S02.E02: A Company of Men

[formerlyfreedom]

 

Quote

Elizabeth feels disconnected from Philip. Eden copes with international pressure and ill health. An interview stirs up harrowing memories for Philip.

 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Ha, I'm glad that the waitress at the Thursday Club got that letter from Mike and gave it to his wife! As she said, their trip was a five month stag party.

[Helena Dax]

I'm surprised the "boys" didn't make a contest to see who had the longest dick. Nah, I'm joking, I'm sure they did it off-screen. I wonder if this is/was the ultimate male fantasy, at least for some kind of men. The "golden age" some of them are missing. You know, freedom, sports, jokes, and no women around unless they're beautiful and it's sex time.  I don't think it's a coincidence that the other men-only place we saw was the club, which was operating under the same mentality. 

I must say, though, that Philip did a very nice thing when he insisted in taking that guy home. And I felt a bit sorry for him when the journalist started asking him all those painful questions. Just a bit, though, because that wouldn't have happened if he had seen a journalist instead of a sex object.

[Mindthinkr]

Between taking the man lost at sea home to Tonga and the sharpness of the female journalist, I think that Philip had an epiphany about his own marriage and what he wanted in life. That said his lothario ways were deep seeded. After the history of his family being taken away from him, as a child he didn't really have a strong sense of belonging and love. Lust and passion substituted. I think he was just starting to think about it (real love and family) when his friends divorce came about and shed light on their antics on the ship. That began to shatter his relationship with his wife and put his security at risk once again. 

[biakbiak]

With the beard, Matt Smith can play Harry in any upcoming pic about his relationship!

[Blakeston]

I found the scene with the reporter extremely hard to swallow. It would be bizarre nowadays for a journalist to be so aggressive and harsh when given a one-on-one interview with such a high-ranking member of the royal family. Never mind back then!

She felt like a plot device to squeeze in some juicy details about Philip's past, and to make us feel sorry for him. And honestly, I didn't feel sorry for him at all. Not after seeing the way that he and his pals forced the native peoples in the British colonies to participate in "Olympics" featuring sports they'd never heard of.

[ProudMary]

I hadn't been bowled over by Matt Smith's performance prior to this episode, but I thought he was excellent here in an episode where the focus was on him.

I loved the use of Elizabeth's note left in his briefcase.  The first time Philip reads the note, I believe he sees it annoyingly as a warning, a guideline she's setting for his behavior, "Don't forget you have a family."   Then, after the interview with the journalist where she opens old wounds of the broken family of his youth and the ensuing homesickness it awakens, he looks at the note differently.  "Don't forget you have a family;" a place where you are loved, missed and where you belong.  Nicely done, show.

[dubbel zout]

1 hour ago, ProudMary said:

I loved the use of Elizabeth's note left in his briefcase.  The first time Philip reads the note, I believe he sees it annoyingly as a warning, a guideline she's setting for his behavior, "Don't forget you have a family."   Then, after the interview with the journalist where she opens old wounds of the broken family of his youth and the ensuing homesickness it awakens, he looks at the note differently.  "Don't forget you have a family;" a place where you are loved, missed and where you belong.  Nicely done, show.

That was great. I also liked how unexpectedly moved he was by Elizabeth's opening remarks in her Christmas address. I don't think the real Philip is all that introspective, but I can buy something like this meaning something.

It cracked me up that Eden is trying to weasel out of the Suez crisis/political debacle—that he created!—by claiming it's his doctor's orders that he (Eden) move to JAMAICA. Okay, Tony. (Insert Jennifer Lawrence "okay" gif here.) Elizabeth's reply to that was tremendous.

[WatchrTina]

Does anyone know WHY Britannia went to Antarctica? Did they pay a visit to the staff at the research stations?  That would make sense -- December is the summer in the southern hemisphere and that's when most Antarctic research stations are manned.  Otherwise it seems an odd place to go and the entirely wrong direction for a homeward cruise to Great Britain.

Loved the episode again.  The show is just . . . delicious.  Like really good chocolate.

