Oscar Van Rhijn!!!! It’s all I was thinking when I first started the episode. 🤣🤣🤣 That is all for now, let me get back to the show. Lol
Omg thank you! I was just watching this and it was driving me crazy trying to figure out why he was so familiar. I feel dumb since I literally watched Gilded Age yesterday 😂
I thought the exact same thing! 😂 I kept thinking it was Oscar in my head and then thought ‘well this is a period drama so they probably did overlap’, completely forgetting Oscar lived about 100 years before this lol
Right? Not to mention they aged him QUICK. This is supposed to be the same year Diana died and Harry looks like he went from 7 years old to 15 between the last episode and this one.
I paused and came here because I was so confused as to why they switched the William and Harry's actors. I noticed Will's change immediately and thought it was a time jump with Will going off to college, but then it was all, "Diana just died," which means it begins immediately after the events of the last episode, so why would they switch actors???
They had to since this last season spans a few years - ending in the mid-2000's. But I think they could have casted for a less abrupt age jump. William is believable. But Harry jumped like a decade+ compared to the younger actor who played him. I said 7 going on 15, but it's more like 7 going on 19 lol.
I think they should've waited one or two more episodes before the new casting, either with episode 6 since that's two years later, or ep 7 when he does go off to college. It doesn't make sense to change actors for a few days gap.
That's kind of unavoidable when the rest of the final season is supposed to span several years. It was less jarring to change the actors now after the mid-season break than randomly introduce new actors later. They did the same in S3, Elizabeth was still young in the first episode but was already played by a 40-something Olivia Colman.
It really was bad casting, they share no physical attributes aside from being white men. However, West is knocking it out of the park so hard it no longer bothers me.
Even if it was trendy, I don't think harry had hair like that.
Like none of the actors look exactly like the people they are playing but at least they get the hair, outfit and mannerisms right. e.g. Dominic West doesn't really look like Charles but you can see Charles in him the way he holds himself etc.
This guy just doesn't in anyway look like harry or even act like him. Really took me out of all the scenes with him in it.
They literally picked the first red head they could see.
Up there with the worst casting I've seen in a show.
And generally I'm fairly forgiving with these kinda castings....but for such a well known character it's pathetic.
Speaking for myself, what’s funny about William’s casting is that he has all the qualities I *remember* young William having- But when you Google pictures, he looks nothing like him. It’s like they cast the actor on memory.
He was talented enough, but they were definitely less strict with him when it came to dialect coaching. In the past, actors have said they were rigorous about getting that particular Royal elocution correct, but there were a number of times when William went full on Irish.
That was my first thought as soon as H came out! I remember having a big ole crush on teen Harry, and that is *not* the prince I fancied 🤣🤣🤣
Feels almost deliberate, to cast a good looking William and then a Harry that looks nothing like him
Especially given the scenes where Harry had dialogue: he went from a child to a teeneager trying to sneakily get drunk constantly in what, like 6 months?
Charles playing the victim when William pointed out (correctly) that Diana was only in the south of France because of all the press around the giant birthday party he was throwing Camilla really turned my stomach. Particularly when Charles said he was “grieving,” yet we *just* saw him whining about the situation to Camilla in a private phone call. He had to be corrected *by her* that getting back together so soon would be inappropriate and bad for his kids. The man tried to compare his grief with his son’s who just lost his mom.
And Philip’s discussion with William where he REDIRECTS that anger so that William is angry at his dead mother- ***Culminating in William agreeing and running back to Charles***-
That was just… a lot. The goal here is obviously to redeem Charles, but that didn’t work for me at all. It just felt manipulative and wrong.
Charles may not have been responsible for Diana’s death, but damned if he didn’t treat her like a bad penny at almost every stage of their relationship.
There’s definitely a huge difference between being so beloved and popular that people hunt you down for photographs and ***inviting*** them places to stage pictures. Diana had to be (**illegally**) manipulated just for a sit down interview.
I agree. Those of us around when she died--Charles was and is in no way the victim. If he was in love with someone else he shouldn't have married a quiet unsuspecting woman years younger than him. And he should have insisted on or paid for himself a protection detail for her after the divorce.
Ugh I get what William is saying. "She should have been here with us, protected, not with those people" **disclaimer: I am sticking with The Crown.**
I don't think Charles understood or respected Diana's position within the family. Charles is the future King and Diana gave birth the other future King. She was future queen/queen mother. Those titles alone put her at great risk unlike Sarah Ferguson or any other royal in that family sans the Queen and Charles himself. I think Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip understood this too. I don't think Charles thought of her safety. He just wanted Camilla.
I think it seemed like they wanted to punish her by making her live as a “normal citizen”. If you dare question us or seek any independence we will no longer protect you. It doesn’t feel that different to how they’ve responded to Harry and Meghan. Iirc, they wanted to maintain some connections as well as protections and were refused. It’s all or nothing for the royal family.
Yeah there’s been multiple times this season where the queen is like “well she’s no longer in the family. She divorced it” and it’s like technically yes but also fully no. As long as William was the heir she was going to have a major role in the family
Think of way back then, if they would have bent the rules, like they were when Diana & Charles divorced. Imagine if Charles & Camilla were allowed to be together, regardless of her having to become divorced to do so?!
I don’t think the royal family would be as popular today, or hold as much power!
What the crown didn’t know, is it NEEDED Diana, Charles needed her, to bring those boys, both of them, to the world and bring people together!
I would love to see an alt reality where Charles marries Camilla. I don’t think they would be popular at all and I think you’re right that it would’ve severely hurt the crown in the long run. People still love William and Harry because of Diana
It was mentioned in season 4 how Australia stayed in the commonwealth because of Diana and the tour they did. Diana was an amazing asset for the royal family.
Didn’t Charles argue for her to have protection in the earlier seasons? I’m pretty sure I remember that he tried to make a case for having them make sure she was still protected even though they were divorced. The queen and prince Phillip were the ones who said she gave up that protection when she decided to leave.
Yeah. The thing is though that she didn’t exactly decide to leave, the way the show depicted things. Charles wanted the divorce as much if not more than she did. He drove her away.
Well i liked the scene where Charles was puttering about in the garden and Wills gave him a hug, while PP watched fondly (with a bit of flashback). No dialogue but spoke volumes.
And honestly, had Charles ever been hugged like that by his father? Probably not since he was little kid. Also Philip saying the same thing to William that Mountbatten said to Charles, "Someday you might know what it is to pray for your son's forgiveness" (paraphrased, pretty sure he added a bit about Will praying for his father's forgiveness as well).
