What crisis? Popularity of Royals INCREASES despite
controversial The Crown 'hatchet job'
THE ROYAL Family's popularity has increased despite
the Crown's "hatchet job" on the royals, new data has revealed.
By BILL
MCLOUGHLIN
PUBLISHED:
09:11, Sun, Dec 6, 2020 | UPDATED: 13:45, Sun, Dec 6, 2020
Controversy
was sparked in the last few weeks following the release of the TV series which
depicted a dire relationship between Prince Charles and Diana. Due to this,
there had been concern the depiction of the relationship, and alleged treatment
from some royals toward Diana, would damage the popularity of the Royal Family.
Former Buckingham Palace press secretary, Dickie Arbiter, criticised the
depiction of Diana and Charles in the show.
“You have
to ask, is it necessary?"
Despite the
uproar, research from Focaldata shows the royals’ popularity has improved by 35
percent.
In the
data, a further 42 percent claimed their impression of the pair had remained
the same following the series.
Only five percent stated their opinion had “worsened a
lot”, while 18 percent stated it had “worsened a bit”.
In the
series, Charles was shown to have a cold and distant relationship with his
then-wife.
Despite
that, the data reported by The Sunday Times showed 34 percent of the 1,023
asked revealed their opinion had improved of Charles.
A further
39 percent said their opinion had remained the same of the royal.
Just a
quarter of those surveyed claimed their opinion of Charles had become more
negative following the series.
Charles and
Camilla's Clarence House Twitter account has been forced to filter responses
due to the abuse it has received.
Clarence
House has not officially commented on the matter but when looking at their
Twitter account, only those which the profile follows or mentions may comment on
posts.
There have
also been calls for a disclaimer message to be added to the series stating that
some events had been dramatised.
Royal news: Helena Bonham Carter claimed the series
may need a disclaimer
Helena Bonham Carter, who depicts Princess Margaret,
also claimed the series has a responsibility to state it is a drama and not a
historical documentary.
She told the official podcast of the series: “It is
dramatised.
“I do feel very strongly because I think we have a
moral responsibility to say hang on guys, it's not a drama doc, we're making a
drama.
Emma Corrin, who played Diana in the series, also admitted the cast attempts to show how fictionalised the series is in.
Culture
Secretary Oliver Dowden also spoke of the need to state the fiction of certain
parts of the series.
He told the
Mail on Sunday: “'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.
“Without
this, I fear a generation of viewers who did not live through these events may
mistake fiction for fact.”
Netflix has 'no plans' to add disclaimer that The
Crown is work of fiction
Statement comes after the UK culture secretary said he
was going to write to company to request caveat
Guardian
staff and agencies
Sun 6 Dec
2020 19.41 GMT
Netflix has
said it has no plans to add a disclaimer to The Crown stating that the hit
series is a work of fiction, after the UK culture secretary said he was going
to write to request such a caveat.
In a
statement on Saturday, Netflix said: “We have always presented The Crown as a
drama and we have every confidence our members understand it’s a work of
fiction that’s broadly based on historical events.
“As a
result we have no plans, and see no need, to add a disclaimer.”
Oliver
Dowden urged the company last week to add a note stressing that The Crown was a
drama, following complaints about the historical accuracy of the fourth and
latest season, which is set in 1980s.
Dowden told
the Mail on Sunday that the series was “a beautifully produced work of fiction”
but he was concerned that a generation of viewers who did not live through the
events depicted may mistake it for fact.
Some
Conservatives have criticised the programme’s depiction of Margaret Thatcher,
played by Gillian Anderson. They say it exaggerates the extent to which she
clashed with the Queen, played by Olivia Colman.
Accusations
of inaccuracies in Peter Morgan’s production span from repeatedly showing the
Queen “wrongly dressed for trooping the colour” to disputes over Charles’s
fishing technique.
The biggest
bones of contention, however, have been over the depiction of Prince Charles’
marriage to Diana. He is portrayed phoning Camilla Parker Bowles every day in
the early years of the marriage, and Diana is depicted as forcing plans for the
couple’s trip to Australia to be changed after throwing a tantrum.
Writing in
the Guardian, Simon Jenkins accused the fourth season of having “upped the
fabrication and the offence”. Arguing that modern history was “too close to
what should be sacred ground, bearing witness to passing events”, he wrote that
artistic licence could not justify fabrications that showed living or recently
dead people in the worst possible light.
Charles
Spencer, Diana’s brother, was among those calling on Netflix to add a
disclaimer. He told ITV: “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,’. I worry people do think that this is gospel
and that’s unfair.”
Helena
Bonham Carter, who plays Princess Margaret in the series, has said The Crown
has “a moral responsibility” to say it is a drama and not a drama-documentary.
The Crown
has also been praised for presenting the royal family as “real people”. Others
have pointed out that Charles’ and Diana’s infidelity and marital problems are
well recorded, including in interviews they both gave.
Morgan has
defended his work, saying it is thoroughly researched and true in spirit.
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