S01.E02: Hyde Park Corner

[Tara Ariano]

Quote

With King George too ill to travel, Elizabeth and Philip embark on a four-continent Commonwealth tour. Party leaders attempt to undermine Churchill.

 

[Bec]

That ending was pretty epic. That look between the two women gave me chills in the best way.

Was I supposed to see the guy who "lives in the land that time forgot" (and I forgot his name already) as some kind of villain? I'm guessing it's his job to keep people in line and sticking to protocol (eh, I don't know how this royalty stuff works)? Can't say I blame him for trying to send that married guy packing.

[Primetimer]

Since Philip doesn't seem to understand cultural boundaries, maybe it's for the best.

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[zxy556575]

I assume this is/was fairly accurate with regard to the royal household, but it's horrible the way numerous staff are always hovering around and intruding into private moments. Private pajama moments! Not to mention setting up an operating theater in some spare rooms in the palace. Everyone welcome to pop in! Take out a lung and wrap it in old newspaper like an order of fish and chips.

I've always felt ever so slightly repulsed by Prince Philip and this is not changing my prejudice in that regard.

This is my election-related mood swings talking, but the whole colonialism thing with African people obsequiously leaping to serve and kissing the Queen's feet, etc. made me cry roid rage-y tears.

Edited November 4, 2016 by lordonia

[Arynm]

I loved how they showed how the dynamics had changed literally one minute from the next. Elizabeth was curtsying to them earlier in the episode, now it had completely switched. What Elizabeth must have been thinking! So many rules to remember and follow. The king broke my heart, I cried when he died, what a tremendous acting job. Emmys all around!

[VCRTracking]

The montage of events following George VI's death was extremely well done.

The final scene with Queen Mary kneeling was very powerful.

[SeanC]

This episode contains one of the trailer moments that I thought was kind of silly, that being, the expository moment about what a regnal name is -- as if anybody on the Queen's staff would have been under the impression she wouldn't know what that meant.

Imagine how different the last sixty years would have been if the Queen had been killed by an elephant in 1952.

I overall thought they did a good job of the colonialism aspects, particularly in the opening scene, with Elizabeth's kind of condescending speech about how Nairobi was a "savage place" until recently and Philip's discussion with the local chieftain about his medals which turns sour (on the chieftain's part) after he's incredulous about whatever that last medal was.

Discussions amongst officials in Downing Street about having George VI try to talk Churchill into retiring were in fact a thing at the time of the king's death.  I don't think Eden was involved in them in real life, though it's a good way to introduce his ambitions (and I'm sure he fantasized about it).  Though I don't think anybody would have called George VI "Albert Windsor" to his face.

[Archery]

Even today, some of the colonial and territorial peoples are some of E2's most devoted subjects.  I teared up when the Kenyan host kissed her shoes. It was all he could offer in the enormity of that moment, and if it actually happened in real life, she probably still remembers the gesture to this day.

[AnnieBananie]

Eileen Atkins is dynamite as Queen Mary. Curtsying to the new Queen - when she herself, many years ago was once the new queen and had the curtsy made to her - was a powerful gesture and moment.

This photo may be best saved for a future episode's forum, but here's the real life photo of Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and Queen Mary, three Queens, at King George VI's funeral in February 1952.

[VCRTracking]

If the show does manage to go six seasons all the way to either the 90s or recent years, they should bring back Eileen Atkins to play older Elizabeth, since she resembles her grandmother IRL.

[GaT]

John Lithgow is killing it. I'm not usually into historical dramas, but I'm enjoying this.

[dubbel zout]

On 11/4/2016 at 4:58 PM, SeanC said:

Though I don't think anybody would have called George VI "Albert Windsor" to his face.

If anyone outside the family would have, it would have been Churchill. He and the king became extremely close during the war. And this was a private meeting, not an official/public one, and Churchill using "Albert Windsor" was part of that.

23 hours ago, AnnieBananie said:

Eileen Atkins is dynamite as Queen Mary. Curtsying to the new Queen - when she herself, many years ago was once the new queen and had the curtsy made to her - was a powerful gesture and moment.

IRL, she said something like, "Her old granny must be the first to curtsey to the new queen." Queen Mary was a stickler for protocol.

[WatchrTina]

I'm re-watching episode 2 and OMG this show is beautiful.  That scene at the very beginning with the children chasing the ostriches off the landing strip so that the plane could land was completely unnecessary and SO COOL.  All the scenes with wild animals are amazing.  They really spent some money on this episode.

