United Kingdom, March 12 -- The Crown's Jane Lapotaire has died at the age of 81.

The star - who played Princess Alice of Battenberg in the Netflix royal drama - passed away on March 5 and was announced on Thursday (12.03.26) by the Royal Shakespeare Company.

In a statement, it said: "We are saddened to hear of the death of RSC Honorary Associate Artist, Jane Lapotaire.

"A truly brilliant actress, Jane joined the RSC in 1974 to play Viola in Twelfth Night. A few years later, she took the title role in Pam Gems' Piaf, winning Olivier and TONY Best Actress awards.

"In 1992, she played Gertrude opposite Kenneth Branagh in Adrian Noble's Hamlet. Her final two performances for the Company were in 2013 as the Duchess of Gloucester in Greg D...