The Queen has stood on many stages during her eight decades of public service. Last night, however, she was the star of a show which is far removed from her own daily life: the 79th Academy Awards in the glittering land that is tinseltown.

Standing before the cream of Hollywood and a global TV audience of around a billion, Oscar winners invariably thank the usual suspects: their wife/husband, agent, cast, crew (and, of course, their Mum!).

Last night, though, Dame Helen Mirren's gratitude as she picked up the Best Actress award was directed towards an altogether more esteemed figure: the Queen herself.

In a premature act which could have spectacularly backfired, bookmakers in Britain had already paid out to all those who bet on Dame Helen Mirren to win the prestigious award following a season of ceremonies which saw her sweep the board for her portrayal of the monarch in the dark days surrounding the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.

Thankfully, there'll be no red faces in the offices of bookies up and down the country as Dame Helen became the first Briton to win a Best Actress Oscar since Emma Thompson in 1992.

The 61-year-old actress was clearly awed by her greatest professional achievement, saying: "My sister told me all kids love to get gold stars — this is the biggest and best gold star I've ever had in my life."

However, the real star was a woman who was safely tucked up in bed thousands of miles away as her screen alias took to the stage, Dame Helen declaring as she picked up the award: "For 50 years and more, Elizabeth Windsor has maintained her dignity, her sense of duty — and her hairstyle. She has had her feet planted firmly on the ground, her hat on her head and her handbag on her arm."

"She has weathered many, many storms. And I salute her courage and her consistency and I thank her because if it wasn't for her I most certainly would not be here."

Holding her Oscar aloft in the air, the actress concluded with a salute to Her Majesty, declaring: "Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Queen."

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Name: J. Parker

Comment: I think Helen Mirren's thoughts on the Monarchy, in this interview from About.com are rather brilliant. I suspect Diana herself did not realize she was the tool of those 'dark forces' Paul Burell mentions. Mirren said: And so the Monarchy has come in and out – not necessarily in their favor, but in and out of an atmosphere of overt criticism or freedom of people feeling free to criticize. And, one forgets they’ve been through a lot over hundreds of years. You know, Charles I got his head chopped off by the people, so they know all of that. They know where they’re coming from, they know their history better than we do. And one tends to just see it – I see it, I think that they see themselves in the context of history very strongly. These tempests come and go, and they wash over them, and they’re still standing. They find ways of dealing with it, ‘Oh, that was a bit dodgy.’ Above all, what a monarch needs is the love of the people. If all of Britain loathes the Monarchy, they’d be gone like that. But the reality is we don’t. We criticize them, we torture them, we secretly buck their phones, and then put the results in the newspapers. We satirize them; we make movies about them. But we’re allowed to do that, and in a way, all of those things, ultimately just build a love – a weird kind of love for them. It’s like a family. It’s very much a family relationship, really.” http://movies.about.com/od/thequeen/a/queen100406.htm

Name: shelley	Comment: I hear she wants to play one of the corgis next !

Name: Jessica Wales	Comment: Dame Helen has always been one of my favorite actresses (along with fellow Brits Dame Judi and Dame Julie) but she has quickly become one of my favorite people. What a classy lady...a credit to her country, her profession, and her Queen. I love her accent. I could listen to that woman read the phonebook!

Name: Richo Manpa	Comment: After Dame Helen Mirren, the real Queen looks quite boring. Salute Queen Helen.

Name: M-M	Comment: And it's all over . It was an excellent film , it was an excellent performance , and it has been amply rewarded both by every award available in the industry and by lunch with the Queen for whom it was wonderful PR . Now it's time to move on to the next film and the next role It was only make-believe .