Netflix’s The Crown is a fictionalized drama based on Britain’s royal family and their history. The show is rather popular, but with its most recent fourth season it has come under some fire by those who feel it portrays certain real historical figures inaccurately. While the show has always been advertised as a drama inspired by real events, some figures in Britain’s government and royal family feel it has mischaracterized history, and the government’s Culture Minister would like that to be made clearer to viewers.
Oliver Dowden released his statement suggesting that Netflix should add a “health warning” to the show. While he calls The Crown a “beautifully produced work of fiction,” he also admits to concern over misrepresentation: “I fear a generation of viewers who did not live through these events may mistake fiction for fact.” While the show has always taken liberties with real events for the sake of narrative pacing, it would seem that as the show moves into recent history, there is more controversy over how things ought to be depicted.
The two main points of contention are the show’s portrayal of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Princess Diana, both of whom have complicated relationships with their country. Thatcher was the U.K’s first female Prime Minister and held the position for 11 years. While she was and still is popular with U.K. conservatives, many view her policies as unempathetic and even contemptuous of the working class. Princess Diana meanwhile became controversial due to a messy divorce with Prince Charles which became fuel for ravenous gossip and speculation. Only a year after that divorce she was killed during a car accident after being chased by paparazzi.
Several conservative commentators have criticized The Crown‘s portrayal of Thatcher as “hateful” while some figures close to the royal family have complained about the show making a villain out of Prince Charles. What does seem to be certain though, is that the show portrays several interactions and conversations that did not occur in real life, and the amount of influence Queen Elizabeth had on the U.K. government in particular was significantly exaggerated. Basically the show did what it has always done: simplify complicated events for the sake of more dramatic storytelling. Maybe someday there will be consensus on whether The Crown was fair to the real figures involved, but for now it seems the events are still too fresh to be summarized neatly by one season of television.
The Crown is available now to Netflix subscribers.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
![\"IT電腦補習](\"http://itteacheritfreelance.hk/test/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/logo2-2.png\"){kind=logo}
www.itsec.hk
www.itsec.vip
www.itseceu.uk
Leave a Reply