The Crown Star Sir Jonathan Pryce Recalls His 'Awkward' Encounter With Princess Anne

The Crown, has garnered positive response from critics and audience but the show has also faced criticism for its portrayal of the Royal Family and considered dramatised rendition of historical events by palace officials. On the other hand, Dame Judi Dench has also shared her concerns and cautioned viewers about mistaking the show for factual history. One ongoing question about the series revolves around whether members of the royal family have watched it. Actor Jonathan Pryce, playing Prince Philip in the show, recently confirmed that the royal family indeed watches the series. Once, when the actor met Princess Anne, he felt like extending an apology to the Princess.

Pryce shared his experience with Deadline, however, there was a moment of uncertainty when Anne’s response left Pryce unsure if she understood the reason behind his apology.

He recalled, “One of our cast met one of the royal family who intimated that they watched it. When I was made a knight and went to Windsor and it was Princess Anne who dubbed me and I was in the middle of playing her father and there’d been intimations that she’d seen some of it. And so she put the sword lightly on the shoulder and I stood up and I said, thinking she was thinking, you know, I said, ‘Oh, I don’t know what to say to you…um…sorry? And she said, ‘Why? It’s done now’. Now, whether she meant I was saying sorry for being here tonight or sorry for, y’know, you’ve played my father and it’s done the way you’ve done it, it’s, you know, whatever. It was quite an amusing moment, for me at least.”

Meanwhile, even before Jonathan Pryce joined The Crown, he met numerous members of the royal family. He has even received a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in 2009 and was knighted by Princess Anne in 2021. Pryce isn’t the only cast from the show who has received royal honours. His co-stars Imelda Staunton and Lesley Manville were both awarded CBEs before joining the show.

According to Cinema Blend, someone close to the situation mentioned that Queen Camilla Bowles and King Charles have watched The Crown. However, Charles had watched it for some time but stopped around Season 4 when the story reached closer to his life. There were also rumours that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wished the show would end before the makers explore their love story in the series.