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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Prince Charles in The Crown

119 replies

CardoMondo · 07/12/2020 22:34

Ok I know it’s fictional (supposedly) but my god why did they make Charles so dippy and gormless?! I’m on season 3 - Charles is a young man but acts like a bloody 3 year old, all the OTT excitement and hand flapping inbetween looking worried and confused all the time ... most of the characters seem pretty true to their “real like counterparts” but Charles? Surely he wasn’t like this in real life? I can’t stand him! He comes across as a total idiot! (In the drama that is)

AIBU to think the writers really did the dirty on Charles in this?

OP posts:
shivermetimbers77 · 10/12/2020 00:21

I had to stop watching season 4 of the Crown halfway through as it just made me so uncomfortable. I loved the first two seasons, but now they are setting up this overly simplistic ‘goodies and baddies’ story, which sanctifies Diana and leaves Charles and Camilla looking evil. So much of it is made up for drama, but presented as if it is truth . They had an opportunity to present a nuanced tale, with everybody realistically human but flawed. Instead, they took the easy route.

ElephantWhaleRabbit · 10/12/2020 00:48

I thought he came across sympathetically in series 3 but in series 4 he's just awful. However, it is a fictional portrayal.

Frownette · 10/12/2020 00:49

I haven't seen the Crown but I got the impression IRL Prince Charles has relaxed into himself and feels like his own person.

Ironically enough when Diana was doing the Bashir interview and saying something along the lines of there were three people in this marriage, there still are, only she's gone physically.

ElephantWhaleRabbit · 10/12/2020 00:49

@shivermetimbers77

I had to stop watching season 4 of the Crown halfway through as it just made me so uncomfortable. I loved the first two seasons, but now they are setting up this overly simplistic ‘goodies and baddies’ story, which sanctifies Diana and leaves Charles and Camilla looking evil. So much of it is made up for drama, but presented as if it is truth . They had an opportunity to present a nuanced tale, with everybody realistically human but flawed. Instead, they took the easy route.
Charles comes across badly but I don't agree that it sanctifies Diana. Essentially they were two people utterly unsuited for one another.
TheWichitaWineOne · 10/12/2020 01:00

I cannot stand the royal family and can't wait for the ridiculous parade of overindulged, privileged crap to come to an end...but an acquaintance I have a fair bit of admiration for, is a friend of Charles.

He didn't expect to like him, but they became friends. Acquaintance doesn't say much about Charles (I don't exactly ask), but did say years ago that he tries hard to be a good person, and is always trying to improve himself.

Who knows? Just chucking in 'my Charles story' along with the rest :)

fallfallfall · 10/12/2020 01:03

the fictional portrayal of season four is harsh.

the fact both were married and cheating was nauseating and really set back my view of them (which was poor back in the day but slightly forgotten at this point).
cheaters are sleazy loosers royaty or not. and it will be another decade before i forget it again.

Frownette · 10/12/2020 01:04

@ElephantWhaleRabbit different people, different expectations and life views, age and life differences.

At least they had two lovely sons. I think he did love her really.

Manolinette · 10/12/2020 01:18

Charles IRL has a memory like an elephant. He is interested in real life stories and humanities. He actually does care about what goes on. Very intelligent man.

KarmaNoMore · 10/12/2020 01:31

Something that I find interesting is that with news about the royal family being someway limited in the UK, people get to know less of their royal family than in other countries where information about them is not controlled.

I don’t know about Charles being a mummy’s boy, but mostly every other piece of royal family nastiness shown in the series adheres to what has been reported about them abroad in the last 40 years.

ChestnutStuffing · 10/12/2020 04:11

@shivermetimbers77

I had to stop watching season 4 of the Crown halfway through as it just made me so uncomfortable. I loved the first two seasons, but now they are setting up this overly simplistic ‘goodies and baddies’ story, which sanctifies Diana and leaves Charles and Camilla looking evil. So much of it is made up for drama, but presented as if it is truth . They had an opportunity to present a nuanced tale, with everybody realistically human but flawed. Instead, they took the easy route.
Yes, I didn't stop watching it, but I agree agree the story became flatter.
wellthatsunusual · 10/12/2020 04:14

I think if you watch series 4 in isolation it makes Charles look like a villain. If you watch all the other series first, he does look much more human but flawed. Diana just looks immature, when in reality she had many more character flaws than that.

