The Crown Season Four - A Fashion Review
What is probably one of the most anticipated shows to make its return to the Netflix screen, The Crown has once again delivered an amazing season. For those of you who don’t know or perhaps don’t have taste in good television, The Crown is top tier television for fans of historical drama shows. The series begins with seasons one and two focusing on the marriage of Queen Elizabeth and her early years as Queen Elizabeth the II. In season three, we see Queen Elizabeth as an older, more mature monarch between the years of 1964-1977. We see crises mount and resolve, family relationships grow and disintegrate and we witness some insight into the queen’s motivations and personal moments. Now of course we know that the show definitely has a fictional side to it, but to get an idea of what goes on behind some of the most pivotal moments in history is a win-win situation for us. Plus we love the drama, can’t even lie.
The most recent season, season four, has been said to have been more loose when following plot lines. Many of the events are fictional and more or less have a biased view of the characters that are portrayed, however we were most excited for this season not only to continue our journey of “the crown” but to see how the production was going to portray the one and only Princess Diana. Now we’re getting to some good stuff! That’s at least what we thought. Being the fashion enthusiasts that we are, Princess Diana’s story being shown on this marvelous program had us excited for all of the great looks that we’ve seen her in throughout the years. Like many others, we felt a bit let down in this department. Now we The Crown - A Fashion Review can go into how Diana’s portrayal lacked growth and was rather static or how she was painted to be an unlikable character, but we’d rather talk about how her haircut was miserably inaccurate (so close, but so far off) and how some killer outfits didn’t make the cut.
Season four of The Crown covers about a decade of history. We see the rise and fall of Margaret Thatcher, the Prince of Wales meet and marry Princess Diana and we get to learn a bit more about the queen’s other children. Overall, we felt like this season tried to put too many plots into one season. It seemed to us that the show was trying to cover too many issues in one season and left characters and their stories, especially Princess Diana’s, underdeveloped. That plotline itself is such a complex one and we would’ve liked to have seen more of her real life roles such as motherhood and humanitarian more explored. The looks that were included in the show were really done right. The recreations are actually pretty perfect. For example, the wedding dress. Princess Diana’s original wedding gown and veil were designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel and its hard to spot the differences in a side-by-side picture. A major sleeve, train and veil moment, the show stayed true to the original creation. “A+” for effort and execution! Another fashion moment we have to acknowledge is the pink gingham pant moment. In the series we see Diana rollerskating throughout Buckingham Palace wearing a pink sweater and pink gingham pants listening to Duran Duran. So, practically everything the crown isn’t. It shows us how a young and carefree Diana stands out against the cold, detached facade of the royal family. We give this look an “A” for a great “making a statement” moment. Message received loud and clear.
Our next honorable mentions are coming from Princess Anne and Princess Margaret. In real life, Princess Anne had some memorable outfits. She played with color, hats and made many memorable statements in her day. Same for Princess Margaret. Often seen as the more “fun” and controversial royal sister, we see her personality really play out through her style and the show does a fantastic job at showcasing this however we want to point out some ‘fits that didn’t make the show. Princess Anne delivered some of her best looks in the late 60s and 70s. Full of color and fun, so many of her ensembles play with print and bright blues, greens and reds. Our personal favorite is a yellow number the princess wore to the Horse Trials where she met the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. This canary yellow number was complete with a matching hat and bold, black bow tied above the brim and a black handbag and gloves to match. Oftentimes Princess Anne’s best outfits stood out among the safer, more mundane ensembles that the rest of the royal family would wear. Princess Anne tested the boundaries when it came to fashion and always followed her own path when it came to expressing her own personal style. Princess Margaret was a lot like Princess Anne in this way. She was also seen to be a fashion icon in her own right.
Extravagant hats, furs and pearls make up Princess Margaret’s most memorable costumes. A black and white picture of Princess Margaret at the Kingston races in 1955 shows a very chic princess with layered pearls, embellished cat eye glasses, a brimmed hat and white gloves. As the princess reads from a sheet of paper, she peers to the field exuding that signature coolness and silent judgment. Whereas Princess Margaret has many notable looks, it's her carefree spirit that we’re really drawn to (and mourn) throughout The Crown seasons one through four.
The Crown is really a treat for lovers of fashion. With so many fashionable women being portrayed in the series and the immaculate accuracy of recreated looks, it truly is a feast for the eyes. As we watched season four we had fun looking at the real life outfits that were or weren’t included in the series, and we learned that there are so many ensembles that didn’t make the cut, but the ones that were shown were exact replicas of the originals. Overall, season four gets a “B+” in the costume design department. Perhaps an “A” would’ve been granted but we still can’t get over how so many Princess Diana outfits were sadly overlooked. Nonetheless, watch season four for yourself and you decide the grade the series deserves. We can’t wait to see what season five brings for the next decade of royal history.
xo
SS
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