Michelle and I just finished the second season of The Crown, a Netflix original series that is a dramatic retelling of the life and times of the Queen of England. It stars Claire Foy and Matt Smith as the royal couple.
I don’t normally get down with the hour-long dramas but we’ve loved this. I don’t really know that much about the English Monarchy but I’ve been fascinated by the way they’re telling this story. I thought it was strange that an English production about English history would spend so much time framing the life story of their still-living Queen with the crumbling of the British Empire. It’s probably a testament to how well-written this show is that they can plainly show the poison of Colonialism and the British class system while creating a sympathetic figure in the head of state. A lot of credit has to go to Claire Foy for being able to be this sympathetic character (who really shouldn’t be getting any sympathy). Matt Smith is great as Prince Philip, a character that we both hate on many, many levels.
The 3rd season of the Crown will focus on a different decade of Elizabeth’s reign and will feature different, older actors in the roles. I think filming starts this summer and I’ll definitely make time for it when it drops.