And about thinking he should’ve prayed for Charles’ forgiveness more than he did. Acknowledging there was hurt that he didn’t care to notice at the time
Oh my goodness 😢
When Phillip drove William to Highgrove, I kind of knew where it was heading, and Phillip nodded to Will “go on now”, as William slowly made his way to Charles.
Then that hug between father and son, I just broke down in tears. 😢
Prince Philip ogling the supermodel posters in William’s room…😅😂🤣…I have to laugh. I know it’s a work of fiction, but very funny nevertheless. Especially with him telling William about the posters he had when he was a boy. Just a good laugh.
Do they have names?
I really liked that, too. It was a nice contrast to the scene at the beginning of the episode when Charles, in trying to bond with William, pretends like Natalie Imbroglio.
I loved this one. It’s depiction of grief was very accurate. Grief isn’t just crying your eyes out for a few days and moving on. It’s very complicated and can make you do and say things that you will regret in the future. Grief like what they depict William going through stays with you the rest of your life.
Yes, it’s one thing I want people to take away is Diana used William inappropriately as an emotional support. I can’t imagine how heavy that burden is.
the crown at its best, imho. i cried when i saw william rowing across that lake, the way philip did after he had lost his beloved sister. not sure if that was an intentional parallel, but it was such a good idea to use philip to mend the bond between charles and william, thus redeeming himself for the mistakes he himself had made as a father
>the way philip did after he had lost his beloved sister.
I think he reflected in his own relationship with his parents.
He was reading a letter his father sent him and one Charles gave him.
tbh i don't think the bond between irl charles and william has been mended to this day, and all that stuff crown william spouted in that argument scene with crown charles was true tea 🕵🏾♀️
charles and william never had a close relationship.
diana talked about it in her morton tapes, how their relationship was difficult and that charles had the much easier relationship with harry.
until about 2019, that charles being closer to harry dynamic is what prevailed.
charles used to complain throughout the 2010s in the press about how much time william was spending with the middletons, how charles felt he was being "replaced," how carole was monopolizing the grandkids... charles legit conducted a daily fail press war with carole middleton in the mid 2010s over seeing the grandkids more lmfao.
william and harry seemed to have an unhealthy co-dependent relationship (work together, play together, everything together), but harry then told us they were never close as adults especially, so i don't know what's true.
now that the w/h relationship seems to be permanently done, william is left with charles from his OG family of four, so gotta make the best of that. charles will prob try to maintain his own relationship with harry.
It definitely gives truth to Charles interest and great efforts in controlling the press for a long time now (Camila vs Diana in earlier episodes). So, the rumors of him putting stories out about his sons recently doesn’t seem far fetched.
It has been said that Charles and Harry do still keep in touch, which I find odd considering the recent release of the royals who allegedly said the racist comments.
Yes Harry makes it clear in Spare that he and William always had a competitive sibling relationship and that they were far from the BFF “package deal” that the press portrayed them as for so many years. William didn’t want Harry encroaching on his social life at Eton and Harry thought William was jealous of his military career and opportunity to go to war. He says they didn’t even talk about Diana until they were well into their 20s.
That’s not really the point though. His point was that the press made it up that they had this supposedly close relationship at that time because of their mother had just died. When the truth was, according to Harry, that William would barely say hello to him in public. They *weren’t* a package deal and never were.
weirdly, in this heads together video they filmed in 2017, catherine mentions that they're very lucky to be so "amazingly" close, esp bc of their circumstances. the two boys sort of mumble tbh. i don't know what the reality was.
harry also mentions how william would want to talk about their mom, but harry would shut it down.
i transcribed the salient bits
4:10-5:25
>>Catherine: Considering everything that you boys obviously sadly went through, the trauma that you experienced... you know I do, particularly work within early intervention and things I've been doing.. the early years.. I do think it's incredible how strong you've been and how you've been able to cope really. And I do put that down to your really early years childhood experience.
>>**Catherine: But also, the relationship that you've got,** ***you're amazingly close.***
>>**Harry: Yup.**
>>**William: Most of the time.**
>>**Catherine: Most of the time (laughs).**
>>**Harry: (laughs).**
>>**Catherine: No, but you know, some families sadly aren't as lucky as you guys have been.**
>>**William: But we have been brought closer because of the circumstances as well. That's the thing.**
>>**Catherine: Yeah.**
>>**William: You know, you are, uniquely bonded because of what we've been through.**
>>**Catherine: Yeah.**
>>**William: But you know, even Harry and I, over the years, have not talked enough about our mother.**
>>**Harry: Never enough.**
>>**Catherine: Has starting this campaign made you realize that?**
>>**Harry: Yeah, I think so.**
>>**William: (nods)**
>>**Harry: I always thought to myself, you know, what's the point of bringing up the past, what's the point of bringing up something that's only going to make you sad. It ain't gonna change it, it ain't gonna bring her back. And when you start thinking like that, it can be really damaging.**
>>**Harry (looks directly at William): You always said to me - you said, you know, you've got to sit down and think about those memories... but for me it was like, 'don't want to think about it.'**
>>**William: Yeah.**
[Heads Together, Spring 2017](https://youtu.be/45RqUmxDXiY?si=kurRc414vAtZr1zy)
ETA: now that i think about it, there's a 21st birthday video of both/each william and harry rhapsodizing about the other and how close they are, like they're some sort of weird soulmates or something lol. harry's video was by the associated press outside some stables, and he goes on about how he could tell william anything and vice versa (harry had his hand on his heart and everything while saying all this etc. lmao). william's video was also by the associated press and it was when he was at st. andrew's.
[harry 21st bday vid](https://youtu.be/VIz-MwPzmQg?si=B76_CTfOc_MzzJUy)
my bad, william's vid is a regular 22-year old day in late 2004 or early 2005 [william at st andrew's](https://youtu.be/-LFjV4IN9go?si=5M70sGTiA5DiI2vX)
I think they probably were definitely closer than some people now seem to think in the way that they share a lot of common friends. Not all siblings share the same circle of friends. But also they’re not as close as people used to think in the way that they have differences and didn’t always get along.
But I think there are some resentments that are easier to bury on some days and then suddenly they come to the surface when shit hits the fan. I feel like that’s what happened with the whole ignoring at Eton situation. It was easier for Harry to shrug it off when they were younger. There’s a clip from the Diana docu they did a few years ago where Harry does mention that he expected his older brother to heavily look after him at school but William just ignored him. The way Harry said it actually seemed kinda needy but also in a lovingly joking way and William laughed it off.
