Netflix’s The Crown has always portrayed the royal family in sometimes not the best light. That is especially true for the latest season, with welcomed Princess Diana and Margaret Thatcher into the story.
Thatcher is portrayed as anti-feminist and self-serving, while Diana is portrayed as a young girl who is neglected and abused by her husband and his family.
While watching any piece of history on film, stage, and television, it is known that certain creative license is used to create a certain narrative and to sometimes spice up a storyline. The Crown is no exception to this. While it’s true that real people and events are being shown, there are definitely moments that have either been altered or fabricated to lend to the series’ story.
However, Secretary Oliver Dowden does not believe that simply expecting viewers to understand that is enough. He is worried that many viewers will take the show at face value and believe that they are watching more of a reality than a work of fiction.
“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,” he told the British newspaper the Mail on Sunday. “Without this, I fear a generation of viewers who did not live through these events may mistake fiction for fact.”
Dowden has also requested that Netflix add a “health warning” before each episode, similar to already existing warnings about nudity, language, and portrayals of Diana’s eating disorder.
Netflix has not responded as of yet to the comment and request.
