“The Crown”
Is the Netflix series Prince Philip plotting an affair?
Queen Elizabeth II (left) and her husband Prince Philip in 2018.
© imago/PA Images
The Netflix streaming service is reaping criticism for an upcoming storyline about Prince Philip in the royals series “The Crown”.
Just two months after the death of Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022), the fifth season of the Royals series “The Crown” will be released on Netflix on November 9th. As reported by The Sun, will reportedly include a spicy scene with Prince Philip (1921-2021), the Queen’s husband who died around a year and a half ago. Insiders reveal that Philip is said to be holding the hand of a close friend and discussing his marital woes during the scene. An affair between the two does not appear to be out of the question for the upcoming episodes of the Netflix series. Richard Arbiter (82), Queen Elizabeth II’s longtime press spokesman, spoke out clearly against this depiction of Philips in the fifth season of “The Crown”.
“Very tasteless and frankly callous nonsense”
The depiction of the intimate moment between Prince Philip and the lady comes “just weeks after the nation laid Her Majesty to rest beside Prince Philip,” according to the Queen’s former press secretary. Arbiter went on to say that this was “very distasteful” and “frankly callous nonsense”. In truth, the said woman was “a longtime friend of the whole [royalen] family”.
According to ex-press secretary Arbiter, who worked for the Queen between 1998 and 2000, the streaming service Netflix is ”not interested in people’s feelings”. The story line mentioned from the upcoming fifth season of “The Crown” is “fiction” and the royal family will “probably not watch this to stay sane”.
Prince Philip and Penelope Knatchbull have been close friends for decades
In fact, Penelope Knatchbull, who is believed to be the man, and Prince Philip were considered extremely good friends, despite being over 30 years her senior. The two are said to have connected their shared passion for equestrian sports. Penelope Knatchbull was a frequent guest at royal occasions, attending both Prince Philip’s intimate funeral and the Queen’s funeral in September.
In the upcoming season of “The Crown” Philip will be played by Welsh actor Jonathan Pryce (“The Two Popes”, 75), while Natascha McElhone (“Californication”, 52) will play Penelope “Penny” Knatchbull. The “Daily Mail” also reportsto have learned from a Netflix source that reports about the plot of the upcoming fifth season of “The Crown” are “pure speculation” at this point.