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Focusing on the 1980s, the new season released
on Netflix on Sunday, delves into the marriage of Diana and heir
to the throne Prince Charles, as well as Diana's struggles with
bulimia and both of their affairs.
It is not the first time that Diana's life has been dramatized
since her death at age 36 in a Paris car crash in 1997. But the
constant revisiting of her story piles on the pressure for
William and Harry, whether they watch such shows or not, royal
experts say.
"After she died, they pleaded with people to let their mother
rest in peace because they found it incredibly upsetting," said
British royal biographer Penny Junor.
"I think it's been really incredibly hard for them," Junor said.
"Maybe they just put the shutters down and they don't watch and
they can close their ears to it all, I don't know. But I really
feel for them."
Representatives for William and Harry declined to comment on the
new season of "The Crown." Harry, who was 12 when she died, said
in 2017 that his mother's death had "a quite serious effect on
not only my personal life but my work as well."
Diana's life, which she told through unprecedented television
interviews and to Andrew Morton for his 1992 biography "Diana:
Her True Story," has elements of romance, tragedy, lovers and
royalty that make it ripe for being revisited multiple times.
Emma Corrin, 24, the newcomer who plays the young Diana, was not
even two years old when the princess died, acknowledged that it
was daunting to take on such a beloved figure.
Nick Bullen, editor-in-chief of True Royalty TV, said that for
many young people Diana "is a character from history."
But he added, "I wouldn't want to watch my parents' marriage
play out on television."
As much as she enjoys "The Crown," Junor has reservations about
the show's seamless blend of factual events and imagination.
"I think it's brilliant drama, but it is drama, and my greatest
fear has always been that people would come to view it as fact
(and that) in the future it will be seen as a historical record
of these years, and it's not," she said.
Bullen said shows like "The Crown" lead to increased interest
and research in the British royal family.
"I think that will be even more the case in this season because
the (Diana) story is so readily available," he said.
(This story corrects Diana's age in paragraph three)
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
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