Filming sex scenes can be one of two things for an actor – either embarrassing or hilarious.

But for Olivia Colman, she decided that shooting her intimate scenes for upcoming film ‘The Favourite’ were definitely going to fall into the latter category, revealing the lengths she went to in order to make co-star Emma Stone laugh. 

The period drama sees Queen Anne, played by Olivia, embark on a sexual relationship with Emma’s character Abigail Hill. 

Detailing the first encounter they had to film with director Jorgos Lanthimos, Olivia told ‘The Graham Norton Show’: “I trusted him completely in the love making scenes. Emma was worried about me though because she had to touch me intimately under the sheets. So, I put a big wet sponge there as a barrier.

“She was going up my leg and her face was a picture when she reached it!”

Emma previously revealed she had insisted on getting naked to make the scenes more authentic, but Olivia refused.

Olivia said: “There wasn’t actual nudity. Jorgos asked and I said I absolutely won’t. There is no way. 

“I think he said it would be great if everybody was able to. And I said, ‘No’. And he replied, ‘Right’.”

Despite not yet being released in the UK, ‘The Favourite’ has already received much awards season hype, receiving five Golden Globes nominations, including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.

Olivia previously won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the 75th Venice International Film Festival back in August, making her a serious Oscar contender. 

‘The Graham Norton Show’ airs on New Year’s Eve at 10.40pm on BBC One, while ‘The Favourite’ is released in UK cinemas on 1 January.