'The Crown': Top moments from the Netflix drama
Created by Peter Morgan, the six-season Netflix historical drama series The Crown is one of the most popular series on the Royal Family. With 21 Primetime Emmys, it offers an intimate and visually stunning portrayal of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, tracing her life from her early days on the throne to contemporary events. Ahead of its finale, check out its best moments.
Prince Philip and the moon landing in S03
A pivotal episode unfolds in the third season's seventh episode as Prince Philip watches the historic 1969 lunar landing on television. Filled with a sense of cosmic wonder and personal reflection, it culminates with Philip's deep existential crisis. Frustrated, lost, and pondering on all his missed ambitions as the Queen's consort, he requests a room full of priests to help him find his faith.
Prince Charles's Welsh speech in S03
The sixth episode of the third season is one of The Crown's iconic moments. Against his will and going against his passion for art, Charles takes Welsh lessons and delivers a speech that shows vocal resistance in the Royal Family. While Charles feels a high after his rousing speech, the confrontation with his mother that follows brings him back to reality.
Queen's inability to weep in S03
In the third episode of the third season, a powerful moment unfolds when the Queen (Olivia Colman) opens up about her emotional struggles. After delaying her visit to Aberfan's horrific mining disaster, she speaks to then-Prime Minister Harold Wilson and admits her long-term inability to cry. Following an impactful analogy from Wilson, she puts on a funeral carol and forces herself to cry.
Queen's delayed coronation in S01
The best moments of the series The Crown will of course be incomplete with the mention of the Queen's coronation. This significant event captures the weight of her responsibilities and the complexities of her reign. It faced a delay of 16 months and several resistances including the then-UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill's citing of economic crisis and Philip's refusal to bow, among others.
Prince Philip bows to the Queen, his wife in S01
In the first season of The Crown, an emotionally charged moment unfolds when Philip grapples with the tradition of bowing to the Queen before her coronation. He asks if Elizabeth is his wife or his queen. To which, the Queen replies, "I am both, and a strong man would be able to kneel to both." Philip eventually bows during the ceremony.
Queen Mary bows to Elizabeth in S01
In the second episode of the first season of The Crown, Queen Mary bows to her granddaughter Elizabeth in an all-black mourning garb just a few days after King George VI's death making for an exceptionally powerful moment. This poignant moment symbolizes the incredible power dynamics as the torch passes on, where the old generation acknowledges the ascension of the new.
