Elizabeth asks Philip if he is the mystery man and confronts him with Ulanova's portrait. A self-named "fanthropologist," she's a fantasy, sci-fi, and superhero nerd with a penchant for pop cultural analysis. Hitler liked the idea of working with the duke, who had an affinity for the Germans and an ax to grind in Britain. In real life, Mountbatten did hold considerable influence over Philip and acted as a father figure after the future Duke of Edinburgh was sent to live with the Mountbatten family when he was 7. The Crown is back and god save the queen. Did he really suggest more German bombing of Britain might end World War II? "I doubt Prince Philip ever spoke those words to his wife because he came from a royal house which had borrowed so much of its ritual and protocol from the British Royal Family," expert Christopher Wilson told the Daily Mail, referring to the tense scene on the Crown. Historians have taken issue with the show's decision to implicate the royal family in this event. Maria Mercedes Lara is the Digital Content Operations Director for PEOPLE, where she oversees content management and editorial workflow for the digital team as well as focus on increasing growth through PEOPLE's newsletters, homepage and notification audiences. This subreddit is a place to discuss the series and more that relate to the topic. The Crown is a fictional drama series inspired by real events and tells the story of Queen Elizabeth II and the political and personal events that shaped her reign. For starters, the Queen Mother didn't like Lord Mountbatten so the two of them plotting anything together is unlikely. Queen Elizabeth II and Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten on the Isle of Wight in 1965, three years before the alleged coup. The Profumo Affair was a scandal that developed in March 1963. The ping-pong ball remains on the coronet to this day. What to know. Stephen Ward, who takes his life in this episode, died in August 1963. Princess Margaret and Roddy Llewellyn snapped by paparazzi in February 1978. The shiny orb on top of it is actually a gold plated ping-pong ball. Profumo denies everything and Macmillan tells his wife later that he The Crown Season 5 introduces billionaire Mohamed al-Fayed and his son, Dodi. The Crown is a blend of fact and fiction, inspired by true events, royal historian Carolyn Harris, author of Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting, told Finally, the four-year time jump in "Cri de Cour" obscures one of the most important events in Princess Anne, Queen Elizabeth II's daughter's, life in the 1970s. British audiences might be more familiar with the famous scandal than American audiences, so here's why this fictionalization is so provocative. Philip's closeness with his uncle, Lord Mountbatten (Greg Wise), is the cause of some courtier rumblings on The Crown, mostly because they don't want to see the Mountbatten family take over the Windsors. Listen to a great history story every day. Perhaps the decision was motivated by the desire to connect historical events more closely to the central cast, or to create more strife in the marriage between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. Pretty salacious stuff! The moon landing astronauts did visit Buckingham Palace, but Prince Philip probably didn't request extra time with them and never publicly shared his thoughts on their intellectual acumen. The two met at a hous Not one has lasted the course. Episode 01: Marie Antoinette. Maria currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband and two children. In 1952, Elizabeth announced that her children would use the last name of "Windsor" when needed, although, in 1958, she quietly changed the name to "Mountbatten-Windsor," perhaps a sign that the exclusion of his last name had become a sore spot for Philip. The Crown: When Diana Spencer is introduced at a family gathering at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, she and Philip bond over a day of stag hunting and he supports her marriage to Charles. ), The Crown implies that Stephen Ward and Prince Philip were connected via the infamous Profumo Affair, which doesn't help matters between him and his queen. Episode 9: Gilded Age Heiresses. He then gave an academic wink. Honestly, this family is a mess. Whether or not the Queen knew that Mountbatten was in such a meeting is unclear, but historian Andrew Lownie writes in his book The Mountbattens: Their Lives & Loves that she was instrumental in dissuading him from engaging in "rank treachery." "Moondust" is one of The Crown's better episodes because it uses a real event, the moon landing, to shine a light on the show's interpretation of Prince Philip's internal life. The idea that Lord Mountbatten was asked to join and lead a coup against PM Harold Wilson floated around for years, but some still consider it to be one of many conspiracy theories surrounding Wilson's two terms (see above, where some people wrongfully thought he was a Soviet spy). So much for shooting pheasant at Balmoral. 16K views, 545 likes, 471 loves, 3K comments, 251 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from EWTN: Starting at 8 a.m. Hitler, by then, was German chancellor a vehement anti-Semite taking an ever tightening and violent hold on the country. The only firm evidence which they provide is of what the Germans were trying to do in the matter, and of how completely they failed to do it.. Sweet referenced the statement at the end of his paper. (Bustle has reached out to the royal family for comment, but did not receive a response). That part is all mostly true, but The Crown manufactures extra tension around Blunt's confession and the 1964 election of PM Harold Wilson. Churchills powerful fight on the beaches speech: The words few people actually heard. A little dash of history, a little dash of royal imagination. . Ward commits suicide before a verdict is reached, after which the police find a hand-drawn portrait of Philip among his belongings. RELATED VIDEO: Five Things to Know About the Royal Family's Jewels. The Daily Mail also reports that biographer Margaret Holder believes that the episode had gone beyond what was a matter of public record, as the piece paraphrases. Be sure to check out the rules and our wiki for useful information and resources! Mystery Man Episode aired Dec 8, 2017 TV-MA 59m IMDb RATING 8.3 /10 3.9K YOUR RATING