Keira Knightley says her name is a mistake

Keira Knightley says her name is spelt wrong. Photo/AP

Keira Knightley's name is spelt wrong.

The Imitation Game star has revealed how she was originally meant to be called Kiera but her mother made a spelling mistake when registering her birth, which resulted in her name being how it is today.

She said: "I was meant to be named 'Kiera', after a Russian ice skater who was on the TV one day. My dad fancied her and nicked her name for me.

"But it was my mum who went to register my birth, and she accidentally spelled 'ei' instead of 'ie' because my mum's crap at spelling."

The 29-year-old actress then joked that she was just simply a "spelling error".

She added: "Apparently, when she came back he said: 'What the f***? You've spelt her name wrong!'

"What were they going to do, though? Once it's on the piece of paper, it's on the piece of paper. And that's me. A spelling error."

Meanwhile, Knightley - who is known for her love of red lipstick - revealed that she follows her mother's theory that a bright colour lipstick is like an "armour".

She added to the March issue of Elle UK magazine: "Lipstick is an armour to the world. My mum had a thing when we were growing up, if she'd had a s*** day or if something had gone wrong, she'd put her red lipstick on.

"I still abide by that. If you're doing something hard, a really vibrant colour is a good thing. Lips are the easiest thing to put colour on. The nose doesn't work so well - it's a tricky look. Lips, however: quite good."

- Bang! Showbiz