The Crown In The Media

[Quilt Fairy]

For 2 people who are actors, they talk too fast and mumble too much.  I caught occasional words and phrases and that's it.  

[AimingforYoko]

 

[ruby24]

Are they hiding Diana's voice? I want to hear her speak!

[ProudMary]

 

 

[CountryGirl]

So very excited for this season between Diana and Thatcher!

[dubbel zout]

Amy wanted to pull in many of the style choices and create the same spirit of David & Elizabeth Emanuel’s original design, but make something new

Huh? I get that the dress had to be re-created because the original certainly wasn't available, but you don't mess with something that iconic. The only thing different I can see is that the beading/embroidery/pearls/etc. aren't there, but given the schedule, that's excusable.

[merylinkid]

Yeah WHY create something new for a historical event?    My big issue is it fits perfectly.   It's well known that Diana lost so much weight before the wedding that the dress didn't fit right.   Especially at the shoulders.   Honestly if they leave out the bulimia in order to paint Charles as the poor misunderstood victim of all this I will LOSE IT.    Diana was no saint.   She really had her issues.   But Charles was no saint either.   

[Ellaria]

As one who was disappointed with S3, I am somewhat encouraged by this trailer. There are lots of people with stern or unhappy faces. This season should be complicated, if it is presented correctly.

I am most curious about the choices that will be made with Charles' characterization. In spite of a wonderful performance from Josh O'Connor, there was a lot left unexplored in S3. Specifically, I was hoping for a more nuanced perspective of his relationship with Camilla. Maybe it will be explored this season. 

I think that S4 will ultimately define this entire show, for better or worse. 

[MadyGirl1987]

7 hours ago, merylinkid said:

Yeah WHY create something new for a historical event?    My big issue is it fits perfectly.   It's well known that Diana lost so much weight before the wedding that the dress didn't fit right.   Especially at the shoulders.   Honestly if they leave out the bulimia in order to paint Charles as the poor misunderstood victim of all this I will LOSE IT.    Diana was no saint.   She really had her issues.   But Charles was no saint either.   

I doubt that Charles will be portrayed as the misunderstood victim. Even though I’m hoping for a nuanced perspective, since that whole marriage was a mess from all sides, it’s more likely she will be portrayed as the victim, since that is the prevailing narrative about her. She’s been elevated to a kind of Sainthood in many eyes. Just look at how many people to this day think the Royal Family had her killed.

Edited October 15, 2020 by MadyGirl1987

[PeterPirate]

It's a shame the show is going to end before they get to the adult lives of the children of Charles and Diana.  Whatever their flaws, they were devoted parents, and their sons appear to to be very well-adjusted, responsible husbands.  

[formerlyfreedom]

Casting for Charles in the final seasons from TVLine via The Sun;

Quote

Dominic West is going from The Affair to an infamous royal affair.

The actor has signed on to play Prince Charles in Season 5 of Netflix’s The Crown, according to a report from the UK’s The Sun. The royal drama’s fifth season will chronicle the crumbling marriage between Charles and Princess Diana, played by The Night Manager‘s Elizabeth Debicki, after rumors of infidelity swirl about Charles and his former lover Camilla Parker Bowles.

 

[AZChristian]

1 hour ago, saoirse said:

Casting for Charles in the final seasons from TVLine via The Sun;

 

Art imitates life.  A man who doesn't honor his wedding vows playing a man who didn't honor his wedding vows. 

[ruby24]

Aw. A rare Crown casting I don't love. He's too good-looking and too much of a "tough" guy. He doesn't match Charles at all.

[dubbel zout]

I don't think he works as Charles physically, either.

[Ellaria]

8 hours ago, ruby24 said:

Aw. A rare Crown casting I don't love. He's too good-looking and too much of a "tough" guy. He doesn't match Charles at all.

48 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

I don't think he works as Charles physically, either.

Wow - that's an unexpected choice. West is a wonderful actor but, IMO, seems to be the exact opposite of how I imagined older Charles. He tends towards rough, tough roles not necessarily those that exhibit aristocratic refinement. 

