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A few thoughts about Season 3 of #TheCrown
There is a lot of dramatic license and speculation about conversations behind closed doors in this season. IMO, some of the fictionalizations are effective (the touching interview with Princess Alice)others are bizarre(The Mountbatten coup, Wallis Simpson advising Prince Charles)
My favorite performances in S3 of #TheCrown were Erin Doherty as Princess Anne and Jane Lapotaire as Princess Alice - Lapotaire has had many royal roles. She portrayed Eleanor of Aquitaine in The Devil's Crown, Mary I in Lady Jane, and Dowager Empress Marie in Edward the King.
In my view Season 3 of #thecrown covered too much ground, too quickly - a season devoted to 1964 to 1970 and another season devoted to 1970 to 1977 would have provided more opportunities to portray the changing times and the relationships between the characters.
In my Canadian opinion, too much time was devoted to Anglo-American relations in Season 3 of #TheCrown - a whole episode about Princess Margaret in the USA for example. In contrast to Seasons 1&2, the Commonwealth was almost entirely absent from Season 3 - a major oversight.
There were some fascinating Canadian royal tours in the 1960s&70s- 1964 where the Queen faced protesters in Quebec, Expo 67, 1970 when the Queen, Prince Philip, Charles&Anne toured the Arctic Circle & the 1976 Montreal Olympics where Anne competed. All are missing from #TheCrown
There's a strong emphasis in Season 3 of #TheCrown on older men contemplating their lives&legacies -Prince Philip, Mountbatten, Duke of Windsor. This focus came at the expense of the younger generation-Charles doesn't appear until Ep 6&his relationship with Camilla is undeveloped
Princess Anne should have had her own episode in #TheCrown - I was shocked that her kidnapping attempt, participation in equestrian events in the 1976 Montreal Olympics (with her parents and 3 brothers present) and 1st marriage to Mark Phillips in 1973 were all left out.
There was a lot of social change in the 1960s&1970s and #thecrown captures the some of the labour unrest & global interest in the moon landing. There are finally some female politicians at the table in the cabinet scenes - nice to see Barbara Castle make an appearance.
Since there are three generations of royal women #TheCrown, it would have been interesting to see them discussing changing roles of women & second wave feminism in the 1960s &1970s-would have liked more scenes with the female characters interacting with each other more generally.
There were some inconsistent characterizations between Seasons of #TheCrown - In Season 3,The Duke of Windsor is portrayed as a lost soul who just wanted to be with the woman he loved. In Season 2, he was a deeply unpleasant character, completely self-centered&disloyal to UK.
I feel that #theCrown never quite gets the Queen Mum's character right in any of its 3 seasons (my grandmother agrees with me on this one!) The Queen Mother had a profound influence on the upbringing and interests of her grandson Prince Charles and that's missing from the series.
The most interesting and complicated relationship in Season 3 of the #TheCrown? -England and Wales. The Aberfan episode was deeply moving and it was interesting to imagine how Prince Charles would have engaged with Welsh language,history&nationalism during his time in Aberystwyth
Jeff Edwards, who was the last child to be rescued alive after the Aberfan disaster has challenged the portrayal of the Queen in the Aberfan episode of #TheCrown, recalling “She did show outward emotion" during her visit to Aberfan. https://www.radiotimes.com/news/2019-11-18/the-crown-aberfan-real-life/
My favourite episode was the one about the Prince of Wales's Investiture because I have written about the history that inspired that episode (see attached) and I have visited both Aberystwyth (one of my favourite places in the world) and Caernarfon Castle. https://www.historyextra.com/period/20th-century/charles-prince-wales-investiture-caernarfon-castle-50-years-welsh-nationalism-what-happened/
The least interesting relationship in S3 of #TheCrown. Princess Margaret&Roddy Llewellyn. Instead,should have been more time spent developing relationship between Charles&Camilla(there must have been more to it than cheering at polo,laughing at his jokes&smoking in the bathtub)!
#TheCrown often presents the view that royalty who are not the Queen have comparatively empty lives but Prince Philip & Princess Margaret both undertook extensive Commonwealth tours in 1960s&1970s(lots of independence ceremonies)and had a lot of interesting philanthropic projects
Final observation-the whole process of decolonization(& some of those independence ceremonies attended by members of the royal family) should have received attention in Season 3 of #TheCrown -would have served as important counterpoint to Mountbatten reciting the Road to Mandalay
I look forward to the next Season of #TheCrown - whether I agree or disagree with the series' choices, I am delighted that the series is providing the opportunity to talk about royal history and how Queen Elizabeth II&her family are portrayed in 21st century historical fiction.
ICYMI: An article I wrote for @qz back in 2017 when #TheCrown first premiered on Netflix - "The hit Netflix series “The Crown” exposes all our 21st-century anxieties about powerful women" https://qz.com/897012/the-hit-netflix-series-the-crown-exposes-all-our-21st-century-anxieties-about-powerful-women/