Rate Biography Drama History A salacious government scandal Emperor Hirohito of Japan, the Duchess of Windsor, Empress Nagako, and the Duke of Windsor at the Duke's chateau in October 1971. Yet though that might hold true for rumors of Philip's infidelities, it seems that most historians agree that The Crown's decision to create a closer relationship between Philip and Ward than the historical record shows was perhaps a step too far. Season In said meeting, Prince Charles pretty overtly takes Majors temperature on whether the Queen (his own mother!) Captain Andrew Parker Bowles and Camilla Shand got married on July 4th, 1973. Credit: Frank Barratt/Keystone/Getty Images. In 1937, the Duke of Windsor, Prince Edward married American socialite and divorcee Wallis Warfield Simpson, for whom Edward had abdicated the British throne. In the case of the Nazis, viewers have had plenty to Google. While some elements like the Duke and Duchess of Windsor's frosty relationship with the royal family and Princess Margaret's romance with the dashing Peter Townsend are true, several key elements of the series are either totally made up or exaggerated for dramatic effect. Speeding NASA spacecraft snaps photos of the most mysterious asteroids around, 5 planets will light the sky in rare astronomical event this week. Documents published by the British government this year detailed Churchills efforts. While Philip did push back against tradition on family issues like his children's last names and their education, he would have understood and respected the significance of kneeling in front of Elizabeth at her coronation and also likely balked at the breech of protocol as a royal himself. Time period Stephen Ward, who also appears as a character in The Crown, was an osteopath and the one who introduced Keeler to Profumo. He longed to be given responsibilities, but his mother refused. Next Produced by Will Reid and Michael Simon Johnson. This episode dramatizes the filming of Royal Family, a documentary that aired on the BBC and ITV in 1969. He's labeled Mystery Man. As also referenced on The Crown, Mountbatten's wife, Lady Mountbatten (Linda Peters), had an affair with famed Indian prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. How to take control when eco-anxiety strikes. Elizabeth Was the duke a Nazi sympathizer? (All true.) The Crown Discussion Thread: S02E10 Season 2 Episode 10: Mystery Man A salacious government scandal hits close to home for Elizabeth and Philip. Episode 2 Laura Ingalls Wilder. By the time Blunt was given up by American agent Michael Straight, he had retired from intelligence and worked in Buckingham Palace as Surveyor of the Queen's Pictures. Royal Family was last shown in 1972, to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's 20th anniversary, and has not been broadcast since. Robert Lacey's Monarch: The Life and Reign of Elizabeth II suggests that the Queen viewed gestures like visiting disaster sites as overly performative, since there was little she could constructively do for the people of Aberfan. A confederacy of elected quitters. Ward was accused of pimping out women, and newspapers at the time claimed he was running a "vice ring," according to The New York Times. From hair trends to relationship advice, our daily newsletter has everything you need to sound like a person whos on TikTok, even if you arent. Like her uncle, she was given the option to give up royal life (and her royal income and titles) if she still wanted to marry Townsend, but she instead chose to end things, a fact Townsend later referred to in his 1978 autobiography Time and Chance. Margaret was indeed aware of their involvement and met Roddy Llewellyn at a house party in 1973. The duke denies everything. But its the issues raised in Episode 6 this season that are truly jaw-dropping. Later series of the show have reiterated this point, with Josh O'Connor, who plays a young Prince Charles, telling Town & Country that "We are creating a work of fiction, albeit based in some reality. Margaret did overdose on sleeping pills, but it was after Roddy traveled to Turkey without her and didn't coincide with her divorce from Lord Snowdon in 1978 or with the 1977 Jubilee. Eh, not really. AKA: The Crown, . We might want one in England before long., Local news, weather, sports, events, restaurants and more. Its impressionistic, but its based on as much fact as we can gather.. Elizabeth gives birth to Prince Edward on 10 March 1964. Previous Fast-forward to 1952, and we quickly learn that things haven't exactly been warm between Edward and the rest of his family. A vast majority of what makes 'The Crown' so good is present in "Mystery Man" and while it is a long way from being one of the best episodes it is definitely worth watching. From his youth, Sweet wrote, Edward had manifested a fondness for the German language and culture. But his feelings went way beyond that, the historian says, citing diaries of former diplomats and others who knew him: The dukes leanings were passed on through spy channels to Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, who is depicted in The Crown as having an affair with Simpson. Written by There wasnt a camera in there recording these things. Fortunately, he wrote, publication of the documents permits readers to decide for themselves whether the evidence supports this official interpretation.. Elizabeth's obvious excitement and blushes around Porchie leads to fight with Philip, causing her to declare that while many people wanted her to marry Porchie, she fell in love with Philip, and he's the only man she's ever loved. That gold orb on top of his crown is a ping-pong ball. Russell Baker, who would go on to become a famous columnist, wrote the front-page story for the New York Times, describing the papers as of dubious validity., Whether the reports on the Duke of Windsor accurately reflected his thinking at the time, Baker wrote, or whether they were merely . He was notorious for his high society connections and lavish parties, according to Vulture. Fact-checking The Crown: Jackie Kennedy vs. Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace Cheers, Prince Harry! Jeter Downs needs to play to develop. When the affair was uncovered, Britain's domestic intelligence agency MI5 thought that Keeler's affair with both of these men may have created a dangerous security breach, the NYT reports.