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Sir Ian McKellen doesn’t have the fondest memories of the late Queen Elizabeth. In a new interview, the 85-year-old Oscar-nominated actor recalled a bizarre interaction with the late monarch, who died at the age of 96 in 2022, during which he said that she was “quite rude” to him. Keep reading to find out more…“The Queen, I’m sure she was quite mad at the end,” Ian said in an interview with the U.K. newspaper The Times. “And on the few occasions I met her she was quite rude.” He then recalled an interaction with Queen Elizabeth from back in 2008 when she made him a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour for his service to drama and equality. “She said, ‘You’ve been doing this for an awfully long time,’” Ian recalled. “I said, ‘Well, not as long as you.’ I got a royal smile for that, but then she said, ‘Does anyone still actually go to the theater?’” He continued, “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!’” Ian‘s comments about Queen Elizabeth came during a deeper conversation about the pressures and difficulties of royal family members living in the public eye. “Imagine being born into the royal family,” Ian said. “I’ve been in public life a bit, but these people are in prison. They can’t do anything normal. Can you imagine having to be nice to everyone you talk to?” He then went on to share his analysis about several men in the British Royal family, including the late Prince Philip and King Charles. “Hats off to anyone who manages to stay sane in that world,” Ian said. “Like the Duke of Edinburgh managed to do, although even he was deeply, deeply eccentric and I suspect deeply unhappy. Same with the present king.” As for Prince Harry, Ian said, “He’s probably not bright enough or doesn’t have the right friends to really help himself. Mind you, he had the pick of all the pretty women in the world. I hope he’s got the right one.” In another recent interview, Ian addressed the possibility of returning to the Lord of the Rings franchise to play Gandolf again.