I imagined Rupert Graves or Toby Stephens in the role.

EDIT: Variety reports that "West is in late-stage discussions for the role, though the deal isn’t done." 

https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/the-crown-dominic-west-prince-charles-netflix-1234810172/

 

 

Edited October 20, 2020 by Ellaria Sand

[Scarlett45]

13 minutes ago, Ellaria Sand said:

Wow - that's an unexpected choice. West is a wonderful actor but, IMO, seems to be the exact opposite of how I imagined older Charles. He tends towards rough, tough roles not necessarily those that exhibit aristocratic refinement. 

I imagined Rupert Graves or Toby Stephens in the role.

EDIT: Variety reports that "West is in late-stage discussions for the role, though the deal isn’t done." 

https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/the-crown-dominic-west-prince-charles-netflix-1234810172/

 

 

They can change his look with makeup and prosthesis. I will have to see him in full makeup and costume before I will say he won't work. Tobias Mendez as Prince Philip is a poor physical match but as an actor he brought it. 

[Ellaria]

2 hours ago, Scarlett45 said:

They can change his look with makeup and prosthesis. I will have to see him in full makeup and costume before I will say he won't work. Tobias Mendez as Prince Philip is a poor physical match but as an actor he brought it. 

I agree that they can change his looks. However, my skepticism about the casting choice is less about his physical appearance and more about the type of roles that he usually plays. Jimmy McNulty and Noah Solloway are quite different characters than how I imagine a 50 something Charles will be. "Looks" are not the only determinant. 

Regardless, West is a talented actor and perhaps a departure from his usual type of role is exactly what he is seeking.

[AnnieBananie]

On 10/14/2020 at 6:30 PM, merylinkid said:

 It's well known that Diana lost so much weight before the wedding that the dress didn't fit right.   Especially at the shoulders.   Honestly if they leave out the bulimia in order to paint Charles as the poor misunderstood victim of all this I will LOSE IT.  

They will be leaving in the bulimia, with TW/CW at the beginning of those episodes.

[Quilt Fairy]

6 hours ago, AnnieBananie said:

TW/CW

? 

[AZChristian]

8 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

? 

I think it's:

A trigger or content warning, or TW and CW for short, is used to warn people of content that might illicit a strong or potentially harmful emotional response. Content warnings may usually be considered less harmful or threatening (or more broad) than trigger warnings, but the severity of response varies.

[Quilt Fairy]

Gotcha.  Thanks. 

[Roseanna]

How actors see their roles: 

https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/a34301919/the-crown-emma-corrin-josh-o-connor-emerald-fennell-season-4-interview/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social-media&utm_campaign=socialflowFBTCO&fbclid=IwAR0eEyBsnLZLMpwprcThYWT6n2en3hw1iLKrUv6JjCG4kKghG7z-aJLjlyY

[Umbelina]

6 hours ago, Roseanna said:

How actors see their roles: 

https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/arts-and-culture/a34301919/the-crown-emma-corrin-josh-o-connor-emerald-fennell-season-4-interview/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social-media&utm_campaign=socialflowFBTCO&fbclid=IwAR0eEyBsnLZLMpwprcThYWT6n2en3hw1iLKrUv6JjCG4kKghG7z-aJLjlyY

LOVE the video!

[txhorns79]

Official trailer for Season 4! 

 

[supposebly]

I skipped the last season, it just didn't seem interesting and rather unsubtle in how it presented relationships based on clips I saw and what people said about it here. However, this seems better. The casting for Diana looks spot on, and while I'm not sure about Maggie Thatcher, I will watch anything Gillian Anderson does at least once. And I do wish I could have been a fly on the wall during that first conversation.

[dubstepford wife]

From just a few clips I can tell Gillian Anderson nails it.  Absolutely spot on.  And Diana's actress definitely has the voice right, very breathy and soft spoken.  They're really playing up how Diana was just a child, with the lonely roller skating and ballet dancing in the grand halls of Buckingham Palace.  Which I don't think is all that inaccurate.

[txhorns79]

Quote

From just a few clips I can tell Gillian Anderson nails it.  Absolutely spot on. 