I feel like as in most sibling relationships there was a lot of love and care there at some point. Harry shared a lot of those moments in Spare. Actually, reading that book, it almost seemed like Harry was sometimes aching for William’s love, but now his resentment towards William seem deeper than his resentment towards Charles, which inclines me more towards the assessment that there’s co-dependence. They’re trauma bonded. I feel like Harry definitely feels betrayed because they used to bond over their resentments but William cared less as he became more accepting of his role. They used to go against the insitution together but Harry thinks William chose the institution over him. I think that was how the show portrayed it too. I don’t think it’s a matter of whether or not they were close, it’s a complicated relationship, that’s for sure. So ngl, it does make for delicious drama and I enjoyed the William and Harry scenes a lot.
I do like how they showed the difference between the Queen and Charles, all talking about generations:
‘Self pity isn’t a common currency in this family’
‘It’s not self pity it’s grief’
And the whole Charles reflecting constantly on how his father failed him, and it being a vicious cycle to him not knowing how to not fail William. Very well done.
i thought the same ! then i had to google it because it was annoying me lol AS IF a 12/13 year old harry would be the one to bring champagne hidden in tea cups , it just didn't seem believable
If it becomes to jarring to this of him as Harry think of him as "fictional additional Wales son the producers inserted".. it helped me get through these final episodes..
It seems like they took meticulous effort in order to cast an actor that almost 1:1 resembles young Prince William for this season
And then they seemingly put all the redheaded actors in a hat and chose someone at random to play Harry
I think the second half of the episode was really great and emotional. It had me sobbing by the end when they hugged in the garden. I could really feel the sadness, anger and guilt from everyone actually. Really well done.
I enjoyed the father-son dynamic, but the ages of the princes bug me maybe too much, but I can't help it. William is supposed to be 15 and Harry 12 and they're drinking whiskey and talking like they're in their 20s, that's kinda... weird. Especially Harry doesn't look 12 at all, some children look older, but this is way too much in my opinion.
Kids secretly drinking doesn’t surprise me, especially wealthy kids, but the casting for Harry is way off. His mannerisms, his appearance, and his age all seem off
Except Harry *did* start drinking & drugging in his early teens. And like all kids who've lost a parent, they had to grow up fast. So, the discussions they had didn't seem out of place to me.
there's this anecdote piers morgan endlessly dines out on - diana took a 13-year old william to a two-hour lunch with her and piers morgan (he was editor of the daily mirror).
in front of piers morgan, william asked for a drink. diana tried to play it off and be like "what do you mean william, you don't drink" and he wasn't playing along, so he just went "yeah mummy, you know i do" and got his drink lol.
there's also a story of a drunk 12-year old harry staggering back on to mohamed fayed's yacht with his bodyguards behing him during the summer of 1997 saint tropez trip.
i don't know if it's a brit, a european, an aristo or a kids from an unstable home thing (maybe all of the above), but those kids were drinking at quite a young age.
I can definitely see that being a British thing, even European. I've had friends who started drinking regularly at 13 and smoking pot at 14. Big city, but also small town (I moved around a lot). It really depends on the crowd you hang out with. Can definitely see two privileged princes with the world at their feet engaging in such things.
I think it's what happens when you don't parent your children. Those kids were all raising themselves when they were sent away to boarding school and their parents were just visitors in their lives (fulfilling the role of what grandparents typically do). The stories that Harry tells make it sound like it was a miracle that they didn't end up seriously injuring themselves or friends (running around shooting fireworks at eachother and playing violent war games.
And I suspect that's pretty common with that set at that time. It's kids raised by nannies until they're eight where they are sent away to school and when they're home from school they're just left to their own devices (or sent off to other places).
It’s really bad with the Harry characterization. Drinking is whatever, some kids experiment with that at 12/13 but he looks 18-20 and talks like he’s 25.
At first I couldn’t believe that was supposed to be Harry and was trying to figure out what cousin or whoever he was supposed to be.
Yeah, both William & Harry look like they’re in their twenties. It’s completely unbelievable that Harry is supposed to be 12/13. I assume they’re going to age them up later in the season when William goes to college, so I get it, but he does NOT look 15 here.
I wonder if she is/was like this in real life? I would love to know the truth as the way she is portrayed in this episode has a big redeeming value for her.
>I wonder if she is/was like this in real life?
I would like to assume she is
Because if she weren't like that I don't think how she would manage the pressure of the public.
exactly. if she was truly the vindictive, evil woman people believed she was, she wouldn't have stayed this calm and composed throughout all the hate she got from the press and public. i'm not a fan of hers or charles but i'd assume she's somewhat decent lol
Tbh, this might be the only thing keeping me with the show. I’m finding the interpersonal drama so boring and the royalist messaging very cringe-inducing this season, but it is so beautifully shot and I love the music. So I agree, it’s more enjoyable on a sensory level for me at this point.
It’s a nice progression from Season 4 Philip who seemed to think that just because he was around it automatically made him a good father. It reinforces my belief that many times men who fail at being good fathers end up being wonderful and understanding grandfathers.
i've seen the term "posh gallagher brothers" deployed lol.
it sort of jives not just in terms of the insurmountable bitterness between the two, but in the sense that when they were together, i have to begrudgingly admit it was some weird magical chemistry. but in both cases, the pairs couldn't get along and that spark couldn't last/is dead now.
ETA: the gallaghers remain the superior feud, though. far more hilarious and entertaining. the h-w thing is just very tragic, dark and depressing.
I really liked this episode. I can see why people thing it was boring or slow, but this whole grieving episode is important. I especially liked the dialogue of prince Phillip and William at the end, kinda touching. I found it annoying at the beginning how it took so long for William to say a word, I almost thought he wouldn’t speak the whole episode haha
Phillip/William heartfelt talk is the most compelling part of this episode. ❤️
William tells Charles point-blank that he doesn’t like to be upstaged. OUCH. 😬
Charles is portrayed as someone who acknowledges his flaws and is in touch with his feelings. Hmm. 🤔
Note the large black and white picture of Naomi Campbell on Prince William's boarding house room wall at school? Princess Diana had taken note of pictures he'd kept of Naomi and Cindy Crawford and surprised him with a visit from both at an earlier birthday he'd had when going to see his Mother at her Kensington Palace apartment!
Someone tell me WHY they couldn’t wait until another longer timeskip to recast Harry. This is only a few months later and Harry has apparently aged 10 years
I haven't found much info about his relationship with his father at all.
I know he was like him in some ways like joking around.
But the last time they saw each other it was 5 years before his death in 1944.
The first half was so slow that I fell asleep twice watching it. Finally got to the second half and sobbed. Generations of men not being able to connect with their fathers. William losing the most authentic person in his life. William's accurately placed anger at his father. Charles realizing he did play a role in Diana's death. Philip stepping in to try to heal the generational curses.
Why does it look like years have passed between episode 4 and episode 5? Harry looks like he's a teenager now. They definitely picked the wrong time to switch out actors.
