The Lord Chamberlain tells Tony Blair that "representatives of all three palaces" will be attending the meeting to discuss plans for Diana's funeral. The three palaces mentioned in that line refer to Buckingham Palace (the Queen's residence), St. James's Palace (the residence of the Prince of Wales), and Kensington Palace (the base of operations for Diana's staff).
Helen Mirren says transforming herself into the Queen came almost naturally after the wig and glasses, especially since she shares a default facial expression, a slightly down turned mouth, with the monarch. She also regularly reviewed film and video footage of Elizabeth and kept photographs in her trailer during production. The writer Peter Morgan says it was convincing enough that, by the end of production, crew members who had been accustomed to slouching or relaxing when they addressed her were standing straight up and respectfully folding their hands behind their backs.
10 Downing Street was portrayed as slightly dilapidated, poorly decorated, and middle-class. This is supposedly how the residence actually is, and the real Cherie Blair was supposedly appalled when she first saw where the family would be living.
In the scene before the Queen addresses England, she is advised to make the change "and as a grandmother." She writes the correction, clearly caps her pen and begins putting it back. In the very next shot, she caps the pen a second time.
Helen Mirren's tattoo at the base of her left thumb is clearly visible when she is holding a newspaper. This can be verified in the IMDb photo gallery for 'The Queen'. Elizabeth II is not likely to have the same tattoo.
How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
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For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for The Queen can be found here.
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A Note Regarding Spoilers
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The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.
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Is "The Queen" based on a book?
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No. The Queen is an original screenplay written by English screenwriter and playwright Peter Morgan.