Edited December 10, 2017 by WatchrTina

[SeanC]

On 12/8/2017 at 7:39 PM, Helena Dax said:

I must say, though, that Philip did a very nice thing when he insisted in taking that guy home.

The yacht captain had, in addition, really bad PR sense.  Rescuing some poor schmoe and turning the royal yacht around to take him home would be the sort of thing the royal household would turn into a great feelgood news story.

5 hours ago, Blakeston said:

I found the scene with the reporter extremely hard to swallow. It would be bizarre nowadays for a journalist to be so aggressive and harsh when given a one-on-one interview with such a high-ranking member of the royal family. Never mind back then!

Yeah, I didn't buy that either.  You'd almost have to assume she's not a very good journalist, given how aggressively she antagonizes him.  Landing a sitdown, exclusive interview with the Duke of Edinburgh would be a huge, huge deal; nobody would go into that expecting him to talk about politics, either, because the royal family categorically doesn't do that.

[PRgal]

1 hour ago, SeanC said:

The yacht captain had, in addition, really bad PR sense.  Rescuing some poor schmoe and turning the royal yacht around to take him home would be the sort of thing the royal household would turn into a great feelgood news story.

Yeah, I didn't buy that either.  You'd almost have to assume she's not a very good journalist, given how aggressively she antagonizes him.  Landing a sitdown, exclusive interview with the Duke of Edinburgh would be a huge, huge deal; nobody would go into that expecting him to talk about politics, either, because the royal family categorically doesn't do that.

And that thing was being recorded, right?  She could be fired for breaking protocol like that, no?

[LilWharveyGal]

This show can certainly be counted upon for staggeringly beautiful location shots.

And oh hi, Mr. Wickham!  You got old!

[Scarlett45]

19 hours ago, SeanC said:

The yacht captain had, in addition, really bad PR sense.  Rescuing some poor schmoe and turning the royal yacht around to take him home would be the sort of thing the royal household would turn into a great feelgood news story.

Yeah, I didn't buy that either.  You'd almost have to assume she's not a very good journalist, given how aggressively she antagonizes him.  Landing a sitdown, exclusive interview with the Duke of Edinburgh would be a huge, huge deal; nobody would go into that expecting him to talk about politics, either, because the royal family categorically doesn't do that.

I assumed the interview with the journalist was a plot contrivance for an exposition dump- basically so that we could learn more about Phillip’s past. 

[rozen]

On 12/9/2017 at 2:24 PM, Blakeston said:

I found the scene with the reporter extremely hard to swallow. It would be bizarre nowadays for a journalist to be so aggressive and harsh when given a one-on-one interview with such a high-ranking member of the royal family. Never mind back then!

She felt like a plot device to squeeze in some juicy details about Philip's past, and to make us feel sorry for him. And honestly, I didn't feel sorry for him at all. Not after seeing the way that he and his pals forced the native peoples in the British colonies to participate in "Olympics" featuring sports they'd never heard of.

Considering how little respect female reporters had back then, I can buy one going literally for broke at such a rare opportunity. If literally all you have to look forward is another few decades of men staring at your ass while you try to do your job, why the hell not try to push some answers out of the biggest cad of them all?

[Primetimer]

In which Prince Philip goes on emotional walkabout, and also makes terrible facial-hair choices.

View the full article

[teddysmom]

I found myself comparing Phillip to Don Draper. He had such a fucked up childhood that as an adult he didn't know how to behave in a real family. And I believe some of the acting out came from his feeling that Elizabeth broke her promises to him, about the Mountbatten name and living at Clarence House, as it seemed in the first season they were a lot happier until she started caving every time Churchill or that awful Tommy LaScelles told her she shouldn't do something. It's good that we see what they both felt were betrayals, not excusing his cheating and taking off all the time, but look at even Margaret, who grew up in the family, and when Elizabeth wouldn't allow her to marry Townsend, she went a little crazy too.

[Blakeston]

14 hours ago, rozen said:

Considering how little respect female reporters had back then, I can buy one going literally for broke at such a rare opportunity. If literally all you have to look forward is another few decades of men staring at your ass while you try to do your job, why the hell not try to push some answers out of the biggest cad of them all?

