David Farnor | On 13, Nov 2019

The Crown returns to Netflix for a third season this weekend, and when it does, people will be able to start watching it for free, even without a subscription.

Season 3 of the hit Netflix show sees a new guard sweep into Downing Street and Buckingham Palace, as Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) and her family struggle to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing Britain. From cold-war paranoia through to the jet-set and the space age – the exuberance of the 1960s and the long hangover of the 1970s – Elizabeth and the Royals must adapt to a new, more liberated, but also more turbulent world.

With the newly cast Colman joined by Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret, Tobias Menzies as The Duke of Edinburgh, Josh O’Connor as Prince Charles, Erin Doherty as Princess Anne, Ben Daniels as Lord Snowdon, Jason Watkins as Prime Minister Harold Wilson and Charles Dance as Lord Mountbatten, it’s almost like the start of a new show, as Netflix effectively reboots it one generation on.

Perhaps to help overcome any uncertainty among fans, Netflix will release the first episode of the new season for free in the UK and Ireland. The episode will be available on its own site from Sunday 17th November until 15th December. The move comes as Netflix faces competition not only from Apple TV+ but also BritBox, a streaming service featuring BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 programmes. With The Crown being the first Netflix original produced and filmed in Britain, it’s a statement of intent from Netflix that it can do British productions too.

“The Crown has become a globally renowned British success story since it first launched on Netflix three years ago,” a Netflix spokesman told Variety. “We want to give as many people as possible a flavor of the great content Netflix is creating here in the UK, by offering the first installment of the new series without signing up.”

Watch: Full trailer for The Crown Season 3

21st October 2019

The third season of The Crown is only a matter of weeks away now, and the first full trailer gives us a glimpse at the royal drama’s new incarnation.

Season 3 of the hit Netflix show sees a new guard sweep into Downing Street and Buckingham Palace, as Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) and her family struggle to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing Britain. From cold-war paranoia, through to the jet-set and the space age – the exuberance of the 1960s and the long hangover of the 1970s – Elizabeth and the Royals must adapt to a new, more liberated, but also more turbulent world.

Written by Peter Morgan, The Crown also stars Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret, Tobias Menzies as The Duke of Edinburgh, Josh O’Connor as Prince Charles, Erin Doherty as Princess Anne, Ben Daniels as Lord Snowdon, Jason Watkins as Prime Minister Harold Wilson and Charles Dance as Lord Mountbatten.

The new season debuts on Netflix on 17th November. Here’s the trailer:

 

First look: Charles and Camilla in The Crown Season 3

2nd October 2019

It’s not long now until The Crown returns to our screens, and the first image of two of its new stars has now landed: yes, it’s time for us to see exactly how Charles and Camilla will be portrayed.

Played by God’s Own Country star Josh O’Connor and Call the Midwife’s Emerald Fennell, the young Prince Charles and the young Camilla Parker Bowles (then Camilla Shand) will be part of the show’s major shift away from Season 1 and 2. Season 3 will continue to tell the story of the royal family through new decades of history, and, as part of that, will move the focus to the younger generation of the family.

The image, published by movie mag Empire, follows the first trailer featuring Olivia Colman, who is taking over from Claire Foy as Queen Elizabeth II. She is joined by Jason Watkins as Harold Wilson, Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip, Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret, Ben Daniels as Tony Armstrong-Jones and Marion Bailey as The Queen Mother.

The new season debuts on Netflix on 17th November. Here’s the photo – read on below for the video.

 

Watch: First trailer for The Crown Season 3

20th September 2019

It’s all change on Netflix’s The Crown, as Olivia Colman steps into Claire Foy’s royal shoes for Season 3 of the Netflix drama – and the first trailer for the show’s return addresses that subject head-on.

Colman’s Queen Elizabeth II will be joined by Jason Watkins as Harold Wilson, Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip, Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret, Ben Daniels as Tony Armstrong-Jones, Josh O’Connor as Prince Charles, Erin Doherty as Princess Anne and Marion Bailey as The Queen Mother.

The new season debuts on 17th November. Here’s the trailer:

 

First look: The Crown Season 3 gets November release date

12th August 2019

The Crown Season 3 finally has a UK release date – and with it comes a first look at Olivia Colman in the role of Queen Elizabeth II.