ETA:  OMG that final montage with Churchill reading the speech while the visuals are a montage of Elizabeth arriving at Sandringham, seeing her father's body, receiving curtseys from her mother and then her sister and that long, deep curtsey by Queen Mary.  Part of me wants to shut my eyes just to listen to the speech and part of me wants to turn off the sound and just focus on the visuals.  Wow.  This show is amazing.

Edited November 6, 2016 by WatchrTina

[stcroix]

I thought the scene at Treetops was amazing!  I'm surprised they'd let Royalty go into such a (potentially) dangerous area, but I know from reading about it that it happened.  I'm simply open mouthed at John Lithgow's performance in this!  Loving this show :)

[Brn2bwild]

Really enjoying this series so far.  The only thing that bugs me is that this Elizabeth seems a bit "deer in headlights" at times.  I know it's partly for dramatic effect, but it seems like no matter how inwardly devastated she felt, the real Elizabeth would have acted super-chill about everything.

[Lillybee]

Queen Mary's curtsey was quite heartbreaking. But I love that that the grand old queen was able to do one. Kudo's..

[Daisy]

8 hours ago, Brn2bwild said:

Really enjoying this series so far.  The only thing that bugs me is that this Elizabeth seems a bit "deer in headlights" at times.  I know it's partly for dramatic effect, but it seems like no matter how inwardly devastated she felt, the real Elizabeth would have acted super-chill about everything.

Right? 
I do kind of like they had the whole "Why would i change my name. at that moment I didn't take it as a "um, you should know this." i took it still as someone processing her beloved Papa was gone. (I do love how Royals use Mummy, Papa,). It does make you think why most Kings changed their name (Six Georges after all), and Elizabeth, Victoria and Elizabeth II is all like, no, my name is quite good thank you.

[dubbel zout]

If Queen Victoria had still been around (you know what I mean), she'd have forced Elizabeth to be Alberta. Heh.

[vibeology]

1 hour ago, dubbel zout said:

If Queen Victoria had still been around (you know what I mean), she'd have forced Elizabeth to be Alberta. Heh.

I'm frankly amazed she didn't name ever single kid Albert and Alberta, George-Foreman-style.

The Regnal name thing was clumsy exposition but I'm willing to pass it off as Elizabeth being in shock that she was suddenly queen and not really being in the right headspace to process the question.

1 hour ago, Daisy said:

Right? 
I do kind of like they had the whole "Why would i change my name. at that moment I didn't take it as a "um, you should know this." i took it still as someone processing her beloved Papa was gone. (I do love how Royals use Mummy, Papa,). It does make you think why most Kings changed their name (Six Georges after all), and Elizabeth, Victoria and Elizabeth II is all like, no, my name is quite good thank you.

The truth is in British history Regnal names aren't really all that common which is another reason it was an odd question. Almost every monarch has just used their first baptismal name. Many had nicknames as children that they didn't use once they became monarch but only Victoria, Edward VII and George VI actually changed their names to something other than their legal first name.

Edited November 7, 2016 by vibeology

[tenativelyyours]

20 hours ago, Lillybee said:

Queen Mary's curtsey was quite heartbreaking. But I love that that the grand old queen was able to do one. Kudo's..

 

Yeah I'm going to hell because I kept waiting for her to throw back that veil and shout "Muad'dib!"  It was so David Lynch.

Was it Queen Mary or George V that actually encouraged the naming of Elizabeth and Margaret?  I want to say King George since Mary was unlikely to think much of Elizabeth of York having her own namesake since Mary was a huge snob about royalty and titles stemming from her own insecurities coming from the Tecks.  But one of them wanted to go back to birth names being appropriately Regnal.  Its not clear just how much the royal family really thought Elizabeth (II) would not someday be queen.  They at least put a good front on the fact that Edward VIII (David) was unmarried at a rather later age for someone expected to carry on the royal line.   But even before King George V's death, there had to be some wondering as to whether David would ever produce an heir.  Or who he was going to marry for that matter.  Both George V and Mary were said to be pragmatic even from their detractors like Princess Victoria.  And Victoria Melita.  

