Dame Kristin Scott Thomas felt like a "jellified five-year-old" when she received her damehood.
Dame Kristin Scott Thomas
The 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' actress has admitted she was so "overwhelmed" when she received the honour from Britain's Queen Elizabeth II that she could barely utter a word to the 88-year-old royal.
She said: "I was so overwhelmed by the whole thing that I turned into a jellified five-year-old and was unable to get a word out.
"And I'm sure I got the protocol all wrong and curtsied at the wrong moment. I was only the second person she met in the ceremony and she hadn't quite warmed up. But as it progressed she got warmer and warmer."
And Kristin has admitted she was most impressed by the Queen's "stamina" and "extraordinary aura" as she watched her through the ceremony.
The 54-year-old actress added to The Telegraph newspaper's Review supplement: "She has the most extraordinary aura. When she walked into the room, you really sensed, 'This is the Queen'.
"What's most impressive is her stamina. It made me think of when, as actors, we're doing a junket or something and whinging about how exhausting it all is. Well, she spends her whole life doing it!"