It would have been awesome if she had challenged him on his caddishness. But instead she chose to challenge him on his family background - something he has no control over.

If her interview ever saw the light of day (and it almost certainly wouldn't), the end result would be to make Philip appear sympathetic, and the journalist appear unprofessional. Sad to say, it probably would have been seen as evidence that women can't be trusted with high profile assignments.

[laurakaye]

On 12/9/2017 at 7:09 PM, WatchrTina said:

Loved the episode again.  The show is just . . . delicious.  Like really good chocolate.

Oh my goodness, it sure is.  I find it takes me about 90 minutes to watch one episode because I'm constantly rewinding to catch a scene two or three times over...sometimes it's just to clarify what's being said but lots of times it's because Claire Foy's facial expressions are just fantastic.

 

1 hour ago, teddysmom said:

I found myself comparing Phillip to Don Draper. 

Excellent comparison.

And can I just say, "YAY for full recaps!"  However, I've quickly learned that sipping tea while reading the recap is a potential choking hazard (sucking on the binky of his own emasculation might be the best phrase I have read in my whole life).

[greekmom]

On 12/9/2017 at 7:09 PM, WatchrTina said:

Does anyone know WHY Britannia went to Antarctica? Did they pay a visit to the staff at the research stations?  That would make sense -- December is the summer in the southern hemisphere and that's when most Antarctic research stations are manned.  Otherwise it seems an odd place to go and the entirely wrong direction for a homeward cruise to Great Britain.

Loved the episode again.  The show is just . . . delicious.  Like really good chocolate.

Didn't Elizabeth say to the kids something along the lines of someone royal needs to check on these remote places from time to time to let them know that they still matter and not to revolt? 

If anyone remembers - what was the ballerina's name? (the one that Phillip had a photo of?) Thanks

[andromeda331]

4 hours ago, PreviouslyTV said:

In which Prince Philip goes on emotional walkabout, and also makes terrible facial-hair choices.

View the full article

That was awesome! 

[fieldpoppy]

Fantastic recap -- appreciating these so much because then I can really SAVOUR the show when I gulped the whole series far too quickly.

[kaygeeret]

So happy so see full commentary on episodes. This was very well.

When well done the articles have always helped me focus and sometimes go back and rewatch..... and this was well done

SOOOOOOOO HAPPY to have the recaps back!

[Humbugged]

On 12/9/2017 at 2:19 PM, biakbiak said:

With the beard, Matt Smith can play Harry in any upcoming pic about his relationship!

Harry is Phillip's double with the beard

[doodlebug]

On ‎12‎/‎11‎/‎2017 at 0:29 PM, greekmom said:

Didn't Elizabeth say to the kids something along the lines of someone royal needs to check on these remote places from time to time to let them know that they still matter and not to revolt? 

If anyone remembers - what was the ballerina's name? (the one that Phillip had a photo of?) Thanks

Galina Ullanova, a real person.  She did tour Britain around the time the story takes place but there's no evidence that she and Phillip ever had an affair.

[Lorna Mae]

That reporter looked a lot like Diana.

[Clanstarling]

On 12/9/2017 at 7:37 PM, PRgal said:

And that thing was being recorded, right?  She could be fired for breaking protocol like that, no?

IIRC, they said she was Australian (though her accent didn't bear that out) - which is not to say she wasn't breaking protocol. But they might be a touch more in your face in general. 

On 12/11/2017 at 9:29 AM, greekmom said:

Didn't Elizabeth say to the kids something along the lines of someone royal needs to check on these remote places from time to time to let them know that they still matter and not to revolt? 

Now, that's what I'd like to see - the revolt of the penguins!

I wasn't looking forward to a Phillip centric episode, but Matt Smith really pulled it off. I haven't been that impressed by him in any role (and stopped watching Doctor Who while he was doctor), but I very much liked this one. 

I thought it was mildly amusing that the waitress, who admitted to the affair with Phillip's secretary/best friend, slut shamed (to use the current expression) the other women who also fell for his charms.

