In 2017, Netflix created a new show titled The Crown. Since its release, it has become one of Netflix’s most successful shows. The show follows the life of Queen Elizabeth II. It includes moments from her life right before she became the Queen to many of the hardships she has faced during her reign. The show not only focuses on the Queen, but also on the people surrounding her and how ties to the monarchy affect their lives.
While it is not a very binge-able show given that most episodes are around an hour long, the show is still very captivating and worth a watch. I first stumbled across the show last year – it kept on coming up on my recommendations but I never gave it any attention. I decided to give it a chance, but I was expecting a very slow-moving show. Boy, was I wrong! Each episode stands alone and encompasses a unique storyline. The writers made sure to only include the most attention-grabbing moments in Queen Elizabeth’s reign.
For example, the episode “Vergangenheit” talks about World War II documents that were discovered by American and British historians. These documents exposed that former King Edward who is Queen Elizabeth’s uncle gave the Nazis classified information about the Allied Powers. The Queen was faced with the decision of hiding the documents or letting her people find out the truth.
What I found interesting about this episode was that I had never learned about this before. In all the history classes I have taken in school, no one mentioned that the former king of England helped the Nazis before he abdicated the throne. It was also cool that the end of the episode featured real photographs of King Edward, his wife, and Hitler together at one of their meetings.
Photo Credit: BettMann
Now as mentioned before, The Crown doesn’t just focus on the Queen. One of the most interesting storylines is about Princess Margaret. She is Queen Elizabeth’s younger sister and was branded the rebel in the family. She was known for being fiercely herself and a huge partier. One of her biggest storylines is the fact that she fell in love with a divorced man but she could not marry him. The Church of England bans the marriage to a divorcee if their former spouse is alive.
Photo Credit: Jason Bell / Netflix
The Crown takes you into the heart of Buckingham Palace. If you want a show that will have you hooked with all its twists and turns, then this is the show for you. Not to mention – season three just dropped!
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