Keira Knightley: My Name Was A Spelling Mistake

There are loads of things to like about the lovely Keira Knightley - and the unusual spelling of her first name is just one of them.

However the British actress has now revealed that she actually should have been called "Kiera", but that her mum isn't the best at spelling.

Gracing the cover of this month's Elle in the UK, she told the mag: "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.

"Apparently, when she came back he said: 'what the f**k? 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."

However we've done a bit of research and it seems that Keira's mum's mistake may have had far-reaching effects.

The Office of National Statistics list of baby names in England and Wales for 2013 shows that 160 girls were registered with the name Kiera - putting the name in 293th place.

But there were 488 named "Keira" - many of whom were probably inspired by Knightley - and the name was the 110th most popular.

That makes it three times as popular as the "correct" version!

Knightley also spoke to Elle about her uncompromising attitude to fashion.

"I've always hated the idea that you should be wearing this or that, because it makes me feel like I'm getting everything wrong," she said.

"I hated it at school, and I don't want it as an adult.

"If you want to wear a f**king flowerpot on your head and that makes you happy, then wear a f**king flowerpot on your head."

Hear hear!