen during her early years as a monarch in the show’s first two seasons, describing her life from her marriage in 1947 to Philip, Duke of Edinburgh to 1964.

The actress then left the show when the role was taken over by Oliva Colman – to portray a more accurate version of the Queen as the timeline jumped to the 1970s.

And her portrayal was not overlooked as she won Best Actress at both the Emmys and Golden Globes for playing the part.

But as The Crown continues to film during Her Majesty’s reign, Claire could have appeared on many screens in the past week – as the show made it back to Netflix’s ‘most watched’ list this week.

Viewers seemed eager to relive the Queen’s long rein after her death, with the Netflix show heading to number three on the Top Ten UK list just days after the tragedy.

The Crown is currently filming their sixth season and has now resumed production after being shut down for a day due to the Queen’s death.

Shooting was suspended for just one day as a “sign of respect to the late monarch” after scenes of Princess Diana’s tragic death in Paris in August 1997 were supposed to be filmed on Friday.

And now the potentially controversial scenes will be filmed as the nation comes to grips with the loss of their late queen during a 10-day mourning period that will end with a state funeral.

The decision not to film comes as the Netflix show has also announced it will suspend filming on the day of Her Majesty’s funeral – which will take place on Monday, September 19.

A Netflix spokesperson said: “As a show of respect, shooting for The Crown has been suspended today. Filming will also be suspended on the day of Her Majesty the Queen’s funeral.’

Netflix has reportedly devised a plan called Operation London Bridge – the same name as the Queen’s official funeral plan – to outline what the production company would do in the event of her death.

One of the show’s creators, Stephen Daldry, said when the show first premiered in 2016, the cast would likely stop production, saying, “It would be a simple tribute and a sign of respect.” She is a global figure and that is what we should be doing.”

After the Queen’s death was announced, the drama’s writer Peter Morgan said:: ‘The Crown is a love letter to her and I have nothing to add to that for now, just silence and respect. I expect that we will also stop filming out of respect.’

The UK is currently in a ten-day period of mourning, with the monarch’s funeral on Monday, September 19.

Her Majesty’s casket was transported from Balmoral to St. Giles Cathedral earlier this week and now stands in Westminster Hall – where members of the public can visit to pay their respects.