So the it is kind of weird how they sort of make out like George VI was going to live for a long long time and she was totally stunned.  Makes for good tv, but it also makes me wonder considering how quickly she took to things in real life, how much preparation there was going on.  There was one conspiracy theory that George VI actually planned on abdicating in her favor after the Commonwealth tour that came out after Queen Mother Elizabeth died.  Ironic considering the words placed in her mouth in the move The Queen.  As it seems the Queen Mother according to claims wanted him to step down as it might extend his life.

[TomServo]

On 11/7/2016 at 9:41 AM, Daisy said:

It does make you think why most Kings changed their name (Six Georges after all), and Elizabeth, Victoria and Elizabeth II is all like, no, my name is quite good thank you.

It goes along with the idea of "the old Albert Windsor is dead..." although you might be surprised at how many of the English monarchs did not change their given names.  Queen Victoria used her middle name, as her given name was Alexandrina (I believe she was already using it as her preferred name at the time, though).

[SeanC]

On 11/7/2016 at 10:37 PM, tenativelyyours said:

So the it is kind of weird how they sort of make out like George VI was going to live for a long long time and she was totally stunned.  Makes for good tv, but it also makes me wonder considering how quickly she took to things in real life, how much preparation there was going on.

The King and Queen were both optimistic about his health, and planning a trip to South Africa at the time of his death.  Some of the people around them, like Lascelles, were a lot more skeptical (though, as George's biographer Sarah Bradford notes, Lascelles' son had died shortly before, so he may have been in an overly pessimistic state of mind).

[Daisy]

22 hours ago, TomServo said:

It goes along with the idea of "the old Albert Windsor is dead..." although you might be surprised at how many of the English monarchs did not change their given names.  Queen Victoria used her middle name, as her given name was Alexandrina (I believe she was already using it as her preferred name at the time, though).

yes. I just finished bingewatching Victoria. Only her mother called her "Drina" but she liked Victoria better, and when she became Queen that was that. (I also think a part of it was to shove it up to Sir John Conroy who didn't like either name and to show she wouldn't cowtow to him (Y'all really should watch it if you get the time). 

[tanita]

If you watch a 3 part documentary called the Windsors - A Royal Family from 1994, the details of how the queen found out about her father's death (being told by Phillip in the garden) and the reginal name thing are almost identical. And it's from people's own account's, including Lord Martin Charteris.

[roamyn]

George IV actually named Queen Victoria, after Tsar Alexander I.  

While I've never been a fan of QM - she was very much too strict to protocol and cold, she also was not a fan of QETQM - I do admire the relationship she & QEII had.

Spoiler

Which makes it sad when she only had another year to live, not quite making it to the coronation. 

I also felt for her when she was told abt KGVI's death.  That's three sons she lost while living (John, George, Albert).9

ETA:  And yes, Lithgow is killing it.

Edited November 18, 2016 by Drogo
"Future history" spoiler-tagged.

[VCRTracking]

2 hours ago, roamyn said:

While I've never been a fan of QM - she was very much too strict to protocol and cold, she also was not a fan of QETQM - I do admire the relationship she & QEII had.

According to Wikipedia: "When he declared he(Bertie) would marry no other, his mother, Queen Mary, visited Glamis to see for herself the girl who had stolen her son's heart. She became convinced that Elizabeth was "the one girl who could make Bertie happy", but nevertheless refused to interfere." And this letter the Queen Mum wrote Queen Mary after Bertie died:

Quote

“My darling Mama, what can I say to you — I know that you loved Bertie dearly, and he was my whole life, and one can only be deeply thankful for the utterly happy years we had together. He was so wonderfully thoughtful and loving, and I don’t believe he ever thought of himself at all... I cannot bear to think of Lilibet, so young to bear such a burden — I do feel for you so darling Mama — to lose two dear sons, and Bertie still so young and so precious — it is almost more than one can bear — your very loving Elizabeth.”

Also Mary's strictness with protocol was really the only thing she had in common with her husband George V. She was more intellectually curious and liked to travel, loved art and visited museums while he only liked to shoot birds, collect stamps and stay in the country. It was an arranged marriage(she had been originally engaged to George's older brother, the original heir Prince Albert Edward but he died suddenly of the flu) so her dedication to duty included her marriage although there was affection as time went on.

Prince Phillip was an ass to the African chiefs, no doubt but they do make a point to show him being very sweet with the two kids in the car.