I was at school and doing A level history when Charles and Diana separated. I remember our history teacher remarking that he was probably the first male heir to the throne in history where the public had an expectation that he should be faithful to his wife, and that historically people didn't really expect it, because it was accepted that royal marriages were about suitable partners politically, not about love. The marriage was about the line of succession, not about a personal relationship. It always stuck with me.

CockleburIck · 10/12/2020 08:08

@wellthatsunusual

I think if you watch series 4 in isolation it makes Charles look like a villain. If you watch all the other series first, he does look much more human but flawed. Diana just looks immature, when in reality she had many more character flaws than that.

I was at school and doing A level history when Charles and Diana separated. I remember our history teacher remarking that he was probably the first male heir to the throne in history where the public had an expectation that he should be faithful to his wife, and that historically people didn't really expect it, because it was accepted that royal marriages were about suitable partners politically, not about love. The marriage was about the line of succession, not about a personal relationship. It always stuck with me.

Wasn’t Charles once quoted as having joked:

“Am I to be the only prince of Wales not allowed a mistress?”

Yes, indeed, expectations used to be different for Royals; people expect them to behave themselves like normal people these days.

HagenDaz · 10/12/2020 08:36

Apparently Diana DID commission the video of herself re-enacting the Phantom of the Opera song. Andrew Lloyd Webber was in the theatre.

I would be mortified if my DH did this for my wedding anniversary. I asked DH what he thought and he loved the idea so horses for courses.

I have met PA IRL and he is a knob.

The actor who plays Charles says that he stoops to symbolise how Charles bears the weight of the world on his shoulders.

TheKeatingFive · 10/12/2020 08:44

I think if you watch series 4 in isolation it makes Charles look like a villain. If you watch all the other series first, he does look much more human but flawed.

I agree with this. The previous seasons showed how this monster materialised.

I think the actor is absolutely excellent, right up there with very best on this show. The standard of acting on The Crown is mindblowingly good.

CakeRequired · 10/12/2020 09:31

It is just fiction, you have to remember that. Hell in season 4, from what Camilla says to Charles, essentially she won't and can't be with him publically while Diana lives, otherwise Camilla will always lose to her and look like the bad one, and she rightfully doesn't want to be hated. They have basically set it up so that Charles has a hand in Diana's death to get what he wants, Camilla. Obviously (or rather hopefully because we'll never know), that's not true. But it's what they are doing from the looks of it.

TheKeatingFive · 10/12/2020 09:39

It is just fiction, you have to remember that.

Yes and no. A lot of what’s covered is based on things that actually happened. They’ll also have lawyers to hand to ensure they aren’t libelling, so they will be being careful.

DynamoKev · 10/12/2020 09:42

@Ferrari458

And here is a demonstration of how people can be influenced in real life by fictional depictions on TV. This series has given 1,000's of people the impression that they now actually know, for a fact, what goes on behind closed doors in the royal family. The news is - they don't.
^This
GetOffYourHighHorse · 10/12/2020 09:43

'It is just fiction, you have to remember that. '

In which case they should have changed names and hairdos. To copy everything from their clothes to their mannerisms, to re-enact actual real life events but then say the rest is made up is just bollocks. Strangely how the made up stuff is the anti monarchy stuff.

Imagine the hoo ha if they had a modern day one portraying Harry's behaviour very negatively, I don't think the 'It's just a drama silly!' would wash then.

DynamoKev · 10/12/2020 09:49

@TheKeatingFive

It is just fiction, you have to remember that.

Yes and no. A lot of what’s covered is based on things that actually happened. They’ll also have lawyers to hand to ensure they aren’t libelling, so they will be being careful.

You can't libel dead people so they can do any lines they want about Thatcher and Diana.

