Other Doctor Lives: The Crown: Season 1, Episode 10 – “Gloriana” (2016)

Season 1 finale. Big goings-on that suggest big shakeups going forward (I assume? I know that season 3 jumps ahead in time with new, older cast members, but I’m guessing season 2 follows more directly from where we are now? I guess I’ll find out next week.) We also get a larger appearance from Jeremy Northam, a.k.a. my favorite Mr. Knightley in Emma, as Anthony Eden (a couple spoilers that additionally reference events from episode 6, “Gelignite.”)

Margaret is relieved for the arrival of her 25^th birthday – when the scandal of her relationship with Peter threatened the royal family, it was agreed that the couple would separate until she turned 25, at which point they could marry without requiring Elizabeth’s permission (meaning, they wouldn’t need Elizabeth to overrule the Church on their behalf.) However, when the big day comes, a bombshell is dropped on Elizabeth that threatens that arrangement, and she’s left torn between her responsibility as queen as her promise to her sister. Elizabeth’s mother suggests that sending Phillip away for a few months will help him finally “settle” into his role as royal consort, but Phillip of course resents the idea of being managed.

Obviously, the big news of the day is all the fervor over Margaret and Peter, and the barriers that stand to pit sister against sister. It’s a shame that one of the big themes of this season is how powerless Elizabeth actually is as queen. Despite being the head of the government, we’ve repeatedly seen how men in her circle (from Parliament to her own husband) dismiss her or keep her out of the loop, and when it comes to intervening in matters both political and personal, she’s forever confronted by this tradition or that principle. Part of it is down to sexism, but not all of it; the idea of the monarch holds so much weight that the monarch herself gets lost in the shuffle. Given all that we’ve seen, I get why Elizabeth’s mother still holds a grudge against David for abdicating and forcing such a heavy duty onto George VI.

As such, it’s frustrating to see Elizabeth again being boxed into a corner. There are some strong points here – I like seeing the dynamic between her and Eden, and there’s a great scene toward the end where Elizabeth reaches out to an unlikely source for counsel – but on the whole, I think there are some diminishing returns on this story. I’m hoping to see some real movement next season, on multiple fronts.

And Phillip – sigh. It strikes me that his stance on any given subject is whatever will make it most difficult for Elizabeth at that particular moment. Case in point: Margaret and Peter. Back when they first learned of the relationship, while Elizabeth promised to help her sister, Phillip was all, “But he’s divorced, and a commoner!” Now that Elizabeth fears that parliamentary rules will prevent her from keeping her promise, he’s all aboard the Margaret/Peter train and derisively suggests that Elizabeth look at the situation as a human being instead of a queen for like just one second, thank you very much.

As I said, the finale seems to suggest big changes on the horizon, and I’m not quite sure what that will mean for Phillip. The fact that we’ll be going into a new season gives me a glimmer of hope, but based on how things have shaken out so far, I’m not holding my breath. I’m trying to articulate why this character frustrates me so much. After all, I’ve seen plenty of actors I like play unlikable characters and enjoy it, particularly if they play those characters well, like Matt Smith does here. Maybe it’s because it so goes against my expectations of what this role would be (a byproduct of my neglible knowledge about the royals? Quite possibly.) I formed much of my initial opinion about Phillip based on the heart-to-heart that George VI has with him in the pilot, telling Phillip that his most important job moving forward will be to support Elizabeth. At the time, it seemed like Phillip listened to that and understood it, and that’s what I figured his journey was going to be. And I of course didn’t expect that journey to be perfect, but it feels like Phillip hasn’t even made it as far as “one step forward, two steps back.” Instead, he’s been going back pretty steadily, occasionally turning around to look at the way forward before continuing down his same path. It’s a historical show, so it’s not like the series has carte blanche to do whatever they want with Phillip, but for me, this trajectory has been disappointing.