The Crown's Claire Foy and Olivia Colman return for emotional finale

Fans had wondered whether the show would pay tribute in some way to its previous eras in this episode, as the series has been marked by changing its central casts twice, to denote the passage of time.

Well, in the show's final episode, that's exactly what happened, as former leads Claire Foy and Olivia Colman, who played Queen Elizabeth II at different points in her life, returning for extended cameos.

In the episode, the Queen gets involved with the planning for Operation London Bridge, AKA her funeral. This causes her to reflect on her life and her reign, leading to the first of the cameos, when she imagines a conversation with her younger self, played by Colman.

As she goes to her stables, Imelda Staunton's Queen is approached by Colman's, who advises her to abdicate in favour of Charles. She notes that there is international precedent, Charles is ready for the throne, and she is ready for a rest.

Read more:

• The Crown casting director on ‘complicated’ William and ‘graceful’ Kate
• The Crown’s Dominic West says negative reviews are "quite hurtful"

Following this imagined conversation, the Queen starts planning a speech at Charles and Camilla's wedding where she would announce this news. However, she later imagines another dialogue, as Foy's Queen appears to her.

This younger Queen advises her against abdicating, reminding her that she took an oath to devote her whole life to the people's service. She says that the crown is a "symbol of permanence, of stability, of continuity" and that to step down would suggest a luxury of choice, going against the idea that it is her birthright.

She says that the elder Queen has become "liberated" and "confidant" since her Golden Jubilee and the death of her mother, saying that she is actually in her prime.

She says that the system isn't "natural" or "kind" but she seems to "thrive" in it and it thrives under her, while it doesn't come naturally to the rest of the family.

While the younger Queen tells the elder that she went looking for Elizabeth Windsor, she "wouldn't find her". She is long gone, and only Queen Elizabeth remains.

The Queen decides not to abdicate following this, but the younger Queens do return once more. At the end of the episode, when she is stood in the King George VI Memorial Chapel and reflecting on her life, she turns to see the young Elizabeth played by Viola Prettejohn, who previously appeared in flashbacks in season 6 episode 8, Ritz.

She turns and is then flanked by Colman and Foy, both wearing black, as Sleep, Dearie Sleep, the song for her funeral plays, thus marking the end of The Crown.

The Crown season 6 is available to stream in full on Netflix now. Seasons 1-5 are also available. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guideto see what's on tonight.

Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10 – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.