Real or Fake?

Season 4 Of 'The Crown': What Is Fact and What Is Fiction?

The fourth season of the successful series The Crown has recently been streaming on Netflix. While some are eagerly watching the drama surrounding the British royal family, others are wondering what is really true. We'll tell you what was invented and what really happened.

Prince Charles (72) and Lady Diana (†36) come to the forefront of the new season of The Crown. Their turbulent relationship is the perfect material for an exciting story on television.

However, critics are criticizing the drastic portrayal of Charles in the series, in which he does not come across very well. We'll tell you which events really happened and which were fictitious.

The Crown: What Really Happened?

Princess Diana (Emma Corrin) and Prince Charles (Josh O'Connor) meet for the first time in The Crown at the Spencer family's Althorp estate. Charles sees his future wife dancing through the hallways disguised as a tree. In the series, she rehearsed for the Shakespeare play A Midsummer Night's Dream.

In reality, however, that wasn't quite the case. The two met at Althorp, but Diana was not in costume. The first meeting is said to have taken place while walking in a field, as Charles and Diana announced in their engagement interview.

In the series, Diana and Camilla (Emerald Fennell) met for lunch. In reality, too, there should have been a common meal. As the documentary Diana: In Her Own Words reveals, Diana received a letter from Camilla inviting the future Princess to dinner.

Duchess Camilla is portrayed in The Crown by Emerald Fennell

One of the seemingly craziest scenes is the one in which Diana is roller-skating through Buckingham Palace. The makers of The Crown are convinced that this really happened. However, this has not been proven. Diana's actress Emma Corrin reveals in an interview with Sky News: "I think she [really] did do that."

The Crown: Are the stories about Diana correct?

The Crown viewers were probably a bit surprised when Diana danced to "Uptown Girl" in the London Opera House. But that should actually have happened in real life. In 1985 she secretly rehearsed with the dancer Wayne Sleep (72) and performed as a surprise for Charles' birthday in front of a huge audience.

In the series, Charles was not at all enthusiastic about Diana's performance, especially because Diana was back in the limelight. Royal expert Richard Kay confirmed to The Sun and stated that Charles was allegedly not impressed at all.

Also, Diana's eating disorder is depicted in the Netflix series and plays a crucial role. In reality, the royal also struggled with this disease. In an interview with the BBC in 1995, Diana stated: "It was a symptom of what was going on in my marriage. I was crying out for help, but giving the wrong signals."

"The Crown": Josh O'Connor as Prince Charles and Emma Corrin as Lady Diana

In the series, Princess Margaret openly speaks out against the marriage of Charles and Diana. But that should be made up. Helena Bonham Carter, who plays Princess Margaret, is said to have come up with this idea herself.

Prince Philip (Tobias Menzies) and Charles see Lord Mountbatten, alias "Dickie" (Charles Dance) in The Crown as a father figure. After his death, Philip confesses to his son that he was a little jealous of the good relationship between "Dickie" and Charles.

In truth, there should not have been such a sentimental conversation and Philip never saw "Dickie" as a father substitute. Ingrid Seward quotes Prince Philip in her biography Prince Philip Revealed as follows: "Mountbatten certainly had an influence on the course of my life, but not so much on my ideas and attitudes. I suspect he tried too hard to make himself a son out of me."

Netflix's The Crown

Even if not everything that is portrayed in The Crown is true, the fans still love the series about the British royals. Even Duchess Camilla is reportedly watching the new season of the series and is a fan.