Charles Spencer feels that Netflix needs to be more transparent when it comes to the reality of The Crown! As People shares, Princess Diana's brother opened up about why he finds it problematic that the streaming service hasn't acknowledged its hit royal drama is ultimately a work of fiction.
Spencer says The Crown is "playing fast and loose with history"
Spencer appeared on ITV's Lorraine last week, where he emphasized the necessity of a disclaimer for The Crown. "I think it would help The Crown an enormous amount if at the beginning of each episode it stated that 'this isn’t true but it is based around some real events,' he explained. "Because then everyone would understand it’s drama for drama's sake." And given the show's popularity, he's especially concerned about this distinction.
"This is a hugely globally significant series, and for any movie that does this, you know, it’s playing fast and loose with history without saying that . . . You just have to be honest with the consumer," he went on to say. "I worry people do think that this is gospel and that’s unfair. If we buy something in the supermarket we can look on the packet and see what we are getting."
Spencer also unhappy with show's portrayal of his grandmother
Spencer admitted that while he hasn't actively been keeping up with The Crown himself, he has "caught a couple episodes in the past" and his wife Karen does watch the show. While season 4 of the royal drama has come under fire for a scene between Prince Philip and Princess Diana that suggests Philip's involvement in Diana's death, the Princess of Wales' brother also has another criticism of it!
"What I do know with the current episode of The Crown which I found very upsetting is that my Scottish grandmother was portrayed in this particularly unpleasant way and that’s not what she was like," Spencer shared, referring to Ruth Roche, also known as Lady Fermoy. "Do you know, my grandmother may be long gone, sadly, but she still has a daughter alive and still has ten grandchildren alive. Is it fair for people to be destroyed in that way? I don’t think so really."
Spencer previously spoke out about his concerns surrounding The Crown on another British television program, expressing his fear that people would "forget that it is fiction". U.K. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden also echoed Spencer's thoughts about including a disclaimer when he spoke to "It's a beautifully produced work of fiction, so as with other TV productions, Netflix should be very clear at the beginning it is just that," Dowden said. "Without this, I fear a generation of viewers who did not live through these events may mistake fiction for fact.”
"The sheer dishonesty of what I've seen..."
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