Netflix’s royal drama, which charts the life and reign of Her Maj, has been a huge smash hit for the streaming giant, picking up awards and nominations galore, not least for Claire Foy’s turn as the monarch. Now, though, she is handing the crown over to national treasure Olivia Colman, as Season 3 sees the programme move through history too quickly for its cast to portray the royal family believably – and so, led by Colman, the show is undergoing a wave of recasting, from Jason Watkins as Harold Wilson to Outlander’s Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip.

The rest of the cast include Helena Bonham Carter as Princess Margaret, Ben Daniels as Tony Armstrong-Jones, Josh O’Connor as Prince Charles, Erin Doherty as Princess Anne and Marion Bailey as The Queen Mother. The main question now is when we get to see these stars in action. Now, we have an answer: The Crown Season 3 will premiere on Sunday 17th November.

Here’s the first teaser:

Olivia Colman will see you now. The Crown S3, coming 17 November. pic.twitter.com/dYUtQlyMXc

— Netflix UK & Ireland (@NetflixUK) August 12, 2019

 

First look: Tobias Menzies as The Crown’s Prince Philip

28th August 2018

Netflix has revealed the first picture of Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip in The Crown.

The royal drama, which charts the life and reign of Her Maj, has been a huge smash hit for the streaming giant, picking up awards and nominations galore, not least for Claire Foy’s turn as the monarch. Now, though, she is handing the crown over to Olivia Colman, as Season 3 sees the programme move through history too quickly for its cast to portray the royal family believably – and so, led by Colman, the show is undergoing a wave of recasting, from Jason Watkins as Harold Wilson to Outlander’s Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip.

Menzie replaces Matt Smith in the role, and now, we’ve got our first proper glimpse of him in costume. The Crown Season 3 will premiere in 2019.

 

First look: Helena Bonham Carter in The Crown Season 3

18th July 2018

Hot on the heels of our first look at Olivia Colman’s Queen Elizabeth II, Netflix has dropped the first pictures of Helena Bonham Carter and Ben Daniels in the third season of The Crown.

The royal drama, which charts the life and reign of Her Maj, has been a huge smash hit for the streaming giant, picking up awards and nominations galore, not least for Claire Foy’s turn as the monarch. Now, though, she is handing the crown over to Olivia Colman, as Season 3 sees the programme move through history too quickly for its cast to portray the royal family believably – and so, led by Colman, the show is undergoing a wave of recasting, from Outlander’s Tobias Menzies as Prince Philip to Jason Watkins as Harold Wilson.

Two of the most prominent figures in Season 3 will be Princess Margaret and her husband, Anthony Armstrong-Jones. They, too, are being recast, with Helena Bonham Carter replacing Vanessa Kirby and Ben Daniels replacing Matthew Goode respectively. Now, we’ve got our first proper glimpse of them on set in costume, the atmospheric photos already hinting at stormy romantic drama to come:

 

First look: Olivia Colman in The Crown Season 3

16th July 2018

Netflix has released its first official picture of Olivia Colman in The Crown Season 3.

Netflix’s royal drama, which charts the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II, is in the process of shuffling its cast for the new season, as the show moves through history at pace and its real life characters age. Claire Foy’s award-winning turn as the monarch has been the anchor of the show, alongside Matt Smith as Prince Philip. The pair have won viewers over across the UK with their portrayal of the royal couple, but the series’ sheer scale means that they can’t continue to play those roles forever. Creator Peter Morgan confirmed when the first season was released that the programme would need to recast those leads to keep up with its characters’ ages – and with Season 2 taking the royal couple up to 1964, Season 3 onwards will require a new head wearing the crown.

That head, we learned this year, will be Olivia Colman, while Outlander’s Tobias Menzies will take over from Smith as her husband. Other cast changes including Helena Bonham Carter replacing Vanessa Kirby as Princess Margaret, and Ben Daniels as her husband, Anthony Armstrong-Jones, previously played by Matthew Goode. Jason Watkins will also join the ensemble as Harold Wilson.

While the thought of Foy not being in The Crown is a sad one, Colman is as safe a pair of hands as possible for Netflix to find. After roles in such films as Tyrannosaur and Cuban Fury, and such TV shows as Broadchurch, Colman has become a veritable national treasure. She recently won a Golden Globe for her role in The Night Manager, a co-production between the BBC and AMC. Season 3 of The Crown will mark the second time she has played a royal, following a part as Queen Elizabeth’s mother in Hyde Park on Hudson.

Here’s the first image of her in costume:

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