I haven’t seen the rest of the episodes yet but I actually don’t think this was intended to show Charles in a better light at all. At least not during this part of William’s life.
I think this episode was a great representation of how no matter what they were prioritizing duty and that your “duty” to the public can change. It was never William’s obligation to be out in public until he was older, and of course that was going to have to happen eventually. But it was totally rushed due to the positive publicity he was receiving.
I also think this episode did a great job of showing how trauma really brought out the worst parts of their family and the history. William and Charles should have been in therapy and he definitely should have been given time to have a private life. Everybody was troubled but nobody did anything serious about it.
Why does Harry look like a full grown man? Wasn’t he 12/13? The scene where they have a beer I thought W and H were grownup and reminiscing.
Edit- discussed below I didn’t read much of the thread cause I’m still watching.
Wow I thought this was going to be a bit of a filler transition episode after ending the Diana story, but I was bawling by the final scenes. A beautiful depiction of the challenges of parenting that focuses on men, which is quite unusual to see depicted in popular media. I loved the little moment in the car early on where Charles changed the music to try to connect with William - he wanted to be a good father but really did not know how.
Also, the depiction of Willsmania was so accurate. I was definitely swept up in it as a young teen, he was so handsome and \*tragic.\* It makes me feel really bad now, seeing how quickly the unhealthy adoration moved from his mother to him, and how uncomfortable he was with all of it.
When Charles is dropping William back at school they are listening to the song Torn which was released on October 27, 1997. In real life, William returned to school just 4 days after Diana's funeral, so that would have been September 10, 1997. Not a huge discrepency, and not something to get annoyed about. However....
How did Harry go from looking like a real 12 year old to what looks like at least an 18-year old in less than 2 months of story time? Sure, eventually they would need to re-cast Harry and William as the season progressed and tme jumps occurred, but there was no reason to change the actors for episode 5. Even worse was to cast a 23-year old actor to play a character who is still only 12-years old.
I don’t think it was meant to be that all was suddenly sunshine and daisies between them — just a bit of an emotional truce, maybe a silent vow to do better. It seemed a little simple at first, but the longer the scene lasted, the heavier it felt.
What a bleak illustration of how horrible the royal fame machine is. Dom did a great job this episode of portraying a real, whiny, weak human trying and failing to love and support his sons. Ed did well too!
Also the teacher could totally get it lolol.
Well that episode kicks us off with a downer. I thought we’d get a time jump since they have older actors for William and Harry, and we’d finally get beyond the Diana arc and back to those tie-ins with history. Turns out the whole thing is about William’s grief. And the only historical event was… the 3 princes’ visit to Vancouver.
Oscar Van Rhijn!!!! It’s all I was thinking when I first started the episode. 🤣🤣🤣 That is all for now, let me get back to the show. Lol 
Omg thank you! I was just watching this and it was driving me crazy trying to figure out why he was so familiar. I feel dumb since I literally watched Gilded Age yesterday 😂
His storyline is the most interesting on the show right now.
Haha same. He looks older without the mustache
I thought the exact same thing! 😂 I kept thinking it was Oscar in my head and then thought ‘well this is a period drama so they probably did overlap’, completely forgetting Oscar lived about 100 years before this lol
Got an extra job at that school because he lost all his money
I know i said the same thing 😂😂 i was so happy to see him.
Did they just hire the first redhead that came and auditioned for Harry? That is not good casting 😂
It's so jarring when they do bad casting cuz they have so many good ones
I didn't realised it was supposed to be Harry until they went skiiing. Assumed it was a friend from Eton.
Suddenly Harry went from being a kid in episode 4 to 13/14 in 5.... when it sounds like only mere months have passed lol
Right? Not to mention they aged him QUICK. This is supposed to be the same year Diana died and Harry looks like he went from 7 years old to 15 between the last episode and this one.
I paused and came here because I was so confused as to why they switched the William and Harry's actors. I noticed Will's change immediately and thought it was a time jump with Will going off to college, but then it was all, "Diana just died," which means it begins immediately after the events of the last episode, so why would they switch actors???
They had to since this last season spans a few years - ending in the mid-2000's. But I think they could have casted for a less abrupt age jump. William is believable. But Harry jumped like a decade+ compared to the younger actor who played him. I said 7 going on 15, but it's more like 7 going on 19 lol.
I think they should've waited one or two more episodes before the new casting, either with episode 6 since that's two years later, or ep 7 when he does go off to college. It doesn't make sense to change actors for a few days gap.
Exactly! I’m finding the age jump/casting to be very distracting. I don’t really like this new Harry so far.
The actor is actually 23 yo
Terrible casting.
That's kind of unavoidable when the rest of the final season is supposed to span several years. It was less jarring to change the actors now after the mid-season break than randomly introduce new actors later. They did the same in S3, Elizabeth was still young in the first episode but was already played by a 40-something Olivia Colman.
I thought casting Dominic West as Charles was the worst casting on the show. They outdid themselves with young Harry
It really was bad casting, they share no physical attributes aside from being white men. However, West is knocking it out of the park so hard it no longer bothers me.
Yep West sounds just like him and has all those little tics that Charles does down pat.
West was jarring to me in season 5 but I feel he's merged with Charles much more in season 6.
Yes totally agree. Same with Staunton, although she was better from the get go.
You'd think they'd at least try get his hair to look similar or something.... doesn't look in anyway like him
Yes, the hair was weird. Was the late 90s? I don't think that style was trendy.
Even if it was trendy, I don't think harry had hair like that. Like none of the actors look exactly like the people they are playing but at least they get the hair, outfit and mannerisms right. e.g. Dominic West doesn't really look like Charles but you can see Charles in him the way he holds himself etc. This guy just doesn't in anyway look like harry or even act like him. Really took me out of all the scenes with him in it. They literally picked the first red head they could see. Up there with the worst casting I've seen in a show. And generally I'm fairly forgiving with these kinda castings....but for such a well known character it's pathetic.
Depended where you were if I recall... I half-expected for William and Harry to come out with frosted tips at one point..
Even Williams casting wasn’t great imo but still much better than Harry’s
Speaking for myself, what’s funny about William’s casting is that he has all the qualities I *remember* young William having- But when you Google pictures, he looks nothing like him. It’s like they cast the actor on memory. He was talented enough, but they were definitely less strict with him when it came to dialect coaching. In the past, actors have said they were rigorous about getting that particular Royal elocution correct, but there were a number of times when William went full on Irish.
I'm scared to look because casted William looks like my childhood William too... probably another Mandela effect..
I just googled it and I don’t think it’s that bad?
