The Crown’s Olivia Colman admits she struggled to play real life monarch and is glad to be leaving show

THE Crown's Olivia Colman has admitted she struggled to play the real life monarch and is glad to be leaving show.

The Oscar-winning actress has played Queen Elizabeth II in the hit Netflix series for two seasons, and will pass the role over to Imelda Staunton for season five.

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Speaking about her time on the show during an online conversation staged by Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, she explained how she finds playing real life people harder than fictional characters.

She said: "Because behind closed doors, we don’t know what she’s like, I had a little bit of play with that.

"But definitely… the hardest part I’ve done is someone who’s real. I’m not ashamed to say that I’m quite pleased now to be able to move on to something else.”

Olivia also spoke about her career and the rejections she had received early on before finding success.

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She said: "Being employed for two years [on The Crown], that’s a lovely feeling because I still get the fear that it’s not going to happen again."

Season four of The Crown has proved to be the most controversial to date, with Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden claiming viewers could be in danger of mistaking it for fact without a warning at the beginning of each episode.

Netflix bosses declined to point out that some of The Crown's content wasn't an exact retelling of historic events. 

Olivia's co-star Josh O'Connor, who plays Prince Charles, backed Netflix's decision.

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The 30-year-old told the Los Angeles Times: "You have to show them the respect and understand that they’re intelligent enough to see it for what it is, which is pure fiction.”

However, Helena Bonham Carter, who plays Princess Margaret, supported Mr Dowden's suggestion, saying The Crown had a "moral responsibility" to tell those watching that it's not a documentary.

The Crown seasons 1-4 are available on Netflix now.