Jeannette Charles appeared as an actress in repertory theatre in her twenties but initially had difficulty obtaining Equity membership as a look-alike of the Queen. She has since played the role in numerous films and TV shows, including The Rutles' All You Need Is Cash, National Lampoon's European Vacation, Austin Powers in Goldmember and The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!.

She also appeared as a semi-regular in Spike Milligan's Q series on BBC Television and appeared on Channel 4's Big Brother 10 to surprise the Brazilian contestant Rodrigo Lopes (who thought he was meeting the real Queen Elizabeth for a task).