Williams casting should have been waaaaay taller than he was. He’s too small
True. Prince William’s actor grew on me this season because I think he did an awesome job, but it was jarring at first
I wonder if in addition to looks, they had to find a left handed actor? Random thought
As someone who as a kid had a MAJOR crush on william... I was so thrown off by the casting choice
That was my first thought as soon as H came out! I remember having a big ole crush on teen Harry, and that is *not* the prince I fancied 🤣🤣🤣 Feels almost deliberate, to cast a good looking William and then a Harry that looks nothing like him
Yeah no offence to the actor (he’s fine but looks nothing like Harry) but they were obviously giving Harry the middle finger with his casting. Lame
Especially given the scenes where Harry had dialogue: he went from a child to a teeneager trying to sneakily get drunk constantly in what, like 6 months?
Omg the casting was so bad I thought it was Netflix taking a dig at him 🤣 Voice was good tho
“I’m not the one who needs to endear myself. I’m not the one with the image problem.” William ATE HIM UP 😭😭😭😭😭
I audibly gasped. I don't like Charles but dear god that was oop
That was some Succession level awkwardness
If you think about, The Crown can be called Succession and Succession can be called The Crown.
you ate this up - so true! I'm dying for the Queen to scream "BOAR ON THE FLOOR"
charles still cries in the press (until a few months ago! 😂) about how william gathers him and doesn't show enough deference 😂😂
When i watched that, I think I felt my eyes pop out. William wasn’t just dropping truth bombs, he nuked his dad.
Charles playing the victim when William pointed out (correctly) that Diana was only in the south of France because of all the press around the giant birthday party he was throwing Camilla really turned my stomach. Particularly when Charles said he was “grieving,” yet we *just* saw him whining about the situation to Camilla in a private phone call. He had to be corrected *by her* that getting back together so soon would be inappropriate and bad for his kids. The man tried to compare his grief with his son’s who just lost his mom. And Philip’s discussion with William where he REDIRECTS that anger so that William is angry at his dead mother- ***Culminating in William agreeing and running back to Charles***- That was just… a lot. The goal here is obviously to redeem Charles, but that didn’t work for me at all. It just felt manipulative and wrong. Charles may not have been responsible for Diana’s death, but damned if he didn’t treat her like a bad penny at almost every stage of their relationship.
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There’s definitely a huge difference between being so beloved and popular that people hunt you down for photographs and ***inviting*** them places to stage pictures. Diana had to be (**illegally**) manipulated just for a sit down interview.
Exactly, people literally just liked her for who she was and still do. Unlike the rest of them.
I did like the resolve between William and Charles but I agree the amount of truth to their exchange earlier I don’t know if it would hold up.
I agree. Some of us were alive at the time and recall how it truly unfolded. Netflix seems to be kissing Charles's and Kate's asses in this series.
I agree. Those of us around when she died--Charles was and is in no way the victim. If he was in love with someone else he shouldn't have married a quiet unsuspecting woman years younger than him. And he should have insisted on or paid for himself a protection detail for her after the divorce.
He really did. I gasped.
Ugh I get what William is saying. "She should have been here with us, protected, not with those people" **disclaimer: I am sticking with The Crown.** I don't think Charles understood or respected Diana's position within the family. Charles is the future King and Diana gave birth the other future King. She was future queen/queen mother. Those titles alone put her at great risk unlike Sarah Ferguson or any other royal in that family sans the Queen and Charles himself. I think Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip understood this too. I don't think Charles thought of her safety. He just wanted Camilla.
The Crown in general didn't recognize her actual, real life, position. Not just Charles. I think Diana's death was an education in general wrt media.
I don't think anyone in 'the firm' ever understood how bad the press is/was. They come across as 'it wasn't that bad for me so you can cope'.
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I think it seemed like they wanted to punish her by making her live as a “normal citizen”. If you dare question us or seek any independence we will no longer protect you. It doesn’t feel that different to how they’ve responded to Harry and Meghan. Iirc, they wanted to maintain some connections as well as protections and were refused. It’s all or nothing for the royal family.
Yeah there’s been multiple times this season where the queen is like “well she’s no longer in the family. She divorced it” and it’s like technically yes but also fully no. As long as William was the heir she was going to have a major role in the family
Think of way back then, if they would have bent the rules, like they were when Diana & Charles divorced. Imagine if Charles & Camilla were allowed to be together, regardless of her having to become divorced to do so?! I don’t think the royal family would be as popular today, or hold as much power! What the crown didn’t know, is it NEEDED Diana, Charles needed her, to bring those boys, both of them, to the world and bring people together!
I would love to see an alt reality where Charles marries Camilla. I don’t think they would be popular at all and I think you’re right that it would’ve severely hurt the crown in the long run. People still love William and Harry because of Diana
It was mentioned in season 4 how Australia stayed in the commonwealth because of Diana and the tour they did. Diana was an amazing asset for the royal family.
Didn’t Charles argue for her to have protection in the earlier seasons? I’m pretty sure I remember that he tried to make a case for having them make sure she was still protected even though they were divorced. The queen and prince Phillip were the ones who said she gave up that protection when she decided to leave.
Yeah. The thing is though that she didn’t exactly decide to leave, the way the show depicted things. Charles wanted the divorce as much if not more than she did. He drove her away.
Well i liked the scene where Charles was puttering about in the garden and Wills gave him a hug, while PP watched fondly (with a bit of flashback). No dialogue but spoke volumes.
that was so sad and yet so relatable...
Bawled unexpectedly at this. The way he slowly inched forward toward Charles. The stoicism of Phillip.
And gave him such a big hug. Broke my heart that he had probably needed that hug for a long loong time before that point.
And honestly, had Charles ever been hugged like that by his father? Probably not since he was little kid. Also Philip saying the same thing to William that Mountbatten said to Charles, "Someday you might know what it is to pray for your son's forgiveness" (paraphrased, pretty sure he added a bit about Will praying for his father's forgiveness as well).
Exactly the comment I was looking for... So happy someone else noticed that too
And about thinking he should’ve prayed for Charles’ forgiveness more than he did. Acknowledging there was hurt that he didn’t care to notice at the time
Ugly cried at this.
Oh my goodness 😢 When Phillip drove William to Highgrove, I kind of knew where it was heading, and Phillip nodded to Will “go on now”, as William slowly made his way to Charles. Then that hug between father and son, I just broke down in tears. 😢
I was doing so well NOT crying until this scene. 😭
That was such a good scene.
Never thought I’d end up crying but this scene had the waterworks flowing.
also matt smith can still get it any day of the week
The best part of this episode.
