The Tribute Of “the Crown” To Prince Philip

the whole world knows Prince Philip better, this is in part thanks to the success of The Crown, which retraces in a captivating way the saga of Windsor, even if it means taking some liberties with History … And it is quite naturally that the two actors, who in turn embody the Duke of Edinburgh through the ages, took the word to pay tribute to their illustrious model, who died last Thursday at the venerable age of 99 years.

Matt Smith, who plays the young Duke, in the first two seasons, was quick to react in the columns of the Hollywood Reporter by offering his condolences to the royal family, before adding a very personal note. “Prince Philip was the alpha male, and he knew it,” he comments. Over 99 years old, but what tenacity! And what style! Thank you for your dedication, old man, it won’t be the same story without you… ”

For his part, actor Tobias Menzies, who plays the prince in middle age, relied on Shakespeare to salute the memory of the queen’s husband. “If there is one thing I know about the Duke of Edinburgh, it is that he certainly wouldn’t want an actor who played him on television to give his opinion on his life,” he wrote on Twitter, knowing the prince’s mistrust of showbiz. “So I’ll let Shakespeare take care of it …” And to quote a passage from the play As you would like : “O good old man! That you are a faithful image of those steadfast servants of the olden days… ”, referring to the Duke’s unwavering loyalty to the Queen and the British crown for three quarters of a century.

Annoyed by some scenes

Prince Philip has never communicated on the famous series which romances the life of Windsor. But we know that the Palace appreciates very moderately the setting in scene, which skillfully mixes official events and pure fiction, thus accrediting the historical side of the saga.

In the first episodes, the Duke of Edinburgh appears in many facets, sometimes adventurer, macho, seducer, imbued with himself, so many portraits that would have annoyed him. According to indiscretions reported in the press, he would not have really appreciated seeing the accidental death of his sister mentioned in one of the episodes, as well as his tense relationship with his son Charles, then a teenager, presenting him as an insensitive father …

In an interview with The Observer, actor Matt Smith told that one of his friends, big bonnet of the film industry, had met at a dinner with the royal couple. At the end of the evening, he couldn’t help but ask the Duke about the series: “Philip, I just wonder, because I have friends who created The Crown, have you ever watched an episode? And Philip replied, with murderous black eyes: “Don’t be ridiculous!” Apparently a misplaced question, on a delicate subject …

Since the beginning of the series, Buckingham has always made it clear that this was in no way a command from the palace, that the Windsors were absolutely not “involved” in the making of the fiction and that ‘they would “never give their opinion” on the accuracy of its content. The fact remains that several members of the royal family have watched episodes, including Queen Elizabeth II herself, however finding the style too “melodramatic”, an opinion that her husband undoubtedly shared. A consolation for the queen: the prince’s last days will not be the subject of a scene in the series, which decided to stop in the 2000s, after six seasons. Unless…