A balancing act!

The Crown (Miniseries, S1-S4; 2016-present)
Netflix

I had been resisting the urge to immerse myself into another miniseries for so long. But, no thanks to DKLA's persistent persuasion and continually dangling the proverbial carrot that British history was intertwined in its storyline, I caved in. It did not disappoint but instead turned out to be quite an informative and educational one, actually. It is a sort of a history revision for me, of course, from a colonial perspective and the one which puts the British Crown above all.

Throughout the whole series, the Damocles' sword that seems to be hanging over the royalties is the fear that they might be ousted at any time. The idea of a single-family, through lineage, ordained by God to rule over his subjects cannot be swallowed by the common man anymore. The nearest they can get to this by being the leader of the Church. Even then, the Crown members' behaviours were neither Christian-affirming nor exemplary for the subject to emulate.

Their contemporaries the world over, one by one, seems to be shown the exit door, sometimes unceremoniously.  Just look at Prince Philip, who had to be smuggled out of Greece in an orange crate to escape an angry mob. What started as hungry French peasants demanding bread but were given cakes instead slowly led to the brutal killing of Rasputin and the annihilation of the Romanov family. Monarchs in Asia, Africa and the rest of Europe were dropping like flies in the 60s, which added much to their anxiety. The challenge faced by the Windsor castle occupants was just that -  to stay relevant with the times. The idea of the Crown filling the intermediary gap between God and people is laughable when every human being is supposed to be created equal. Why then do royalties earn a special place in society, placed on a pedestal and demanding courtesies, the people ask? 

This thoroughly researched miniseries starts with Philip taking a new surname, Mountbatten, after renouncing his Danish and Greek nationalities. He is related to Admiral Louis Mountbatten, the Viceroy of India. Philip is inducted into British royalty with his marriage to Elizabeth in 1947. 

Prince Philip @ Duke of Edinburgh
had no problem kneeling before his wife.

King George VI's reluctant ascent to the throne in 1936 as the Crown's head and the British Commonwealth came about when his brother, King Edward VIII, thought love was more important than the Crown. He abdicated his throne when the Crown decided that there is no place for a divorcee in the royal household. Edward's beau was an American twice divorced with two living ex-husbands. This situation was deemed inappropriate for a queen consort as the King was the head of the Church of England, and divorce was socially not accepted in Britain at that time. The story often rolls back to Edward and Simpson's back story and their shenanigans from their exclusive chateaux in France. I suppose, with the liberty of creative licence and the need for dramatisation, the scriptwriters have also painted Simpson as a German spy. In reality, the exposè of Marburg files highlighted the cosy relationship between Edward and Hitler. There was an elaborate to reinstate Edward as King after a German victory over Britain.

Every episode brings one or two so-called controversies that rocked the public imaginations in the 60s. In real life, they were mere storms in a teacup. The Queen and her band of minders averted any bad press. During the Profumo affair with a young model who in turn was linked to a Russian naval ataché, Philip is mentioned to be a fellow attendee of their wild parties.

Churchill is portrayed as a farsighted statesman who built a fantastic working relationship with the Queen. Being a politician, his masters are British and the Crown, not the starving peasants in the rest of the world. Even the mighty Churchill is not infallible as bungled up with handling the 1952 Great London Smog. He erroneously attributed inefficiency as an 'act of God'.

  

Talking about Prime Ministers, the idea of having a PM started in the reign of non-English speaking King George I in the early 18th century. After messing up with the South Sea Company, which hails across the Atlantic Ocean delving in a myriad of trades, including slaves, he appointed an astute businessman, Robbert Walpole, to sort out the mess. The job continued as the PM post, and the tradition dictated that he should have a weekly audience with the monarch. Interesting that they were many non-English speaking rulers who ruled Britain. Even as late as 1917, the royal family's surname was 'Saxe-Coburg-Gotha'. Due to anti-German sentiments at that time, the family name was changed to Windsor. Philip's sisters were not on the royal wedding's list as they were Nazi party members.

In the first two seasons with both the Queen and Philip in the prime of their youth, we see the Queen immersing deep into overseeing the 'ruling' of the country whilst Philip absorbed into his role of a royal house husband. His secretive boys' outings at the Thursday Club and long weekend outings portray Philip as a philandering husband. A particular Russian ballerina is mentioned as 'the other' (or rather one of many others) woman. His shenanigans came to light after his 1954 world cruise aboard Royal Yacht Britannia when his best friend Mike's estranged wife got hold of some evidence of their mischief.

A memorable episode is the mining disaster in Aberfan, Wales, which claimed 116 children and 28 adults. The CGI looks so believable. 

Talking about following royal decorum, Queen Elizabeth's sister, Margaret, has been the subject of many embarrassments. Starting off with an affair with a married man at a young age, she had to sacrifice her beau in place of losing her sovereign benefits. A party animal and a sort of person who finds comfort amongst the plebeians, her consort turned out to be one with an illustrious extramarital prowess. As is depicted in this series, Margaret's magnum opus could be how she smoothened UK-US strained relationships after Edward Heath refused to support US entry into Vietnam. 

JFK is portrayed here as an insecure person who is apprehensive of Jackie's popularity. Maybe the Malaysian public did not notice that the series poked fun at the Malayan royalty in the earlier season. The British royal couple were seen showing around Buckingham palace to a Malayan aristocrat who seems to be going on and on about their courts back home. Queen and Philip sat exhaustedly in the next scene, saying, "I thought they will never stop!"

Another remarkable episode is about the Apollo 11 astronauts. Philip, being a licenced pilot, was fascinated with the Apollo mission. He invited Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins to the palace. He thought of getting a philosophical view of the whole expedition and a first-hand account of their heroism.  He was into an existential crisis of sorts. What he saw, instead, were young technicians who were more concerned with protocols, the task at hand, ticking off the checklist and down with flu; not enlightened men with answers about life.

Spitting image?
Iron Lady and Jillian Anderson

The climax of all seasons so far must surely be Margaret Thatcher's role, who was played convincingly by Jillian Anderson in Season 4. Viewers can understand the obstacles that one has to go through to lead a country. For those who hail Thatcher as a feminist, you are wrong. She probably believes in women empowerment and that the fairer sex should grab opportunities that come their way. Her cabinet had no women. When asked about the absence of female representation, she merely replied, "Oh, they are too emotional!"

Politics is not for the faint-hearted. One needs to learn to juggle many roles, wear many hats, listen when needed, and sometimes make unpleasant decisions. 

The screenwriters did not ink Prince Charles in a favourable light. He appears to be a moody, sentimental insecure fool who seems run to Camella Bowles's skirt for assurance that he never got from his mother. His liaison his Mrs Bowles predates his marriage. Conveniently, he blames all his miseries on his absent father. The saga will continue with two more seasons with a switch of casts.

Coming from a country with nine Sultans and a rotating post for a King, the answer to how the Malaysian royalty remained relevant all through the years may lie within this miniseries' storyline. Our royalty is even older than the British Crown if we start counting from the reign of Parameswara of the Malacca Sultanate in 1403. Through feuds, intrusions, pirate attacks, Siamese and Chinese hegemony, colonial invasions, the World Wars, and the post-colonial uprisings, it still commands respect through the years. The British exerted their dominance over the administration, and the Japanese terrorised with their brutality and torture tools, but they came out smelling of roses.

Life, despite the occasional doubt on their relevance, is unthinkable without them to many. Their importance is enshrined in the Rukun Negara (National Principles). Their role as a buffer in the balancing act between politicians may be a testimony of this.

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