The Crown. Elisabeth II. Her life. Her crown.
All premises about Netflix’s last show “The Crown” (launching today, 4th of November) are very good and we can’t wait to jump into this new adventure. If you have never heard of the series or if you want to savor some curiosities before diving in, read on!
Here the 8 things to know about the show:
1) “The Crown” tells the story and the secrets of Queen Elizabeth II, the beginning of her reign, the intrigues and hidden political rivalries behind the major events that shaped the second half of the twentieth century. But, more than the political intrigue, the show will open a window on the personal emotions of the Queen while living those moments. It’s the first time that a series brings to light personal matters about the marriage and the family of Queen Elizabeth II.
Actor Matt Smith who plays Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, said: “This series puts them naked, gives a chance to see them like vulnerable human beings”. Monarchy and politics then will be just be the background of an intense and very intimate story.
2) Clare Foy plays the Queen, but she’s not new to costumes: indeed very recently she interpreted Anne Boleyn in the hit TV series “Wolf Hall”. Matt Smith (Prince Philip) was the star of the TV series “Doctor Who” as Time Lord.
3) For “The Crown” Netflix wanted to bring together the team that had worked on the biopic, “The Queen”, for which Helen Mirren won the Oscar. Screenwriter Peter Morgan and producer Andy Harries have therefore worked closely with the director of “The Crown” Stephen Daldry (also director of Billy Elliott).
4) The TV series is now on the top of the list of most expensive series ever made by Netflix (more than 100 million Euros). And this is due to the great attention to detail that the director wanted to report. And one of the ways in which he did it was through the costumes. Producer Andrew Eaton said: “The costumes had to be perfect: all the details, clothes and uniforms”. And costume designer Michele Clapton couldn’t agree more: she wanted to respect the accuracy of the details so everything was historically accurate.
5) The most fascinating scenes are far from luxurious clothes and events. We are talking about the most intimate moments, those that take place “behind the scenes”, in the bedroom where the Queen sleeps and where she is simply herself. And this was on of the biggest challenge for the costume designer: trying to make the characters “human” and simple through the costumes they wore, those behind the doors. And this is one of the reasons why, according to the cast, “The Crown” has a true and unique atmosphere.
6) For the show were created 350 major costumes and any “walk-on actor” (they were around 7,000) had 4/5 costumes each. Around 40 costume designers were always present on the set, and sometimes up to a 100 during the most crowded scenes.
7) The wedding dress, a perfect replica of the real one, had a machining of six weeks by 6 seamstresses to reach the beauty of the real embroidery. They say that at the end the dress cost more than the original one worn by the Queen. All dresses were created by the crew, except one of the coronation. That dress was made for a Swarovski exhibition.
8) Another important character of the story is Princess Margaret, the sister of Queen Elizabeth II portrayed by Vanessa Kirby. She was the biggest style icon of the 50s and 60s in England and she were used to design her own clothes, dictating the style of the moment. And here, through the costumes, they want to emphasize the difference between the two sisters.
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