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It was the night when the Queen appeared in her first movie acting role – and proved herself an instant comedy hit. Her Majesty was seen in a film alongside James Bond actor Daniel Craig before apparently ‘parachuting’ into the stadium for the opening ceremony. The recorded sequence opened at Buckingham Palace, where a tuxedo-wearing Craig as 007 was presented to the Queen by her personal footman as she was writing a letter and training her corgis Monty, Willow and Holly to roll over. Greeting him with an ‘Evening, Mr Bond’, the Queen, in a rose-pink dress, was seen striding briskly through the palace with the action hero before climbing into a helicopter emblazoned with the Union Flag. The two were depicted as soaring over the streets of London and through Tower Bridge until they finally reached the Olympic Park. As the film reached its climax, spectators inside the east London stadium heard an AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter, which finally appeared hovering above. As the aircraft steadied in the movie sequence, Bond was seen opening the door and appearing to hesitate. While he dithered, the figure of the Queen pushed past him and dived out into the air followed by 007 – Union Jack parachutes streaming behind them. Meanwhile, from the real helicopter above the stadium, the same two figures appeared to plunge to earth. And, with the familiar Bond theme tune sounding around the stadium, the spotlight shone on the Royal Box to reveal the Queen in exactly the same dress she wore in the film. | 
