Miriam Margolyes says Queen Elizabeth rolled her eyes at her when they met in hilariously awkward moment

Miriam Margolyes met Queen Elizabeth during an event in Buckingham Palace and the pair shared a rather uncomfortable exchange

Miriam Margolyes in 2011 Arriving For The World Premiere Of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 In London.
(Image credit: Mark Cuthbert/UK Press via Getty Images)

Miriam Margolyes met Queen Elizabeth many years ago, when the much-loved actor attended an event in celebration of British Book Week. The combination of two very distinct characters went down in a pretty hilarious way and we can't stop laughing!

Visiting Buckingham Palace for an event and formally meeting a member of the Royal Family is something relatively few people experience. Those who do have been known to get over-excited, including the wonderful Miriam.

Discussing her experience on British Vogue's TikTok, the star recounted the incident, the star explained that she'd been invited to the event along with all the people in the book industry to the party. Queen Elizabeth II was in attendance and mingled among the guests, taking a moment to speak to Miriam.

British-Australian actress, Miriam Margoyles, is starring in the play, ‘The Lady in the Van’, at the Melbourne Theatre Company, Melbourne, January 7, 2018.

(Image credit: Simon Schluter/Fairfax Media via Getty Images)

"She stopped in front of me and said, 'and what do you do?'" explained the Harry Potter star. She continued, "for some reason, I said to her, 'Your Majesty, I am the best reader of stories in the whole world.'"

Then, acting out the late Queen's facial expressions in response to this lofty claim, she rolled her eyes and added, "she looked at me and then moved, quickly, to the next person."

Believe it or not, this is the tip of the iceberg because Miriam has previously spoken about the incident during which she claims the Queen told her to 'be quiet.'

@britishvogue

♬ original sound - British Vogue

Speaking in an interview with the Sunday Times Magazine back in December 2022 she said, "it shocked me because I hadn’t quite realized how rude I was being. I was waffling on when she was talking to somebody else, and I was overriding that rudely."

Keen to emphasize that it wasn't deliberate, nor was she trying to be rude, the star added, "I say what I think and I don’t care how it comes out. Sometimes it comes out in a way that people find very upsetting and offensive, and I’m sorry about that, but what I say is the truth.”

The star has long since gained a name for being unapologetically herself - something we fully support and love about her! Recently fans were utterly delighted by the glorious images of nude Miriam Margolyes for British Vogue

Also, who could forget the fact that Miriam Margolyes sex shop chat may have bagged her one of her biggest roles, or that one time that Miriam Margolyes claimed Arnold Schwarzenegger deliberately farted in her face.

Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall shares a joke with Richard E Grant and Miriam Margolyes as she hosts the 30th Anniversary Garden Party for the National Osteoporosis Society in St James Palace on July 12, 2016 in London, England. Due to inclement weather the event was moved indoors. The Duchess of Cornwall has been connected with the charity for nearly 30 years.

(Image credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Miriam's ties to the Royal Family, despite the awkward interaction with the late Queen, have far from ceased as she's attended other official events at the Palace. Uber fans of the star may be astounded that she's been invited at all - considering one of her most beloved roles ever back in 1988.

The star played a rather cheeky version of Queen Victoria in Blackadder's Christmas Carol, alongside Jim Broadbent who starred as her beloved husband Prince Albert. 

If you're a fan of Miriam and brilliant comedy - add this Christmas special to your Yuletide viewing this year!

Aoife Hanna
Junior News Editor

Aoife is an Irish journalist and writer with a background in creative writing, comedy, and TV production.

Formerly woman&home's junior news editor and a contributing writer at Bustle, her words can be found in the Metro, Huffpost, Delicious, Imperica and EVOKE.

Her poetry features in the Queer Life, Queer Love anthology.

Outside of work you might bump into her at a garden center, charity shop, yoga studio, lifting heavy weights, or (most likely) supping/eating some sort of delicious drink/meal.