We thought we knew what we were getting with the new season of The Crown, a series that is, after all, inspired by true events. We were ready to revisit Charles and Diana's whirlwind romance-turned-crumbling marriage, and we were bracing ourselves for Gillian Anderson's take on Margaret Thatcher—but we certainly were not prepared for a loose rodent to make a cameo in Buckingham Palace.
After Season 4 debuted on Sunday, viewers noticed a little something dash across the floor of one of the palace sitting rooms in an early episode. It turns out, that little something was a mouse. It's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment, but if you know when to look, and look closely, you'll see a tiny figure with a tail and legs. Lovely.
It's an otherwise dark and quiet moment, featuring the Queen Mother, played by Marion Bailey, sitting in the background, but thanks to this surprising special guest, the scene is getting a lot of buzz.
The Season 4 mouse cameo happens in the first few minutes of Episode 3, a little past the 1:15 mark. It's when various royals are being shown around the palace, waiting for Prince Charles to call and share that he had proposed to Lady Diana.
It's unclear whether the inclusion of the mouse was intentional or an unnoticed accident, much like the rogue water bottle and coffee cup in Game of Thrones. The Crown's Twitter account played along, however, joking that the four-legged guest star could be up for an Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series nomination.
The Crown's fourth season is now streaming on Netflix.