I love the tension of that first meeting.  You can almost imagine that right after Thatcher says she is the senior by six months, Elizabeth launches herself out of her chair, tackles Thatcher and starts beating the crap out of her. 

[dubbel zout]

18 minutes ago, txhorns79 said:

You can almost imagine that right after Thatcher says she is the senior by six months, Elizabeth launches herself out of her chair, tackles Thatcher and starts beating the crap out of her. 

If only!

[MadyGirl1987]

You can tell the interactions between the Queen and Thatcher are going to be fascinating. I have often wondered what the Queen REALLY feels about the public figures she has met. I would just love to be a fly on the wall when she’s talking to Phillip about people, you just know she must be so candid with him. In a way she can’t be with others.

[Ellaria]

Meh. I’m not a fan of either GA or Thatcher so this trailer didn’t appeal to me.

Everyone seems overwrought in most of these scenes which I suppose is correct considering what is coming. I like how they have aged Olivia Coleman into more of a graying matron. Still curious as to how Charles will be portrayed. Other than the one scene of him yelling, it all seems a bit subdued and internal. Also intrigued to see how Mountbatten’s death is handled.

The dinner scene between Elizabeth, Queen Mum and Margaret looks nightmarish. 

Edited October 29, 2020 by Ellaria Sand

[PeterPirate]

On 10/29/2020 at 8:26 AM, txhorns79 said:

Official trailer for Season 4! 

 

 

That was awesome.  Rule Britannia!

[Umbelina]

On 10/29/2020 at 9:41 AM, supposebly said:

I skipped the last season, it just didn't seem interesting and rather unsubtle in how it presented relationships based on clips I saw and what people said about it here. However, this seems better. The casting for Diana looks spot on, and while I'm not sure about Maggie Thatcher, I will watch anything Gillian Anderson does at least once. And I do wish I could have been a fly on the wall during that first conversation.

While I didn't care for last season much?  I would still watch it, even after knowing how ... disappointing ... it was.

For me, the three main issues were:

1. The portrayal of the Queen as completely without subtlety, and with none of the lovely inner feelings shown in earlier seasons, behind that composed/stony face.
2. The rapid age shift of all the characters with almost no difference in time frame.
3. The "STAR moments" given to the cast, each seemed to get an episode or two, but in the end, it was disjointed and didn't flow as a season for me.

Still, there were things worth watching, especially the Wales episodes, and the older Charles was amazing, he really nailed his role, and I don't have a single quibble with him.

If you decide not to watch last season, I'd love to hear your thoughts during the upcoming season.  It's quite possible the odd rapid aging of the cast will no longer be a factor for example.  Still, I think seeing last season would possible set you up better for this one.  Interesting idea.

[AimingforYoko]

On 10/29/2020 at 10:26 AM, txhorns79 said:

Official trailer for Season 4! 

 

I'd love to do an anthropological study of when exactly the practice of using slowed-down covers for trailers started.

[Umbelina]

Season 4 gets a rave from Vulture.

(full of spoilers, so beware!)

[AZChristian]

HURRY UP, SUNDAY!!!!!

[Ellaria]

14 hours ago, Umbelina said:

Season 4 gets a rave from Vulture.

I'm seeing great reviews from lots of sources. Many of these reviews admit that S3 was not strong. Encouraging!

[Umbelina]

 

[Umbelina]

 

[Umbelina]

 

[blackwing]

I am really looking forward to this season... from the trailers, it looks like the portrayals of Margaret Thatcher and Diana Spencer are spot on.  They should just hand Gillian Anderson the Supporting Actress Emmy right now.  I was impressed with her English accent so looked her up, apparently she spent her childhood in London and now lives there again.  I saw that she was given an OBE (Officer of the British Empire, some steps below a Damehood), but I thought those honours were only given to citizens of Britain or Commonwealth countries?  As far as I can tell, she is an American citizen (born in U.S. to American parents).

The actress playing Diana also seems to be a good match.  Kudos to the hairstyling/makeup team, they should win an Emmy as well.

