THE Crown’s final series will pay the ultimate tribute to Queen Elizabeth by featuring the three actresses who played her — and a newcomer.

New scenes have been shot with Claire Foy, 39, who portrayed the young monarch, and Olivia Colman, 49, who played her in middle age.

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They will appear in the sixth Netflix series with Imelda Staunton, 67, as the elderly queen.

There will also be a previously unseen “wartime” depiction of the younger Princess Elizabeth, played by Viola Prettejohn.

A TV insider revealed the idea was likely to have been hatched around the time of Queen Elizabeth II’s death last September.

They said: “Netflix are playing a clever hand with these four queens, bringing the story of Her Majesty to a sensational end after telling virtually all of her life story over 60 episodes.

“It also indicates the respect and affection which the creators have for the late monarch, even though they might not feel the same way about the royals as an institution.

“The idea would most likely have been devised last year, around the time that the Queen passed away, as a way of paying tribute to her.

“Getting the actresses together was no mean feat as both Claire and Olivia went on to bigger things after making The Crown and have packed schedules.”

Praise has been heaped on the performances of Claire — who played the Queen in series one and two in 2016 and 2017 — as well as Oscar-winner Olivia, who portrayed her in series three and four in 2019 and 2020.

Imelda was nominated for a Leading Actress Bafta after only appearing in the fifth series which aired last year.

Critics say all the actresses skillfully captured the monarch’s sense of duty, steel and clever diplomacy as head of state.

Fans of The Crown will be thrilled by the prospect of having all three actresses brought together in the concluding, ten-part series, likely to air in November.

There will also be curiosity about the “new queen-to-be” played by Viola, who will be in military uniform on the streets of London on VE Day in 1945.

The Sun exclusively revealed this week that the creators of The Crown were considering making movies to continue the story of the Windsors.

They would either be prequels looking at the royals before the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, or continue into the modern day by covering the rift between Princes William and Harry.

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