'The Crown' Season 3: PM Harold Wilson and Queen Elizabeth II get along well and meeting her is 'going to see mother' for him
One of the most anticipated series that revolves around the Royal Family, 'The Crown' is all set to air on Netflix after a cast reshuffle for season three. Academy Award winner Olivia Colman plays the role of Queen Elizabeth II in the series and the series boasts of a cast that looks quite similar to their real-life counterparts.
Beginning with big-league events in 1963 such as the rise of the Beatles and England winning the soccer World Cup in 1966, it will move forth to show the political colors emerging from 1964 to 1970. It will be interesting to see how the show heads towards the monarch's steadiest relationship with a Prime Minister after her strained associations with the heads of the British government one after another right from Anthony Eden to Harold Macmillan to Alec Douglas-Home.
The series of short-lived position holders raced through the entire first and second seasons after Winston Churchill breathed his last. This season, it will be Harold Wilson who will share the political responsibilities of the country. Wilson came from a lower-middle-class background and was known for handling his political life with civility and grace. In the series, the character is played by Jason Watkins.
Several reports say Harold Wilson was one of the prime ministers she was comfortable with. It is believed that when the two sat together, their meetings often went on for more than two hours. Relaxed in each other's companies, the two had a pleasant exchange of thoughts. In fact, Wilson described his visits as “going to see Mother." In turn, she saw his down-to-earth persona and admired the fact that he could share his personal and political viewpoints unbiasedly with her.
In an interview with Town and Country Mag, Colman spoke about the Queen's political inclinations and said that the Queen is left-leaning in her politics, in part because of her friendship with Prime Minister Harold Wilson. "I think she's a leftie, but I think what's extraordinary and wonderful about her, she can be everything to anybody," Colman says, adding, "Whatever you want her to be, she sort of is. I want her to be a leftie and think she is because she loved Harold Wilson."
Earlier in an interview with Times, Colman said she was "always a republican." But now, after the Crown, she says she's "become a leftie monarchist, and there’s not many of them about. However you feel about her, she’s been our constant," she said. "We are all so relaxed about her being there that one day when she’s not, it’s going to be a shock."
Written, created and principally produced by Peter Morgan, the third and fourth season will span the years 1964-76. The third season premieres on Netflix on Sunday, November 17, 2019.
