Helen Mirren Turns Down the Queen

The actress, who played the title role in the film The Queen, is too busy working on her next film, National Treasures: Book of Secrets, to accept the invitation.

Mirren does not want to appear snobbish, and insists that she was very sad to not be able to attend the dinner.  She explained, "The palace very kindly extended an invitation to dinner last Tuesday, but, unfortunately I was filming in South Dakota and unable to change my schedule. I am very sad not to have been able to attend."