Speaking of expressions, there were a couple that seemed anachronistic (what happens on the...tour?...stays on the tour, and another I forget now).

Edited December 13, 2017 by Clanstarling

[Rinaldo]

11 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

Speaking of expressions, there were a couple that seemed anachronistic (what happens on the...tour?...stays on the tour, and another I forget now).

There have been several like this (in various episode) -- pretty obvious turns of phrase that everybody knows have become popular more recently. I think of British TV as being usually scrupulous about that sort of thing. I can actually overlook "What happens in X stays in X" as something that anyone with a gift for vivid phrases might make up, as it was supposed to be a big proclamation. But there were incidental ones like the introductory "Hopefully" (which was novel enough in the 1960s for a lot of people to object to it) and "He's all about [some quality]" which I think of as post-1990 or thereabouts. Obviously any history enactment will be translated, so to speak, into the language of our time, but bits like those do stick out.

[WatchrTina]

On another historical show I love (Outlander) they have to work even harder to keep verbal anachronisms out of the mouths of their actors.  One person involved in the show does a global search for the word "okay" each time he's sent an electronic draft of a new script.  The most he has found (and excised) is seven in one go.

[Inquisitionist]

On 12/9/2017 at 9:37 PM, LilWharveyGal said:

And oh hi, Mr. Wickham!  You got old!

Ah, I thought the vice admiral looked familiar.  Thanks!

On 12/11/2017 at 8:45 AM, teddysmom said:

I found myself comparing Phillip to Don Draper. He had such a fucked up childhood that as an adult he didn't know how to behave in a real family. 

Nice.

[andromeda331]

I keep forgetting to ask this question that came up reading the recap. Would the lunch club be laughing and thrilled at the idea of their Queen's Husband off having affairs? Or did they just assume that was Mike and not Philip? 

[irisheyes]

On 12/12/2017 at 0:35 PM, Humbugged said:

Harry is Phillip's double with the beard

Guess that lays to rest the theory that Charles isn’t Harry’s father. 

[Clanstarling]

19 minutes ago, andromeda331 said:

I keep forgetting to ask this question that came up reading the recap. Would the lunch club be laughing and thrilled at the idea of their Queen's Husband off having affairs? Or did they just assume that was Mike and not Philip? 

I do assume they think it's both of them. They are Phillip's friends, and I doubt they examine the issue any further than "hey, he's getting laid by lots of women, I wish I were there." I don't think she's any more than a concept to them, not their sovereign, just another wife to be escaped from when possible. Perhaps they do get a little bit of a thrill if a glancing thought that his wife is the Queen crosses their guttered minds.

Edited December 15, 2017 by Clanstarling

[WatchrTina]

In British history noblemen having affairs or even long-standing relationships with "other" women is a common occurrence.  Any bastard children they fathered would be no threat to their position. Noblewomen, on the other hand, faced an entirely different situation. Having an affaire with the Queen or the Princess of Wales is, I believe, still considered an act of treason because by doing so a man might slip his bastard child into the line of succession to the throne. 

So it doesn't surprise me that Phillip's fellow club-members would not be at all fussed at hearing rumors of his infidelity to the Queen while on his tour. 

[dubbel zout]

It's not the child they were worried about being slipped in. ;-)

[Humbugged]

1 hour ago, irisheyes said:

Guess that lays to rest the theory that Charles isn’t Harry’s father. 

His resemblance to young Phillip is one of the reasons he is the Queen's favourite.

 

The red hair comes from the Spencer side  .His cousin on the left is his fat double

 

Edited December 16, 2017 by Humbugged

[dustoffmom]

Fat double!

How delightfully snarky!  :)

[dubbel zout]

Diana's eldest sister, Sarah, is a redhead.

[Cirien]

On ‎13‎/‎12‎/‎2017 at 2:28 PM, Clanstarling said:

IIRC, they said she was Australian (though her accent didn't bear that out) - which is not to say she wasn't breaking protocol. But they might be a touch more in your face in general. 

Now, that's what I'd like to see - the revolt of the penguins!

