Debbie Reynolds left her daughter Carrie Fisher red-faced at the Screen Actors Guild awards, after she recalled a funny story on stage.

As she accepted the lifetime achievement prize, the 82-year-old star revealed how she had advised her daughter against any dodgy hairstyles after she had “a big, ugly bun” in Singin’ In The Rain.

Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher
(Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

“I warned my daughter Carrie, be careful of any weird hairdo,” Debbie said, before Carrie played Princess Leia in George Lucas’ Star Wars.

“Luckily, George gave her two buns,” she joked.

Carrie bit back at her mother with a funny speech before turning over the mic.

“She has been more than a mother to me, not much, but definitely more,” she said, noting her mother’s advice on interior decorating and her personal life.

Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher
(Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

She also narrated a video tribute to Debbie, who has been in showbusiness for 66 years. Her career began when she was signed by Warner Bros after being crowned Miss Burbank at 16.

“Admittedly, I found it difficult to share my mother with her adoring fans who treated her like a member of their family,” Carrie said.

Debbie’s most recent role came two years ago when she played Liberace’s mother in Steven Soderbergh’s Behind The Candelabra.

“I had the best teachers,” she said. “God gave us talent, so we’re so fortunate.”

Debbie joked that The Unsinkable Molly Brown was her favourite film. She received her only Oscar nomination for the 1964 film.

“I got to sing a song called I Ain’t Down Yet. Well, I ain’t,” she added.