Helena Bonham Carter sought out a psychic to channel Princess Margaret ahead of 'The Crown'

Leora Arnowitz, USA TODAY
Princess Margaret, the queen's younger sister, will be portrayed by Helena Bonham Carter. She also played Margaret's mother, Elizabeth, in the movie
Princess Margaret, the queen's younger sister, will be portrayed by Helena Bonham Carter. She also played Margaret's mother, Elizabeth, in the movie

Eccentric actress Helena Bonham Carter went to great lengths to prepare for her role as Princess Margaretin “The Crown,” including consulting a psychic so she could channel the late royal.

Carter, 53, told attendees at the Cheltenham Literature Festival on Saturday night she consulted a medium to connect with the late sister of Queen Elizabeth II.

Margaret died in 2002, and Carter is taking over the role of the rebel princess from Vanessa Kirby, who played the younger version of Princess Margaret in the show’s first two seasons. When the series returns on Nov. 17, it will jump forward in time.

“… I asked her, ‘Are you OK with me playing you?’ ” Carter told the crowd, according to U.K. publications The Times and The Guardian. “She said, ‘You’re better than the other actress’… that they were thinking of. They will not admit who it was. It was me and somebody else.

“That made me think maybe she is here, because that is a classic Margaret thing to say. She was really good at complimenting you and putting you down at the same time."

Carter said though the medium told her the late princess was “glad” Carter earned the role, the psychic had some tips to pass along.

“Then she said: ‘But you’re going to have to brush up and be more groomed and neater.’ Then she said: ‘Get the smoking right. I smoked in a very particular way. Remember that – this is a big note – the cigarette holder was as much a weapon for expression as it was for smoking.’ ”

Carter added she did other research for the role, including consulting with Margaret's relatives and three ladies-in-waiting.

In Season 3, Oscar winner Olivia Colman ("The Favourite") will assume the role of Queen Elizabeth II, played by Claire Foy during the first two seasons. Tobias Menzies ("Outlander") replaces Matt Smith as Prince Philip.

The series, which follows the royal family over the years, also has cast Josh O'Connor and Marion Bailey as Prince Charles and the Queen Mother, beginning in Season 3.

The Season 3 timeline precedes the relationship of Charles and Diana, who was just 20 when the two married in 1981. But in Season 4, Emma Corrin will take on the role of Lady Diana Spencer.

Contributing: Bill Keveney

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'The Crown': Helena Bonham Carter used psychic to channel Margaret

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