I wasn't looking forward to a Phillip centric episode, but Matt Smith really pulled it off. I haven't been that impressed by him in any role (and stopped watching Doctor Who while he was doctor), but I very much liked this one. 

I thought it was mildly amusing that the waitress, who admitted to the affair with Phillip's secretary/best friend, slut shamed (to use the current expression) the other women who also fell for his charms.

Speaking of expressions, there were a couple that seemed anachronistic (what happens on the...tour?...stays on the tour, and another I forget now).

IIRC what we would consider the modern Australian accent, didn't really develop until mid ( I want to say) 1950's it's entirely possible most journalists would have had a standard RP accent  in Australia 

[jumper sage]

nothing to see here.

Edited December 18, 2017 by jumper sage

[Jeeves]

1 hour ago, jumper sage said:

I loved the fact that the little Parker girl is Camilla, now married to Charles.

Except, that she's not. Taking this over to the "History Talk: The British Monarchy" topic. 

Edited December 16, 2017 by Jeeves

[DHDancer]

On 12/15/2017 at 7:07 PM, Cirien said:

IIRC what we would consider the modern Australian accent, didn't really develop until mid ( I want to say) 1950's it's entirely possible most journalists would have had a standard RP accent  in Australia 

I can confirm this.  Upwardly mobile/positioned people actively learned NOT to speak with an Australian accent but with a BBC or Queen's English accent (I was so instructed as an Australian Army officer's daughter).

I thought the interview was granted because they wanted to infer Phillip was physically attracted to the woman (hence the camera's lovingly lingering over her body as she leaned over to set up her equipment.  And that the nature of her questions totally turned him off.

[dleighg]

On 12/15/2017 at 1:21 PM, Inquisitionist said:

Ah, I thought the vice admiral looked familiar.  Thanks!

On 12/11/2017 at 9:45 AM, teddysmom said:

What scenes was he in? I want to go back and look and I'm not recalling who the "vice admiral" was

[Inquisitionist]

4 hours ago, dleighg said:

What scenes was he in? I want to go back and look and I'm not recalling who the "vice admiral" was

The guy in charge of the ship, who tells Philip they can't detour to return the man found at sea to his home.  He has a fuller face than in his Wickham days, but still handsome.

[dleighg]

24 minutes ago, Inquisitionist said:

The guy in charge of the ship, who tells Philip they can't detour to return the man found at sea to his home.  He has a fuller face than in his Wickham days, but still handsome.

Thank you! I would never ever have recognized him, and I am a big fan of that P&P production! (though not of Mr Wickham!)

[Inquisitionist]

28 minutes ago, dleighg said:

Thank you! I would never ever have recognized him, and I am a big fan of that P&P production! (though not of Mr Wickham!)

 

You're welcome!  But once you know it's him, you can see the similarity, right?

[dleighg]

12 minutes ago, Inquisitionist said:

You're welcome!  But once you know it's him, you can see the similarity, right?

just barely, when he had his head tilted in certain ways such as this pose

[Cara]

On 12/16/2017 at 6:46 AM, jumper sage said:

I loved the fact that the little Parker girl is Camilla, now married to Charles.

I know others have corrected you already. But I am curious what gave that mistaken  impression. Was it something in the episode?

Edited December 18, 2017 by Cara

[dleighg]

6 hours ago, Cara said:

I know others have corrected you already. But I am curious what gave that mistaken  impression. Was it something in the episode?

I'm not the OP but I'm guessing it's because Camilla's former married name was Parker Bowles? But Parker was not her maiden name. It was part of her first husband's double last name.

[Cara]

5 hours ago, dleighg said:

I'm not the OP but I'm guessing it's because Camilla's former married name was Parker Bowles? But Parker was not her maiden name. It was part of her first husband's double last name.

Parker is a very common surname. It’s no big deal. I was just wondering if it had been implied (wrongly) on the show somehow.

[JessDVD]

I did immediately say "Wait, Parker? As in Camilla Parker Bowles? Is Parker her maiden name?" but a quick Wikipedia informed me that was incorrect. Would have been kind of cool, but oh well.