The cast of hit Netflix Royal drama The Crown broke out into an a cappella version of The Chordettes' classic doo-wop hit from the 1950s, Mr Sandman, between takes.

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Gillian Anderson filmed the sequence as the cast broke out into song while they were filming the Ibble-Dibble parlour game scene, which features in episode four of season four, The Balmoral Test.

Anderson plays Mrs Thatcher in the new season and posted the clip of the singalong with the comment: "A royal jam."

Marion Bailey, who plays the Queen Mother, appears to be the ringleader of the singalong and, judging by the cork marks on her face, also the poorest player of Ibble-Dibble, although Helena Bonham Carter (Princess Margaret) and Erin Doherty (Princess Anne) are clearly no wallflowers when it comes to singing.

The gentlemen, on the other hand, have clearly decided to have no part of it.

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The Ibble-Dibble game explains why many of the cast have charred cork marks on their faces. Ibble-Dibble is a memory game in which players have to recite a tongue-twister – get it wrong and you have to down a drink and mark your face with the cork.

The Queen is clearly a better player than her mother, although it's not absolutely certain that the game was ever played by the royals. It's very hard to imagine Mrs Thatcher taking part.

The scene depicts the Prime Minister playing the game very slowly to ensure her phrasing is correct but there is doubt it every happened. Mrs Thatcher is thought to have regarded her visits to Balmoral a "tedious waste of time", according to the Independent.

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The Crown season four is now streaming on Netflix.
Looking for something else to watch? Check out our guide to the best TV series on Netflix and best movies on Netflix, or visit our TV guide.”

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