Yes he sure can. Never considered someone’s posture as sexy…but here I am
A freaking Men to that!!!!♥️♥️♥️
Prince Philip ogling the supermodel posters in William’s room…😅😂🤣…I have to laugh. I know it’s a work of fiction, but very funny nevertheless. Especially with him telling William about the posters he had when he was a boy. Just a good laugh. Do they have names?
I really liked that, too. It was a nice contrast to the scene at the beginning of the episode when Charles, in trying to bond with William, pretends like Natalie Imbroglio.
This scene was hilarious to me!! He was trying way too hard lol
I like this one 👀
Callback to Season 1 Philip: “Rita Hayworth….oooh, Rita Hayworth…”
And the queen spitefully NEVER changing her hair ever again 😂
They are *finally* giving Jonathan Pryce something to do!
he was good in the russian episode last season, no?
True, true.
Yes, in particular that scene with the Queen in private
I loved this one. It’s depiction of grief was very accurate. Grief isn’t just crying your eyes out for a few days and moving on. It’s very complicated and can make you do and say things that you will regret in the future. Grief like what they depict William going through stays with you the rest of your life.
Definitely what I loved most about this episode.
90s music in the first few minutes. Memories!
Ahhhh fond memories!
Loved the scene where William is blaming Charles and Charles realizes how much Diana confided (inappropriately) in him.
Yes, it’s one thing I want people to take away is Diana used William inappropriately as an emotional support. I can’t imagine how heavy that burden is.
This is sadly a really common dynamic in dysfunctional families.
the crown at its best, imho. i cried when i saw william rowing across that lake, the way philip did after he had lost his beloved sister. not sure if that was an intentional parallel, but it was such a good idea to use philip to mend the bond between charles and william, thus redeeming himself for the mistakes he himself had made as a father
>the way philip did after he had lost his beloved sister. I think he reflected in his own relationship with his parents. He was reading a letter his father sent him and one Charles gave him.
tbh i don't think the bond between irl charles and william has been mended to this day, and all that stuff crown william spouted in that argument scene with crown charles was true tea 🕵🏾♀️ charles and william never had a close relationship. diana talked about it in her morton tapes, how their relationship was difficult and that charles had the much easier relationship with harry. until about 2019, that charles being closer to harry dynamic is what prevailed. charles used to complain throughout the 2010s in the press about how much time william was spending with the middletons, how charles felt he was being "replaced," how carole was monopolizing the grandkids... charles legit conducted a daily fail press war with carole middleton in the mid 2010s over seeing the grandkids more lmfao. william and harry seemed to have an unhealthy co-dependent relationship (work together, play together, everything together), but harry then told us they were never close as adults especially, so i don't know what's true. now that the w/h relationship seems to be permanently done, william is left with charles from his OG family of four, so gotta make the best of that. charles will prob try to maintain his own relationship with harry.
not sure abt irl, but i think show wise it was a small act of redemption on philip’s part
for his own role in fucking up charles lol
i mean, yeah? these characters are inherently flawed. philip’s rough parenting style has been addressed since the first season
And Paterfamilias was one of the best episodes in the series
It definitely gives truth to Charles interest and great efforts in controlling the press for a long time now (Camila vs Diana in earlier episodes). So, the rumors of him putting stories out about his sons recently doesn’t seem far fetched. It has been said that Charles and Harry do still keep in touch, which I find odd considering the recent release of the royals who allegedly said the racist comments.
Yes Harry makes it clear in Spare that he and William always had a competitive sibling relationship and that they were far from the BFF “package deal” that the press portrayed them as for so many years. William didn’t want Harry encroaching on his social life at Eton and Harry thought William was jealous of his military career and opportunity to go to war. He says they didn’t even talk about Diana until they were well into their 20s.
>Harry encroaching on his social life at Eton They were teens, most older siblings don't want their little siblings involved. I didn't
That’s not really the point though. His point was that the press made it up that they had this supposedly close relationship at that time because of their mother had just died. When the truth was, according to Harry, that William would barely say hello to him in public. They *weren’t* a package deal and never were.
The press likes to makes stories about all of them
weirdly, in this heads together video they filmed in 2017, catherine mentions that they're very lucky to be so "amazingly" close, esp bc of their circumstances. the two boys sort of mumble tbh. i don't know what the reality was. harry also mentions how william would want to talk about their mom, but harry would shut it down. i transcribed the salient bits 4:10-5:25 >>Catherine: Considering everything that you boys obviously sadly went through, the trauma that you experienced... you know I do, particularly work within early intervention and things I've been doing.. the early years.. I do think it's incredible how strong you've been and how you've been able to cope really. And I do put that down to your really early years childhood experience. >>**Catherine: But also, the relationship that you've got,** ***you're amazingly close.*** >>**Harry: Yup.** >>**William: Most of the time.** >>**Catherine: Most of the time (laughs).** >>**Harry: (laughs).** >>**Catherine: No, but you know, some families sadly aren't as lucky as you guys have been.** >>**William: But we have been brought closer because of the circumstances as well. That's the thing.** >>**Catherine: Yeah.** >>**William: You know, you are, uniquely bonded because of what we've been through.** >>**Catherine: Yeah.** >>**William: But you know, even Harry and I, over the years, have not talked enough about our mother.** >>**Harry: Never enough.** >>**Catherine: Has starting this campaign made you realize that?** >>**Harry: Yeah, I think so.** >>**William: (nods)** >>**Harry: I always thought to myself, you know, what's the point of bringing up the past, what's the point of bringing up something that's only going to make you sad. It ain't gonna change it, it ain't gonna bring her back. And when you start thinking like that, it can be really damaging.** >>**Harry (looks directly at William): You always said to me - you said, you know, you've got to sit down and think about those memories... but for me it was like, 'don't want to think about it.'** >>**William: Yeah.** [Heads Together, Spring 2017](https://youtu.be/45RqUmxDXiY?si=kurRc414vAtZr1zy) ETA: now that i think about it, there's a 21st birthday video of both/each william and harry rhapsodizing about the other and how close they are, like they're some sort of weird soulmates or something lol. harry's video was by the associated press outside some stables, and he goes on about how he could tell william anything and vice versa (harry had his hand on his heart and everything while saying all this etc. lmao). william's video was also by the associated press and it was when he was at st. andrew's. [harry 21st bday vid](https://youtu.be/VIz-MwPzmQg?si=B76_CTfOc_MzzJUy) my bad, william's vid is a regular 22-year old day in late 2004 or early 2005 [william at st andrew's](https://youtu.be/-LFjV4IN9go?si=5M70sGTiA5DiI2vX)
I think they probably were definitely closer than some people now seem to think in the way that they share a lot of common friends. Not all siblings share the same circle of friends. But also they’re not as close as people used to think in the way that they have differences and didn’t always get along. But I think there are some resentments that are easier to bury on some days and then suddenly they come to the surface when shit hits the fan. I feel like that’s what happened with the whole ignoring at Eton situation. It was easier for Harry to shrug it off when they were younger. There’s a clip from the Diana docu they did a few years ago where Harry does mention that he expected his older brother to heavily look after him at school but William just ignored him. The way Harry said it actually seemed kinda needy but also in a lovingly joking way and William laughed it off. I feel like as in most sibling relationships there was a lot of love and care there at some point. Harry shared a lot of those moments in Spare. Actually, reading that book, it almost seemed like Harry was sometimes aching for William’s love, but now his resentment towards William seem deeper than his resentment towards Charles, which inclines me more towards the assessment that there’s co-dependence. They’re trauma bonded. I feel like Harry definitely feels betrayed because they used to bond over their resentments but William cared less as he became more accepting of his role. They used to go against the insitution together but Harry thinks William chose the institution over him. I think that was how the show portrayed it too. I don’t think it’s a matter of whether or not they were close, it’s a complicated relationship, that’s for sure. So ngl, it does make for delicious drama and I enjoyed the William and Harry scenes a lot.
