Daniel Craig, the James Bond star, paid tribute to the Queen and said he will “profoundly miss” the monarch in a touching message. The Royal Family confirmed on Thursday afternoon that the Queen had passed away at her royal residence in Balmoral near Aberdeen aged 96. Daniel Craig had the joy of working with Queen Elizabeth II in a 007 skit that was used at the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony. The 54-year-old lauded the monarch after learning of her passing. “I, like so many, was deeply saddened by the news today and my thoughts are with the royal family, those she loved, and all those who loved her,” he wrote, reported The Mirror. “She leaves an incomparable legacy and will be profoundly missed.”
A host of celebrities paid tribute to Britain’s longest-serving monarch. “For my whole life Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II has always been there,” said Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger. “In my childhood, I can recall watching her wedding highlights on TV. I remember her as a beautiful young lady, to the much-beloved grandmother of the nation. My deepest sympathies are with the Royal family,” he added, reported the Independent. Helen Mirren, who played Queen Elizabeth in the movie “The Queen” in 2016 posted a sweet message honoring the Queen. “I am proud to be an Elizabethan. We mourn a woman, who, with or without the crown, was the epitome of nobility,” wrote Mirren. British Olympic gold medalist Mo Farah said, “My condolences to the Royal Family at this very sad time. The Queen was loved all over the world and meant so much to so many. Meeting her was one of the greatest honors of my life,” said Farah.
Pierce Brosnan, another actor who played the role of the English spy, James Bond, also paid tribute to the Queen, writing, “Rest In Peace Your Majesty. It was an honor to serve you.” He starred as the MI6 agent in four movies from 1995-2002. James Bond actors have long shared a close connection with the UK and the Queen. Sir Sean Connery was knighted by the Queen in 2000 while Sir Roger Moore was knighted in 2003 for his charity work.
Daniel Craig recalled his memory of working with the Queen for the London Olympics recently. He thought the idea was bonkers because there was no way the Queen would agree to it. “The Olympics thing was one of those things where suddenly Danny Boyle was on set. Barbara (Broccoli) said to me ‘can you come and have a word with Danny?’ And I sat in the room and he pitched this idea to me and I just went ‘You’re out of your mind, what are you talking about?'” he asked, reported New York Post. “He went ‘no, no, no, we’re doing it, we’re doing it’, we’re doing it.” He had to drop the work he was doing and head to the palace. “I was right in the middle of a scene and I kind of went ‘yeah, ok’ and then sort of walked off. And the next thing you know I’m literally on the way to Buckingham Palace in a tuxedo and we shoot it,” said Craig, who added that the Queen was calmer than him.
He even suggested that the Queen improvised as well. “And Her Majesty’s there, and Danny’s giving her notes. It’s kind of great – ‘Your Majesty, could you possibly erm…?’ And she’s improvising a bit. She literally kind of said ‘would you like me to pretend to be writing?’ And he’s like ‘yes, that’s great, that’s great,'” he recalled. “So she sort of acted a bit. That was all her own stuff. It was amazing. “My heart was going ‘dum, dum, dum, keep it together, keep it together. Literally, there are corgis tripping you up. There’s like five corgis.”
