Ian McKellen claimed the late Queen Elizabeth II was “quite rude” when they met in 2008.
The Lord of the Rings actor received a Companion of Honour medal from the British monarch for his services to acting at the time. However, in a new interview with the Times of London published on Friday, September 6, McKellen recalled that the meeting didn’t go well.
McKellen, 85, said that “on the few occasions I met her she was quite rude.”
“When I received a medal for acting, she said, ‘You’ve been doing this for an awfully long time.’ I said, ‘Well, not as long as you,’” the actor remembered. “I got a royal smile for that, but then she said, ‘Does anyone still actually go to the theatre?’ That’s bloody rude when you’re giving someone a medal for acting. It meant, ‘Does anyone care a f–k about you because I don’t. Now off you go!’”
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As described by the Times, McKellen acted out his encounter with the queen, pretending to shake his interviewer’s hand but instead shoving the reporter away with “some force.”
“That was her handshake and it meant, ‘Go! Go!’” said the X-Men star.
Queen Elizabeth II Dominic Lipinski – WPA Pool/Getty Images
McKellen added that he believes that by the end of her life, the queen was “quite mad.”
The legendary actor also gave his thoughts on members of the royal family, including King Charles III, and said he is “most definitely on Harry’s side” amid the Duke of Sussex’s strained relationship with his father and brother, Prince William.
“Imagine being born into the royal family. I’ve been in public life a bit, but these people are in prison. They can’t do anything normal,” McKellen said. “Can you imagine having to be nice to everyone you talk to?”
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He added, “Hats off to anyone who manages to stay sane in that world. Like the Duke of Edinburgh [Prince Philip] managed to do, although even he was deeply, deeply eccentric and I suspect, deeply unhappy. Same with the present king. He sort of survives, but he is clearly damaged.”
“As for Harry, he’s probably not bright enough or doesn’t have the right friends to really help himself,” McKellen said of Prince Harry. “Mind you, he had the pick of all the pretty women in the world. I hope he’s got the right one.”
Pierre Vinet/New Line
McKellen is no stranger to royalty as he has played various real-life and fictional monarchs throughout his career, including King Richard III and Shakespeare’s King Lear.
In June, the actor injured his wrist and neck when he fell off the stage during a performance of Player Kings in London. The actor, however, says it could have been much worse.
“I was wearing a fat suit for Falstaff and that saved my ribs and other joints,” he explained to Saga Magazine in August. “So I’ve had a lucky escape really.”