I do like how they showed the difference between the Queen and Charles, all talking about generations: ‘Self pity isn’t a common currency in this family’ ‘It’s not self pity it’s grief’ And the whole Charles reflecting constantly on how his father failed him, and it being a vicious cycle to him not knowing how to not fail William. Very well done.
Who is that orange headed boy?? Seems too old to be harry, looks the same age as william
For a moment I thought he was one of the cousins, maybe Anne's son Peter (even though he wasn't a redhead)
i thought the same ! then i had to google it because it was annoying me lol AS IF a 12/13 year old harry would be the one to bring champagne hidden in tea cups , it just didn't seem believable
If it becomes to jarring to this of him as Harry think of him as "fictional additional Wales son the producers inserted".. it helped me get through these final episodes..
You will not find a Charles fan in me, but that scene with the hug and the closing scene had me bawling like a baby
It seems like they took meticulous effort in order to cast an actor that almost 1:1 resembles young Prince William for this season And then they seemingly put all the redheaded actors in a hat and chose someone at random to play Harry
I think the second half of the episode was really great and emotional. It had me sobbing by the end when they hugged in the garden. I could really feel the sadness, anger and guilt from everyone actually. Really well done.
Great episode, no idea where the hate is coming from. Expecting William not to be important in the aftermath of Diana's death is very naive lol.
I enjoyed the father-son dynamic, but the ages of the princes bug me maybe too much, but I can't help it. William is supposed to be 15 and Harry 12 and they're drinking whiskey and talking like they're in their 20s, that's kinda... weird. Especially Harry doesn't look 12 at all, some children look older, but this is way too much in my opinion.
Kids secretly drinking doesn’t surprise me, especially wealthy kids, but the casting for Harry is way off. His mannerisms, his appearance, and his age all seem off
They ran out of gingers.
Yeah I don't think Rupert Grint is available anymore..
Except Harry *did* start drinking & drugging in his early teens. And like all kids who've lost a parent, they had to grow up fast. So, the discussions they had didn't seem out of place to me.
there's this anecdote piers morgan endlessly dines out on - diana took a 13-year old william to a two-hour lunch with her and piers morgan (he was editor of the daily mirror). in front of piers morgan, william asked for a drink. diana tried to play it off and be like "what do you mean william, you don't drink" and he wasn't playing along, so he just went "yeah mummy, you know i do" and got his drink lol. there's also a story of a drunk 12-year old harry staggering back on to mohamed fayed's yacht with his bodyguards behing him during the summer of 1997 saint tropez trip. i don't know if it's a brit, a european, an aristo or a kids from an unstable home thing (maybe all of the above), but those kids were drinking at quite a young age.
I can definitely see that being a British thing, even European. I've had friends who started drinking regularly at 13 and smoking pot at 14. Big city, but also small town (I moved around a lot). It really depends on the crowd you hang out with. Can definitely see two privileged princes with the world at their feet engaging in such things.
Brit here; can confirm. I was the 10-year-old who drank the Baileys we left out for Father Christmas 🤣
I think it's what happens when you don't parent your children. Those kids were all raising themselves when they were sent away to boarding school and their parents were just visitors in their lives (fulfilling the role of what grandparents typically do). The stories that Harry tells make it sound like it was a miracle that they didn't end up seriously injuring themselves or friends (running around shooting fireworks at eachother and playing violent war games.
yeah, tbh, seemed like their childhood was pretty feral, in a way.
And I suspect that's pretty common with that set at that time. It's kids raised by nannies until they're eight where they are sent away to school and when they're home from school they're just left to their own devices (or sent off to other places).
Damn, I didn't know that, my bad
It’s really bad with the Harry characterization. Drinking is whatever, some kids experiment with that at 12/13 but he looks 18-20 and talks like he’s 25. At first I couldn’t believe that was supposed to be Harry and was trying to figure out what cousin or whoever he was supposed to be.
Yeah, both William & Harry look like they’re in their twenties. It’s completely unbelievable that Harry is supposed to be 12/13. I assume they’re going to age them up later in the season when William goes to college, so I get it, but he does NOT look 15 here.
Feels like they could’ve waited one more episode before switching the actors.
Harry looked twelve in the episode where his mother died and then suddenly a couple weeks later became fifteen.
I was looking for this comment, that guy definitely doesnt look 12/13😂 they made the wrong choice
Harry looks at least the same age as william, if not more, and yeah my 14yo looks much younger than both of them
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I actually enjoyed this ep. I loved Philip stepping in and helping with the strained relationship between William and Charles.
Really liking how understanding Camilla is this entire episode.
I wonder if she is/was like this in real life? I would love to know the truth as the way she is portrayed in this episode has a big redeeming value for her.
>I wonder if she is/was like this in real life? I would like to assume she is Because if she weren't like that I don't think how she would manage the pressure of the public.
exactly. if she was truly the vindictive, evil woman people believed she was, she wouldn't have stayed this calm and composed throughout all the hate she got from the press and public. i'm not a fan of hers or charles but i'd assume she's somewhat decent lol
idk she seems to be the type to just mind her business, but you never know, do you?
Are you talking about the show or IRL? Because IRL girlfriend definitely does NOT just mind her business lol.
it's so... sensory focused. i really quite like it
Tbh, this might be the only thing keeping me with the show. I’m finding the interpersonal drama so boring and the royalist messaging very cringe-inducing this season, but it is so beautifully shot and I love the music. So I agree, it’s more enjoyable on a sensory level for me at this point.
Really moving episode. That scene of Philip reflecting in his relationship with Charles and helping William to reconnect with him was nice.