And even though Season 4 has yet to air, here is an article from the cast about Season 5:  https://ew.com/tv/the-crown-season-4-cast-advice-new-stars/

Colman wants to return... I agree!  I think in the final season 6, there should be a sequence where the old Elizabeth is reflecting upon her life.  Her thoughts could manifest the two younger versions of herself.  So we can get appearances by Claire Foy and Olivia Colman and the three of them can talk to each other.

[GHScorpiosRule]

Is it just me, or do Gillian Anderson and Claire Foy look like sisters? From the trailers, Gillian is amazing as Thatcher, but I wonder if she could have played older Queen Elizabeth?

But Olivia Coleman is such a delight in interviews-I saw the one she and Gillian did with Colbert.

I’m more hopeful about this season, though I wonder if the previews of Diana spinning around in circles is dramatic license? 

I know I’m just going to be nitpicking this season as I grew up around the Diana years.

[Umbelina]

Duchess Camilla Will Watch Herself on The Crown, Even As Royal Experts Worry It Could Damage the Monarchy

The Queen and Princess Anne are said to have no interest in watching the Netflix drama—according to a family friend, “the Queen has no desire to watch herself in a fictitious TV program, while Anne has no time for such nonsense.” But Camilla, who is played by Emerald Fennell, is more curious about her on-screen persona.

“She has watched it, of course she has and I believe [Charles] has too,” added the source. “I don’t think she has any real issue with it. Her feeling is very much ‘never complain, never explain.’”

[dubbel zout]

Given that the fourth season will dredge up much of the misery and animosity of the past, Bedell Smith believes The Crown could “inflict some serious damage” for the monarchy.

Spare me. If Andrew being friends with a pedophile didn't inflict serious damage on the monarchy, this show certainly won't.

[Minivanessa]

23 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

But Olivia Coleman is such a delight in interviews-I saw the one she and Gillian did with Colbert.

I’m more hopeful about this season, though I wonder if the previews of Diana spinning around in circles is dramatic license? 

I know I’m just going to be nitpicking this season as I grew up around the Diana years.

I loved that Colbert interview.

As to Diana's "spinning around in circles" - not sure if this needs a spoiler tag, but:

Spoiler

I have read that when Diana was young (pre-Charles), at home she would sometimes (often?) play music on her record player (remember those?) and dance, alone, for a long time, I think at night. She was quoted as saying it helped clear her head when she was troubled. I believe that as a child she loved dance and for awhile aspired to be a ballerina. Her brother Earl Spencer, in a 2013 PBS documentary about the Althorp estate, shared a memory of Diana often dancing in the great entry hall in the house (although that may have been tap dancing).  I've also read that during her marriage, when she was still trying hard to make it work, she quietly hired a dance coach and practiced a dance piece, which she performed as a surprise at a public event as a show of her love for Charles (and I read that it failed to please him).  I don't know how much dramatic license will be employed as to the details, but Diana was certainly quite a dancer IRL, publicly and probably privately.

 

[Minivanessa]

New video from the Netflix UK & Ireland YT channel: 

 

[Ohiopirate02]

2 hours ago, Jeeves said:

I loved that Colbert interview.

As to Diana's "spinning around in circles" - not sure if this needs a spoiler tag, but:

  Hide contents

I have read that when Diana was young (pre-Charles), at home she would sometimes (often?) play music on her record player (remember those?) and dance, alone, for a long time, I think at night. She was quoted as saying it helped clear her head when she was troubled. I believe that as a child she loved dance and for awhile aspired to be a ballerina. Her brother Earl Spencer, in a 2013 PBS documentary about the Althorp estate, shared a memory of Diana often dancing in the great entry hall in the house (although that may have been tap dancing).  I've also read that during her marriage, when she was still trying hard to make it work, she quietly hired a dance coach and practiced a dance piece, which she performed as a surprise at a public event as a show of her love for Charles (and I read that it failed to please him).  I don't know how much dramatic license will be employed as to the details, but Diana was certainly quite a dancer IRL, publicly and probably privately.