Edited November 15, 2016 by VCRTracking

[roamyn]

4 hours ago, VCRTracking said:

According to Wikipedia: "When he declared he(Bertie) would marry no other, his mother, Queen Mary, visited Glamis to see for herself the girl who had stolen her son's heart. She became convinced that Elizabeth was "the one girl who could make Bertie happy", but nevertheless refused to interfere." And this letter the Queen Mum wrote Queen Mary after Bertie died:

Also Mary's strictness with protocol was really the only thing she had in common with her husband George V. She was more intellectually curious and liked to travel, loved art and visited museums while he only liked to shoot birds, collect stamps and stay in the country. It was an arranged marriage(she had been originally engaged to George's older brother, the original heir Prince Albert Edward but he died suddenly of the flu) so her dedication to duty included her marriage although there was affection as time went on.

Well, I admit I've never read much of QETQM.  But I have studied and read abt QM.  Most of her aloofness was learned from George V, but she was very ashamed of her family - her obese mother who over spent beyond her means, her father's non-royal (morganatic) status, her playboy brother.  She AT FIRST did not care for QETQM because she was non-royal.  She may have learned to like her later. 

But any woman who sends away her youngest child - even in comfortable situations - and then visits only 2 or 3 times a year, is cold.  Duty or no duty. 

QM, because her family was constantly moving from one place to the next to avoid creditors, had a compulsion to spend, spend, spend.  She bought numerous pieces of Russian jewelry, constantly altered her jewelry, went WAY overboard in the celebrations during the Dehli Durbar - and they didn't even attend!

[dubbel zout]

48 minutes ago, roamyn said:

she was very ashamed of her family - her obese mother who over spent beyond her means, her father's non-royal (morganatic) status, her playboy brother.

Which makes her snobbishness about everyone else pretty funny (if understandable psychologically).

[Dandesun]

These first two episodes also showed very clearly that the royal physicians weren't exactly... great. When you have Philip talking about their PR guy (don't remember his specific title) having one foot in modern times whereas the one who outranked him and they wound up with when she became Queen, it matches the situation with the physicians, too. Churchill figured out that George VI had cancer and then said that the King most likely didn't even know... 

Not to mention how backward thinking so much of that crap was. I know in the King's Speech, Bertie was encouraged to smoke because the doctors said it would relax his throat and help with his stuttering. And here... we see that what his doctors encouraged him to do in order to 'help' ultimately killed him. Not that it was unusual at the time to believe that smoking was actually a benefit to ones health. Still, this was at a time when having a rank, a seniority, very rarely meant you were actually at the top of your field.

That being said, the head of the household who told Peter Townsend to go back to the RAF and, hey, just because no one has said anything to your face doesn't mean you and Margaret aren't ridiculously fucking obvious so just knock it off already -- yeah, I can't say I disagreed with his stance at all.

[J-Man]

What was the significance of "Hyde Park Corner?" I know it's a place in London, but was it chosen as a code word for some specific reason, or just at random?

[BigBlueMastiff]

From Bustle:

Quote

BBC reports that Hyde Park Corner was a pre-established code for discussing the death of King George VI. While the codeword itself was heavily reported, it's unclear why a codeword was used or what the codeword may have been referring to. It's possible the codeword was utilizied to prevent any nosy press or foreign enemies from hearing about King George's death via the radio before British officials were ready to announce the news publicly. What remains unclear — and is never touched upon in The Crown — is the meaning of "Hyde Park Corner."

[rubyred]

29 minutes ago, J-Man said:

What was the significance of "Hyde Park Corner?" I know it's a place in London, but was it chosen as a code word for some specific reason, or just at random?

I assumed it was a reference to the funeral plans for King George. I conflated it with a scene from the movie "The Queen," in which the Queen Mother's funeral plans were co-opted for Diana's funeral, because it was the only processional plan that had already been rehearsed. In that scene, the QM's funeral plans are code-named "Tay Bridge" or somesuch. And she's like, "Tay Bridge? But that's my [funeral]".

[roamyn]

Don't they all have code names?  I thought I read that somewhere.

Not to be too pessimistic, but I imagine such plans are even in place now for QEII & PP.  (They might have to start planning the Prince of Wales aft another 10 years, too.)

[dubbel zout]

I imagine there are basic plans in place for everyone the moment they hit the age of majority and/or start to seriously participate in public life. And then plans for people like, say, Princess Beatrice, are relaxed the farther down the line of succession they fall. (And personal preferences are probably also kept in mind as much as they can be.)