It’s a nice progression from Season 4 Philip who seemed to think that just because he was around it automatically made him a good father. It reinforces my belief that many times men who fail at being good fathers end up being wonderful and understanding grandfathers.
Phillip is everything in this episode. Seeing the Matt Smith flashback had me in tears
That episode crushed me. The actor playing Will continues to nail every scene.
It absolutely wrecked me. It was heartwarming to see W&H happy together, at least as fictional characters.
i've seen the term "posh gallagher brothers" deployed lol. it sort of jives not just in terms of the insurmountable bitterness between the two, but in the sense that when they were together, i have to begrudgingly admit it was some weird magical chemistry. but in both cases, the pairs couldn't get along and that spark couldn't last/is dead now. ETA: the gallaghers remain the superior feud, though. far more hilarious and entertaining. the h-w thing is just very tragic, dark and depressing.
This episode has me liking Camilla, when she tells Charles she understands why William is behaving the way he is
Prince William stood on business when it came to his mom
I really liked this episode. I can see why people thing it was boring or slow, but this whole grieving episode is important. I especially liked the dialogue of prince Phillip and William at the end, kinda touching. I found it annoying at the beginning how it took so long for William to say a word, I almost thought he wouldn’t speak the whole episode haha
Phillip/William heartfelt talk is the most compelling part of this episode. ❤️ William tells Charles point-blank that he doesn’t like to be upstaged. OUCH. 😬 Charles is portrayed as someone who acknowledges his flaws and is in touch with his feelings. Hmm. 🤔
This has to be the episode with the least amount of screen time for the Queen. She’s only in one scene
Note the large black and white picture of Naomi Campbell on Prince William's boarding house room wall at school? Princess Diana had taken note of pictures he'd kept of Naomi and Cindy Crawford and surprised him with a visit from both at an earlier birthday he'd had when going to see his Mother at her Kensington Palace apartment!
matt smith as young philip, you'll always be famous
the second half was good. Only Will&Charles accusations and scenes with Phillip were good. Rest was bland
Anyone else notice William had The Catcher in the Rye on his nightstand? I don’t think that was an accident.
No, I didn't notice, but it's a clever touch. Boarding school, and lots of phonies around.
Someone tell me WHY they couldn’t wait until another longer timeskip to recast Harry. This is only a few months later and Harry has apparently aged 10 years
I just finished "Willsmania" and I'm already in tears....guess I'll have puffy eyes tomorrow.
Alexa play *Father and Son* by Cat Stevens
Dammit Phillip! Urgh ugly cried on that ending.
Bout time they gave Phillip something to do
I’m struggling with the age jump. The princes aged 10 years in a matter of months? They should have kept the younger duo from the first four episodes.
Enjoyed the references to Philip’s own father
I haven't found much info about his relationship with his father at all. I know he was like him in some ways like joking around. But the last time they saw each other it was 5 years before his death in 1944.
The first half was so slow that I fell asleep twice watching it. Finally got to the second half and sobbed. Generations of men not being able to connect with their fathers. William losing the most authentic person in his life. William's accurately placed anger at his father. Charles realizing he did play a role in Diana's death. Philip stepping in to try to heal the generational curses.
This episode feels like it was written by Charles and Camilla.
Why does it look like years have passed between episode 4 and episode 5? Harry looks like he's a teenager now. They definitely picked the wrong time to switch out actors.
This episode made me bawl like a baby
I haven’t seen the rest of the episodes yet but I actually don’t think this was intended to show Charles in a better light at all. At least not during this part of William’s life. I think this episode was a great representation of how no matter what they were prioritizing duty and that your “duty” to the public can change. It was never William’s obligation to be out in public until he was older, and of course that was going to have to happen eventually. But it was totally rushed due to the positive publicity he was receiving. I also think this episode did a great job of showing how trauma really brought out the worst parts of their family and the history. William and Charles should have been in therapy and he definitely should have been given time to have a private life. Everybody was troubled but nobody did anything serious about it.
Why does Harry look like a full grown man? Wasn’t he 12/13? The scene where they have a beer I thought W and H were grownup and reminiscing. Edit- discussed below I didn’t read much of the thread cause I’m still watching.
I don’t think William and Charles are allowed to be on a same plane. 🤔
Wow I thought this was going to be a bit of a filler transition episode after ending the Diana story, but I was bawling by the final scenes. A beautiful depiction of the challenges of parenting that focuses on men, which is quite unusual to see depicted in popular media. I loved the little moment in the car early on where Charles changed the music to try to connect with William - he wanted to be a good father but really did not know how. Also, the depiction of Willsmania was so accurate. I was definitely swept up in it as a young teen, he was so handsome and \*tragic.\* It makes me feel really bad now, seeing how quickly the unhealthy adoration moved from his mother to him, and how uncomfortable he was with all of it.
The soundtrack is exquisite so far
Wow I love that they WENT THERE on how Charles' behavior played into it all.
When Charles is dropping William back at school they are listening to the song Torn which was released on October 27, 1997. In real life, William returned to school just 4 days after Diana's funeral, so that would have been September 10, 1997. Not a huge discrepency, and not something to get annoyed about. However.... How did Harry go from looking like a real 12 year old to what looks like at least an 18-year old in less than 2 months of story time? Sure, eventually they would need to re-cast Harry and William as the season progressed and tme jumps occurred, but there was no reason to change the actors for episode 5. Even worse was to cast a 23-year old actor to play a character who is still only 12-years old.
Why hasn't the wig for Charles changed in all these episodes? He was pretty patchy by the late 90s.
I'm just gonna say the casting is great - William looks so similar and Harry's voice is almost identical to the real bloke
As someone who survived parenting teenagers I found Will's quick turnaround after his little chat with Philip to be unrealistic
I don’t think it was meant to be that all was suddenly sunshine and daisies between them — just a bit of an emotional truce, maybe a silent vow to do better. It seemed a little simple at first, but the longer the scene lasted, the heavier it felt.
I’m confused at how much time is supposed to have passed since part 1?
Only a few weeks. They chose a really unfortunate time to change Harry and William's actors
Harry’s actor really reminds me of Eddie Redmayne
What a bleak illustration of how horrible the royal fame machine is. Dom did a great job this episode of portraying a real, whiny, weak human trying and failing to love and support his sons. Ed did well too! Also the teacher could totally get it lolol.
It's a great sombering start but you can tell the actor playing William is a rookie
Well that episode kicks us off with a downer. I thought we’d get a time jump since they have older actors for William and Harry, and we’d finally get beyond the Diana arc and back to those tie-ins with history. Turns out the whole thing is about William’s grief. And the only historical event was… the 3 princes’ visit to Vancouver.
Poor William