 

I think the show is going to do Diana 

Spoiler

Dancing during the Royal Ballet benefit to Billy Joel's Uptown Girl like she did in real life.  In one of the trailers she is on stage dancing and dressed like she was for that event.

 

[GHScorpiosRule]

That preview of Diana doesn’t look to me like her showing the viewers her love of dance. like I said it looks like

she’s drunk and just spinning and spinning

no rhyme or reason.

[Minivanessa]

19 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

That preview of Diana doesn’t look to me like her showing the viewers her love of dance. like I said it looks like

  Reveal spoiler

she’s drunk and just spinning and spinning

no rhyme or reason.

Oh. That would really be a stretch because

Spoiler

I know she had her struggles, but I never heard that she was much of a drinker or played with recreational drugs. Hmm. 

All Will Be Revealed - tomorrow. Yay! Come on, Sunday! Yesterday I rewatched most of Season 3 in anticipation of Season 4. 

EDITED to add: the Netflix UK & Ireland YT channel has just today posted some new videos providing historical background of some of the characters, called "Beneath the Crown." A good potted history of the Thatcher years, for example, and IMO a good explanation of Diana's childhood and her deep drive to find a happy family and a mother figure. 

Edited November 15, 2020 by Jeeves

[Umbelina]

See Princess Diana's Best Looks Replicated by The Crown's Emma Corrin Side-by-Side

There are one or two photos here that made me do a double take to be certain which was Diana.

[Umbelina]

Why The Crown Season 4’s Prince Charles Appalls Royal Experts

Quote

“They always liked to portray him as a kind of wimp. This time, though, he’s not only portrayed as a wimp, but also as a very angry, unpleasant person yelling at his wife.…Some of the looks he gives Diana, you begin to wonder whether in the next season we’re going to catch him conspiring to have her murdered in a tunnel in Paris, or something ghastly,” Vickers said. “I wouldn’t put it past them [on The Crown]…it’s really, really disgraceful what they’ve done to him in this season.”

Quote

After a digression, Vickers harped again on The Crown’s Charles: “I mean, does he ever do any work? Does he ever do an engagement? Does he ever actually achieve anything? No, they didn’t show a single thing that he does.”“Charles and Camilla have come a long way with all their hard work, especially during the coronavirus pandemic,” said Bedell Smith. “Camilla, in particular, has transformed herself from a woman scorned to someone widely admired for her charitable work and respected for assuming her royal role with a genuine commitment. People have come to regard her as a good egg, and to accept the idea of her being queen consort. Because viewers believe incorrectly that The Crown is true, this season in particular could undo all the good feelings about Charles and Camilla and resurrect the hostility from two decades ago. It will also reinforce the false mythology that Diana was the sainted victim.”

😂  

The new series of The Crown is a ‘glorious spectacle’  BBC

Quote

Yet while the episodes focusing on the relationship between Thatcher and the Queen are strong, they are arguably eclipsed by those dealing with Diana and her increasingly disastrous marriage to the Prince of Wales (Josh O’Connor again doing sterling work in an often difficult role).

Quote

 

Like Anderson’s, Corrin’s is a performance that only deepens as the series continues and we see Diana not only evolve as a style icon but, more importantly, begin to grasp the unique power that she possesses within the royal family, a power that can be wielded against them as much as for them.

None of this would work, however, if Morgan came down too firmly on one side of the Great Wales Marriage Debate. Instead he paints a sympathetic portrait of all three individuals involved, with the pragmatic Camilla Parker-Bowles (a smart and sexy Emerald Fennell) repeatedly shown to be far more suited to the set-in-his-ways Charles, while Charles himself, genuinely in love with Camilla, is clearly railroaded into a marriage he knows is all wrong even as he desperately tries to believe it could possibly work.

 

Quote

Fans can also rest assured that there’s nothing here as egregiously out-of-place as the bizarre Prince Philip Moon landing episode from last season, although one weak point is an episode in which the Queen decides to find out just who her favourite child is, despite decent turns from Angus Imrie as a petulant Prince Edward and Tom Byrne as a believably smug Prince Andrew.