Revealed: How The Crown filmed Queen Olivia Colman riding under the Buckingham Palace arches at the start of series four
In full military uniform, the Queen rides out of the gates of Buckingham Palace to greet an adoring crowd.
In a scene in the opening moments of series four of The Crown – which airs on Netflix from next Sunday – a solemn Queen leaving her London home on horseback to greet her subjects.
In reality, it was filmed several miles away at Elstree Studios, Herts, where CGI technology was used to fill in detail on the buildings.
PAGEANTRY: Olivia Colman in a scene from the new series of The Crown which airs on Netflix from next Sunday
Scenes at No 10 Downing Street were also shot there.
Olivia Colman is back in the saddle as the Monarch in the eagerly awaited new series, alongside Gillian Anderson making her debut as Margaret Thatcher.
The UK's two most powerful women had a notoriously fractious relationship, which will be explored in the new ten-part series spanning the years from 1979 to 1990.
It will also focus on the doomed marriage of Prince Charles and Diana and its disintegration after their awkward courtship and lavish 1981 wedding.
It which was actually shot at Elstree Studios, 14 miles from Buckingham Palace
There is also a fake Downing Street, which would have been used by Gillian Anderson in her new role as Margaret Thatcher
Series three ended with the Queen celebrating her Silver Jubilee but privately feeling the strain of her role.
Series four will examine how Mrs Thatcher, a grocer's daughter, struggles to make a connection with the aristocratic Queen.
It will also feature the Iron Lady's tearful departure from No 10 after she was forced from office in 1990.
Queen Elizabeth II (Olivia Colman) and Prince Charles (Josh O'Connor) at Highgrove. Filming Location: Somerley House
SANDRINGHAM (SOMERLEYTON): Somerleyton Hall is an opulent Grade II listed country home near Lowestoft in Suffolk. The 5,000-acre estate is owned by Hugh Crossley, the 4th Baron Somerleyton.
The Crown's controversial storylines mean producers could not film in the Queen's actual residences.
But rather than use studios, many scenes were shot at stately homes and other historic properties in the UK.
To celebrate the new series, producers exclusively shared some of their closely guarded locations with The Mail on Sunday.
WINDSOR (BURGHLEY HOUSE): Windsor is replicated at Burghley House, a 16th Century estate in Lincolnshire. The house was built for Sir William Cecil, the Lord High Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth I.
PALACE (WELLINGTON COLLEGE): The Berkshire feepaying school, one of the UK's most well-known, became Kensington Palace, the home of the Princess of Wales
For shots at Balmoral, the cast decamped to Ardverikie in Inverness-shire, where the Gothic building has also been used as the fictional Glenbogle in Monarch Of The Glen.
During series four, the Queen and a troubled Princess Anne have a heart-to-heart while out riding on the Gatcombe Park estate.
In reality, the scenes were shot at Wrotham Park, Herts, which has been the quiet star of more than 60 productions, including Jane Eyre, Bridget Jones's Diary and Mr Selfridge.
BALMORAL (ARDVERIKIE): Scenes of stalking stags in Scotland were filmed in the grounds of the 19th Century Ardverikie estate in Inverness-shire. The building was also used in the Monarch Of The Glen TV series.
As well as the UK, the series also depicts royal events in Australia, New York and the West Indies.
But the cast did not get to jet off as thrifty producers found closer locations such as Kensington Town Hall and the University of Manchester.
Helena Bonham Carter, who reprises her role as Princess Margaret, did manage a trip to Atlanterra in Andalusia, Spain, which doubled as the Royals' favoured hideaway, Mustique.
