This is what immediately hit me as I watched the fifth season of the hit TV show. The soap opera of what unfolded for the Windsors 30 years ago is still as incredible as any of the fictional events or conversations they made up. It’s all in there. The breakdown of Prince Charles and Diana’s marriage played out so publicly through books and interviews, details of those tapes where Charles said he wanted Camilla’s tampon, three of the Queen’s children getting divorced and talks for those. pictures of the Duchess of York sucking a lover’s toes. The basics, what we know to be true, are every screenwriter’s dream. You couldn’t make it up, but it all happened right at the heart of one of Britain’s most important and important institutions. Of course, the debate over whether the program needs a health warning because not everything we see is true is very much alive. There was outrage that such a painful part of the royal family’s history should have been turned into entertainment, almost a pantomime. I couldn’t help but think how ironic it is that the newspapers and commentators who enjoyed the scandal and collapse of the royal family at the time, are now so critical of the events that are happening again. Image: Diana, played by Elizabeth Debicki, in the trailer for the fifth series of The Crown. Photo: Netflix From the beginning you have a very clear villain. Prince Charles is once again cast as an uncaring cheated husband, but this time framed as a man desperate to get his hands on the crown and setting up a rival court to rival his mother. It’s a narrative that couldn’t have entered viewers’ minds at a more sensitive time as he now, in real life, settles into his life as King. So far, the arrangement of the period has played out very well for him, with the King and his team striking the right balance between respectfully mourning the Queen and setting out his stable of how he wants to reign. Can a TV show really affect how people feel about its motives? Don’t forget that season four of The Crown raised concerns about the palace as it swept away the days of Diana, bringing that story to a younger demographic. At the time, a journalist working for US magazines told me how he had played particularly rough with the American public, making Charles and Camilla’s visit unthinkable. The appearance of a young Prince William and Prince Harry makes it uncomfortable to watch at times. Both have now spoken about the trauma of their parents’ divorce and the death of their mother. Image: Olivia Williams and Dominic West as Camilla and Prince Charles in The Crown. Photo: Netflix The swarms of photographers and reporters you’ll see on screen following their every move were real to them, a reminder of why they felt hunted and are now doing everything they can to prevent that from happening to their families. At points you can’t help but feel that this memory lane is also designed to comment on how the institution is viewed now. Like the writers weaving in fictional monologues like Charles, Andrew, Margaret and Anne to question the role of the monarchy and how it works as they all talk about the limitations of ‘the system’. In one scene, the actor playing Andrew explains how excited they were to have Sarah Ferguson marry into the family, talking about how the newcomers “make us all look modern, normal, human”. But he adds: “Nobody with character or spark has a place in the system.” You could say something less than a veiled dig at Meghan and Harry’s experience within ‘the company’. Read more: The Crown star becomes royal and manages hype for highly-anticipated show Trailer for final series of The Crown released – and features Diana’s infamous interview Of course, all this comes just two months after the Queen’s death. The program couldn’t be more special than the glowing tributes that have been pouring in since he died. There are moments that reflect her sense of duty, her influence on the world stage, but you can’t escape that the 1990s were one of the most difficult periods of her reign. Click to subscribe to Backstage wherever you get your podcasts While it may reflect poorly on some of her living relatives, it is more positively a reminder of how remarkable it was for the Queen to get things back on track. During the 2000s he adjusted to rebuilding the monarchy’s reputation and leaving the reigning legacy of a much-loved monarch who rarely put a foot wrong. Now it’s her son, other children and grandchildren who must deal with the added scrutiny that may come from The Crown and more importantly deal with the other family issues that will undoubtedly come. The fifth season of The Crown will air on Netflix from November 9.