The Royals aren't going to sue over untruths in a series like that as they have too much to lose.

It's one of the drawbacks of being a Royal that people can make up all sorts of shit about you and you can't really stop them..

So you really really can't take The Crown too seriously.

DynamoKev · 10/12/2020 09:52

I actually think it's really well done. A bit like the BBC - everyone will see their own bias reflected. If you don't like the Royals (or Thatcher) you'll see your views reinforced, but the same is true if you have the opposite view.

Bluntness100 · 10/12/2020 09:53

I’ll be controversial but I don’t think his life has been the easiest to be honest. He should have been able to marry who he wished, it would have saved a lot of heartache, and he should have had the balls to say no, but that’s easier said than done I imagine in that environment. To be fair though, someone should have stopped a nineteen year old Diana marrying him when they’d only been on about three dates.

Spending hour whole life, limited in what you can do, ans going through a very unhappy marriage, I think many people can relate. I get he lives a beyond hugely privileged life but I don’t think it’s come without it’s very serious constraints,

My impression now is he is eventually happy and relaxed.

A friend of mine attended a number of closed door social events with him, camilla and both boys, it was via her work, and she said he was a very hands on caring father, the boys clearly very very close to him, and that camilla was fully accepted by them. In fact in their teen years the boys got pissed at one event, as the booze was free flowing, and they had to be ushered out the back, and Charles dealt with it admirably and with humour.

So I don’t think he is quite what he is made out to be, but that for a long time he was unhappy and then quite misjudged.

As for him and camilla, it does seem they stopped seeing each other for a number of years, was it five, before they got back together, but both parties were over the side, the whole marriage was an absolute disaster.

But then they hardly knew each other, they were virtual strangers when they married, and Diana just too young to know what she was getting herself into, although I imagine like most teenagers, she had a rose tinted view on what was to come.

GetOffYourHighHorse · 10/12/2020 09:59

'actually think it's really well done. A bit like the BBC - everyone will see their own bias reflected.'

I think it's actually a bit clumsily done, although the scenery and filming are impressive, but you watch it thinking 'as if!'. I'm not a royal fan in the slightest and watched it more for the 80s nostalgia but it's just so silly, Thatcher going on a shoot or whatever in her best blue suit while they all sniggered at her 🙄.

TheKeatingFive · 10/12/2020 09:59

You can't libel dead people so they can do any lines they want about Thatcher and Diana.

Well I was thinking more about Charles, as he’s the subject of the thread.

The Royals aren't going to sue over untruths in a series like that as they have too much to lose.

I expect they would get involved if there is blatant misrepresentation of something where the facts are well documented. The show is careful though.

So you really really can't take The Crown too seriously.

I don’t think anyone is suggesting it’s gospel truth. However, a lot of Charles’ worst behaviour is already documented. This is just bringing it to a wider audience.

CakeRequired · 10/12/2020 10:06

Imagine the hoo ha if they had a modern day one portraying Harry's behaviour very negatively, I don't think the 'It's just a drama silly!' would wash then.

If you go by the media, they won't have anything about Harry and meghan at all by the time they get there. He's apparently said they can't put them in and he has a contract with Netflix. But it's all hearsay isn't it.

My point was that it's fiction, it's going to be OTT on what the truth actually was. It will follow history to an extent, but it is still a dramatisation. If what someone else said is true, thatcher never even went shooting with the family. So all the humiliation there was just drama. There will a lot more that is just drama.

DynamoKev · 10/12/2020 10:07

I expect they would get involved if there is blatant misrepresentation of something where the facts are well documented.

I don't. They aren't going to air all their dirty linen in public. It's also arguable that they couldn't seriously claim they suffered financially or reputational damage. I expect our "wonderful" press - especially the ones owned by the famously republican Murdoch have told a lot of lies about them over the years - it's not in their interests to challenge as they may end looking worse than the lies portrayed them.

I suspect this is a reason Harry and Megan have stepped out of it - to have a more normal life without being lied about every week in papers.

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