Death of Queen Elizabeth: James Bond star Daniel Craig recalls the famous skit from the 2012 Olympics

The world saw a different side of Queen Elizabeth when she appeared in a tongue-in-cheek sketch during the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

In the video, the Queen can be seen meeting James Bond – aka Daniel Craig – at Buckingham Palace.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: The famous James Bond Olympics Sketch

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Bond takes a long stroll through the red-carpeted halls of Buckingham Palace, followed by the Queen’s corgis, before welcoming Her Majesty to her private apartments.

Queen Elizabeth is busy writing, so he has to clear his throat to get her attention before she turns and says, “Good evening, Mr Bond!”

They take a long walk down the corridor, out a palace window, and into a waiting helicopter before the Queen appears to leap out with a Union Jack flag.

The short but hilarious snippet was well received by viewers and showed that the supposedly ‘hard-lipped’ queen did have a sense of humor.

That perception was confirmed by Daniel Craig when he appeared on the Late Show With Stephen Colbert on Wednesday – just a day before the Queen died at the age of 96.

During their conversation, Colbert asked Craig, 54, how Queen Elizabeth was private.

“Very funny. Very funny,” he replied.

“[She] want to make a joke, and [she] made a joke about me,” Craig said.

“We had our picture taken and she was just like, ‘Oh no, he’s the one who’s not smiling. Fair enough!'”

Craig’s Bond broke many of the Bond rules – he was blond and blue-eyed, for starters, and indeed he rarely cracked a smile and became known as the gritty, serious 007.

The actor even managed to spend some free time with the Queen’s beloved corgis during filming.

“I rolled around on the floor with them most of the time,” Craig said.

“I believe they have their own lackeys, they are very friendly.”

While Craig described the queen as “funny” and “incredibly playful,” he said the Olympia sketch should be taken seriously.

“It wasn’t supposed to be funny,” he said.

“It should be serious.

“She was funny, incredibly playful.

“We didn’t have much time and I was a bit grumpy as it was my day off and suddenly I’m with the Queen in her private chamber at the palace.

“And she improvises a bit.

“She was supposed to be at the desk and asked if she could write, so she pretended to write.”

After her death on Thursday, Craig issued a statement saying the Queen “left behind an unparalleled legacy and will be deeply missed.”

“I was, like so many, deeply saddened by today’s news and my thoughts are with the royal family, those who loved them and all those who loved them.”

Many other celebrities from the entertainment world have paid tribute to the Queen after her death.

“I am proud to be an Elizabethan,” wrote Dame Helen Mirren.

“We mourn the loss of a woman who, with or without a crown, was the epitome of nobility.”

Elton John wrote: “Joining the rest of the nation, I am deeply saddened by the news of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.

“She was an inspiring presence, guiding the country through some of our greatest and darkest moments with grace, grace and a genuine, caring warmth.”