Editor’s Note: This story contains some spoilers about season 5 of “The Crown.”
Some have attacked "The Crown" for portraying fiction as fact.
Drama abounds in Netflix's hugely popular depiction of the life of the contemporary British royal family, perhaps too much for some viewers.
Even before its Wednesday launch, Season 5 generated controversy.
It's because former British Prime Minister Sir John Major claimed that a sequence in the movie depicting him and Prince Charles (played by Dominic West) allegedly discussing a conspiracy to depose Queen Elizabeth while Major was in office was "a bucket load of spiteful nonsense."
Dame Judi Dench, a renowned actress, signed a letter to The Times requesting that Netflix add a disclaimer to the series.
No one believes in artistic freedom more than I do, but this cannot go unopposed, wrote Dench. Despite officially acknowledging last week that The Crown has always been a "fictionalized drama," the show's creators have defied requests to include a disclaimer at the beginning of each episode.
Even while it occasionally spices things up, the series does include some historically accurate material.
Here are some examples of the show's subtle and significant historical references.
Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s marriage misery
Dominic West as Prince Charles and Elizabeth Debicki as Diana in Season 5 of "The Crown."
The cherished royal couple departs on what was supposed to be a romantic vacation, but things don't turn out as planned in the first episode of the series.
Even while we don't know for sure whether little Prince William and Prince Harry supported their mother over their father during family vacation activities, the show does a wonderful job of capturing how sad Princess Diana and later Prince Charles were.
They cover everything, from Andrew Morton's explosive "Diana" book in 1996 (which she helped with behind the scenes) to the embarrassing revelation of then-Prince Charles and his now-wife Camilla's lewd phone chats, which sparked a significant uproar due to their infidelity.
One gets the impression that the couple's actual experience was far more torturous than what is depicted on TV.
The fire at Windsor Castle
Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth II surveys the damage of a devastating fire in "The Crown" Season 5
Queen Elizabeth refers to 1992 as her "annus horribilis" in a speech she gave to commemorate her 40th year on the throne.
1992 is not a year that I will remember with pure joy, she stated.
She had a terrible year in part due to a fire at Windsor Castle that left more than 100 rooms in ruins.
Although there isn't a significant plot involving the fire, a sequence in which Imelda Staunton plays Queen Elizabeth surveys the damage appears to be a metaphor for the problems in her family and, consequently, her country.
The friendship between Prince Phillip and Penny Knatchbull
Jonathan Pryce as Prince Phillip and Natascha McElhone as Penny Knatchbull in Season 5 of "The Crown."
Despite the fact that Penny Knatchbull wed the godson of the Duke of Edinburgh, their friendship went well beyond that.
In the series, Prince Phillip intervenes to assist Knatchbull following a family tragedy, which results in the two of them becoming closer over time.
As a dependable confidante, devoted companion, and "keeper of secrets," she rose to become "the second-most important lady in the Duke of Edinburgh's life." Ingrid Seward penned "Prince Philip Revealed" in 2020.
The much-older Prince Phillip was not romantically involved with Knatchbull, as depicted in "The Crown," but rather they became friends over shared hobbies like carriage riding.
That dress
Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana in the now famous "revenge dress."
Princess Diana appeared in a black, off-the-shoulder Christina Stambolian dress that was dubbed "the revenge dress" after Prince Charles revealed in a 1994 ITN documentary that he had not been faithful to Princess Diana.
Elizabeth Debicki, who is receiving praise for her portrayal of Princess Diana in the musical, recreates the now-iconic incident.
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