number of the royal family have assembled at
England’s ancient Belvoir Castle to re-create
the 1972 funeral of Edward VIII. We do not, of
course, mean the royal family, but the mem-
bers of Britain’s acting royalty who are
portraying the clan in season 3 of Netflix’s The
Crown, which launches Nov. 17 and continues to track the reign of
Queen Elizabeth II. Those present include Outlander alum Tobias
Menzies as Elizabeth’s husband, Prince Philip; Game of Thrones
actor Charles Dance as Philip’s uncle Lord Mountbatten; and Cin-
derella’s fairy godmother Helena Bonham Carter as the Queen’s
sister, Princess Margaret. During a break from shooting last
December, Bonham Carter reflects on a time she met the free spirit
she embodies on the streaming phenomenon. “My uncle was actu-
ally very close to her,” the actress reveals. “She was pretty scary. At
one point, she met me at Windsor Castle and she said, ‘You are get-
ting better, aren’t you?’ ” The princess was referring to Bonham
Carter’s acting abilities. Well, “I presume that’s what she meant.”
Queen Elizabeth herself is portrayed by Olivia Colman. At the
time of EW’s set visit, the actress is already a national treasure
thanks to television roles on Broadchurch, Fleabag, and Peep Show.
But just two months later, she’ll confirm her position as acting
nobility, winning the Oscar for starring as another British mon-
arch, Queen Anne, in The Favourite. Despite her in-demand status,
Colman didn’t play hard to get when she was offered the part of the
Queen for seasons 3 and 4 of the show, which are being shot back-
to-back. “I was incredibly uncool about it,” she says. “The producers
went, ‘So...’ [I said,] ‘Yes! Yes! I’m really excited! Thank you very
much!’ I loved the first two seasons.”
Colman is not alone. Season 1 of The Crown, which covered the
years 1947–55, premiered in November 2016. Part history lesson,
part classiest soap ever, the show breathed vivid life into events
most people knew only from textbooks, if at all. While Netflix has
not released viewing figures, there is no doubt that the first two sea-
sons—the second of which dramatized the years 1956–64—amassed
a large audience obsessed with following the marital difficulties of
Elizabeth and Philip (Claire Foy and Matt Smith) and the romantic
tribulations of Margaret (Vanessa Kirby). Both seasons were nomi-
nated for a hatful of Emmys, with Foy winning for her work on the
second run of shows. But those expecting to see Foy, Smith, and
Kirby in season 3 will be out of luck. Almost the entire cast is new,
which represents a huge gamble on the part of Netflix. How will
fans of the first two seasons feel about the characters being embod-
ied by these different, and older, actors? What is it like for Colman
to play a part so recently portrayed with such award-winning
brilliance? “It’s horrendous,” says the actress. “Everyone loves
Claire Foy, so I have got the worst job in the world at the moment.
You’re saying all the worst things, thanks!”
Uh-oh. Well, at least Colman doesn’t have the power to imprison
pesky journalists in the Tower of London—right?
THE TRUE RULER OF
The Crown is showrunner, and two-time Oscar-nominated screen-
writer, Peter Morgan. Just as the young Elizabeth didn’t imagine she
would wind up becoming queen—that is, until Edward’s abdication
put her next in line to the throne when she was 10 years old—Morgan
never dreamed of becoming the monarch’s most successful
AN
IMPRESSIVE
PAGE Ñ 32
SEPTEMBER 2019
FROM LEFT
HELENA BONHAM
CARTER,
COLMAN, AND
MENZIES
(PHOTO SHOOT) COSTUMES: AMY ROBERTS; HAIR, MAKEUP; CATE HALL
