Royal Watch News

Producer stunned by Queen Elizabeth's Olympics enthusiasm

Jan 15, 2013, 12:02 GMT

Queen Elizabeth

Producer Tracey Seaward was 'taken aback' at Britain's Queen Elizabeth's enthusiasm about the London 2012 opening ceremony stunt.

Everyone involved in filming the four-and-a-half minute long introductory film 'Happy and Glorious' was stunned the 86-year-old royal was so excited about the spoof sequence, in which James Bond star Daniel Craig enlists the monarch's help for a special mission.

She told the Daily Telegraph newspaper: 'When we had our first meeting at the palace, a formal meeting, we thought we'd go for advice on to what extent the palace would have approval over whoever would play the part of the queen, or where it was filmed. We never thought for one moment we would be graced with her presence.

'We never genuinely thought that she would play the part, we were rather taken aback that they embraced the sequence in the way that they did.'

Tracey admits it was surreal to find herself in Buckingham Palace planning the well-received project and says watching the end result at the Olympics ceremony was a 'delicious' feeling.

She laughed: 'There we were in the palace, wandering around making ourselves feel at home. Who'd have ever thought this was possible? You had to pinch yourself.

'It felt delicious that we were able to pull it off. At the end of the day - how did we manage that, helicopters flying over the palace, co-ordinating the corgis?'