[txhorns79]

Quote

The only thing that bugs me is that this Elizabeth seems a bit "deer in headlights" at times.  I know it's partly for dramatic effect, but it seems like no matter how inwardly devastated she felt, the real Elizabeth would have acted super-chill about everything.

I actually like the "deer in the headlights" thing.  It gave the ending of the episode an almost horror movie feel.  I can't even imagine how weird it would be to suddenly have people who were authority figures in your life completely and unquestioningly deferring to you.  I mean, Queen Mary looks as though she had the power to make someone's head explode with a look, so it would be deeply unsettling to me to have her dramatically curtsying before me.  

[Constantinople]

Since they made a point about regnal names, I would have appreciated an explanation for why she is Queen Elizabeth II when she is the first Queen regnant of the UK named Elizabeth ("Elizabeth I" was Queen of England, not the UK).

Of course the cat was already a little out of the bag with William IV, Edward VII and Edward VIII.

[WatchrTina]

I think the cat started working it's way out of the bag with James.  This from Wikipedia:

Quote

James VI and I (19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until his death. The kingdoms of Scotland and England were individual sovereign states, with their own parliaments, judiciary, and laws, though both were ruled by James in personal union.

James was the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and a great-great-grandson of Henry VII, King of England and Lord of Ireland, positioning him to eventually accede to all three thrones. James succeeded to the Scottish throne at the age of thirteen months, after his mother Mary was compelled to abdicate in his favour.

It's just too messy to call someone Queen Elizabeth II of England and I of the UK.  Plus, it's not like there would have been any confusion over which Elizabeth anyone was talking about no matter what the context.  But there were a LOT of King James in the history of the British Isles. It must have been maddening to historians.

[Constantinople]

Elizabeth isn't Queen of England and Queen of the United Kingdom.  She's Queen of the United Kingdom, so she wouldn't have been Queen Elizabeth II of England and Queen Elizabeth of the United Kingdom had she gone by Queen Elizabeth.  She would just be Queen Elizabeth.

As for King James, he was never King of the United Kingdom, but King of England and King of Scotland.  Since Scotland had a King James 5 times before, and England never had, it made sense that he was known as James VI of Scotland and James (later James I) of England.  Thus, there is no inconsistency as there is with William IV, Edward VII, Edward VIII and Elizabeth II, all monarchs of the United Kingdom.

[formerlyfreedom]

Please take further discussion that's not about the episode over to the History Talk topic please and thank you!

[CeeBeeGee]

Fantastic episode--the scene with the bull elephant was so riveting, I had to hit pause and try to find a detailed writeup of the episode because I was so terrified they would end up shooting the creature. Loved Philip's soothing him with "you're the king"--Philip knows from alpha males! What majesty, what breathtaking creatures elephants are. Just loved that, as well as all the other beautiful creatures there.

Did Margaret really visit the body of her father as he was being embalmed? Jesus.

Not really crazy about Margaret's casting--the actress is pretty enough but seems too old to me. Margaret was 21 when Bertie died, and was very short (I think only 5 feet tall), and with those vivid blue eyes. She's a decent actress though, I love her well-hidden joy in Townsend's presence--although not that well-hidden, Lascelles picked up on her sly little grin as she turned away down the hall (the scene when he happens to be watching from the upper level).

[dubbel zout]

59 minutes ago, CeeBeeGee said:

Lascelles picked up on her sly little grin as she turned away down the hall

The Mustache misses nothing!

I think Claire Foy is a bit too old for this decade of Elizabeth, as is Vanessa Kirby (Princess Margaret); I think they'll look more age appropriate next season, when Elizabeth and Margaret are closer to the actors' RL ages.

[roamyn]

On Monday, November 07, 2016 at 11:22 AM, vibeology said:

I'm frankly amazed she didn't name ever single kid Albert and Alberta, George-Foreman-style.

The Regnal name thing was clumsy exposition but I'm willing to pass it off as Elizabeth being in shock that she was suddenly queen and not really being in the right headspace to process the question.

The truth is in British history Regnal names aren't really all that common which is another reason it was an odd question. Almost every monarch has just used their first baptismal name. Many had nicknames as children that they didn't use once they became monarch but only Victoria, Edward VII and George VI actually changed their names to something other than their legal first name.

So did Queen Mary.  She was actually Princess May of Teck.

[bluphoenix451]

17 hours ago, roamyn said:

So did Queen Mary.  She was actually Princess May of Teck.

Although May was a nickname, her actual name was Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes.....that is a mouthful.

