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The TV star granddaughter of comedy legend Charlie Chaplin – reputedly born in the Midlands – has revealed she almost changed her surname in a bid to step out of his shadow.

Game Of Thrones star Oona Chaplin said the famous name was “a blessing” – but admitted she had to be talked out of changing it when she launched her own career.

The actress, currently starring in First World War drama The Crimson Field, is named Oona after her grandmother, who was the legendary silent film star’s fourth wife.

She told the Radio Times: “I see it as a blessing.

“Having a few generations in the business has given me a healthy perspective on it: not to take it too seriously, not to believe the hype.”

Asked if she had ever considered dropping her surname, she said: “Yes, but then my mother rightly said a beautiful actress wouldn’t disfigure herself just to prove she was hired for her acting talents, not her looks.

“If you work hard, no one can really say anything.

“And if they do, it’s just white noise.”

She said she was still a fan of her grandfather’s films, which made him a legend in the early days of Hollywood.

She said: “We watched them a lot because they’re great for kids.

“Even though they’re in black and white with real people, not 3D crazy monsters.

“I saw Limelight recently and wept like a baby; it captures perfectly what it’s like to be in this business.”

Claims emerged in 2011 that Chaplin was born in a gypsy caravan in Smethwick rather than London, as was written in his autobiography.

A radio documentary claimed his daughter Victoria found a letter, kept under lock and key by the star, which contained the allegation.

The note was said to have been written by a man called Jack Hill, from Tamworth.

It said: “If you would like to know, you were born in a caravan.

“It was a good one; it belonged to the gypsy queen who was my auntie.

“You were born on the Black Patch in Smethwick.

“So was I, two and a half years later. Your mum did move again with her dad’s circus and later settled down in London but whereabouts I do not know.”