[roamyn]

1 hour ago, bluphoenix451 said:

Although May was a nickname, her actual name was Victoria Mary Augusta Louise Olga Pauline Claudine Agnes.....that is a mouthful.

You're correct.  I always think of her as "May", so she didn't actually change her name, per se, but - like Victoria, Edward VII, VIII & George VI, she didn't use her given first name.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

This was a really beautifully done episode but it was so painful to watch because my dad passed away almost three years ago. Obviously the circumstances were totally different (I wasn't off in Nairobi and unreachable when my dad died) but man, an entire episode about Bertie's death and everyone's reaction to it was so hard to watch. It was difficult enough for me to deal with my father's death but I can't imagine have to deal with it in a very public way as Elizabeth did.

I am going to miss Martin. As Philip said, Martin was on Elizabeth's side as a human being. I totally get Lascelles' stance with Townsend because it would be terrible if it ever got out that Princess Margaret was having an affair with a married man, but he seems more concerned with the institution of the crown than the people. Heh, but I could not blame him for giving Townsend a stern talking to.

When Martin said that Lascelles had seniority and would be taking his place, I kind of jokingly quoted Coming to America. Elizabeth, you're the queen, so if you want Martin as your secretary then find a way to make it happen! I know, I know, protocol, seniority, blah blah blah.

It was terribly sad to see Bertie's tears at Christmas. I was also stricken by the look on his face when he saw Elizabeth on television.

A part of me was cracking up at seeing Elizabeth let someone pull up her stockings and tie her shoes while she read the letter from her grandmother.

[Thumper]

Just started watching.  Shallow: I don't think Townsend is that handsome.  Need to look up the real Townsend.  

[Athena]

On 2017-01-14 at 11:59 PM, Thumper said:

Just started watching.  Shallow: I don't think Townsend is that handsome.  Need to look up the real Townsend.  

In certain angles they can look quite similar, but I do wonder if Miles looks a bit older than Townsend did.

[vibeology]

On ‎1‎/‎8‎/‎2017 at 1:50 AM, roamyn said:

So did Queen Mary.  She was actually Princess May of Teck.

This is true, but I wasn't counting consorts in my list. Regnal names only apply to monarchs.

[peggy06]

I am having a major problem with Matt Smith. He has this tick of dropping his head to one side and looking up, that gets on my nerves. Poor casting for Philip, in my opinion. I have some difficulty with Claire Foy because I know well what Elizabeth looked like, and she doesn't resemble QE very much. She has the voice down, but her demeanor seems too free-and-easy. I think QE would have been more reserved, even as Princess Elizabeth. The scenes with Elizabeth and Philip seem too modern to me.  

John Lithgow is very good. Anthony Eden is coming off as smarmy and overly ambitious. I couldn't place the actor playing Tommy Lascelles, but now see it's Pip Torrens, whom I remember as Bingo Little from the Jeeves and Wooster series of old. He has aged very well, looks every inch the part of senior courtier. He was in the right of it regarding Townsend, even though it came off rather cold and condescending.

Edited February 5, 2017 by peggy06
Spelling

[TaurusRose]

On 2/5/2017 at 0:11 AM, peggy06 said:

I am having a major problem with Matt Smith. He has this tick of dropping his head to one side and looking up, that gets on my nerves. Poor casting for Philip, in my opinion. I have some difficulty with Claire Foy because I know well what Elizabeth looked like, and she doesn't resemble QE very much. She has the voice down, but her demeanor seems too free-and-easy. I think QE would have been more reserved, even as Princess Elizabeth. The scenes with Elizabeth and Philip seem too modern to me. 

At the moment, I'm having a bit of hot and cold reaction to Matt Smith's Philip.  Sometimes he doesn't seem very attractive and at other times he really does. But for me, it's a minor quibble because I didn't think the real QEII & Philip were particularly super attractive young people either. IMO, the actors' appearances (and I'm talking about all of them) isn't really the thing, it's the essence of the people they are portraying that I need to buy into and none of them are failing in this area.  I think Claire Foy is nailing it.  She is so reserved and aloof in the various situations she finds herself in that at times I'm taken aback.  But at the same time I can empathize with the enormous shock and burden she must be feeling. I'm not sure what scenes you're referring to between Elizabeth and Philip that seem too modern to you, but for me their private moments have been pitch perfect.

Edited February 8, 2017 by taurusrose