The Crown (2016) s06e04 Episode Script

1
Balmoral Castle.
Hello.
Right.
I understand. Thank you.
Your Majesty. Your Royal Highness.
I had a call about 15 minutes ago
from the embassy in Paris.
It's Diana, Princess of Wales.
I'm afraid there's been an accident.
She was in a car crash with Dodi Fayed.
She's been taken to hospital.
There's no news yet of her condition,
but we believe the accident was serious,
and Mr. Fayed died instantly.
I've just had a call
from my press secretary in London.
Apparently, it's all over the news.
Diana, Princess of Wales,
has been seriously injured
in a car crash in Paris.
A man believed to be the Harrods heir,
Dodi Fayed, is reported
to have been killed.
The accident is believed to have happened
as the car they were traveling in
was going through a tunnel
on a road alongside the River Seine.
French officials say the couple
were being chased by paparazzi.
We'll bring you more details on this
as we get them.
Straight to the morgue, sir?
No.
Take me to where it happened.
Pont de l'Alma.
There is no power
nor strength except by Allah.
There is no power
nor strength except by Allah.
Balmoral Castle.
Mr. Janvrin.
- The embassy in Paris again.
- Thank you. Robin Janvrin.
She was due
to spend maybe 24 hours in Paris
before returning to London
to see her children.
The accident happened
shortly after midnight.
Diana and her friend Dodi Al Fayed
had been dining at the Ritz Hotel.
There were four people in the car
when it struck
the inside wall of the tunnel,
and, as you said, the Princess of Wales
has been taken to hospital
with concussion, a broken arm,
and cuts to her leg.
Witnesses at the scene
were describing how
Well, let's just remind
people who are waking up this morning
to tell you the terrible news that Diana,
the Princess of Wales, has died.
She suffered heavy internal bleeding in
her chest following a car crash in Paris.
The prime minister, Tony Blair, said,
"I'm utterly devastated."
"The whole of our country, all of us,
will be in a state of shock and mourning."
"Diana was a wonderful,
warm, and compassionate person
who people throughout the world loved."
"Our thoughts and prayers
are with her family,
particularly her two sons."
That statement from Tony Blair
I managed to get out for a walk.
Good idea.
It's all so quiet and
perfect.
Innocent.
All one has is questions.
Why did she change her plans?
What was she doing in Paris?
What caused the accident?
are with her family and her friends.
The Queen and the Prince of Wales
When are you going to tell the boys?
I wanted to let them sleep.
Delay it as long as possible.
While they're sleeping,
they still have a mother.
Of course.
medical team here at this hospital.
This is gonna be enormous.
People have no idea.
This is going to be the biggest thing
that any of us has ever seen.
As you say, Dermot, reactions
and condolences have been flooding in.
Morning, darling.
Morning.
I'm afraid you're going to have to be
very brave.
What?
The princes are now awake.
And, I believe,
the Prince of Wales has broken the news.
Those poor boys.
His team have made a request
to have an airplane
of the Queen's Flight made available.
What for?
To bring the princess back from Paris
in accordance with arrangements
set up under Operation Overstudy.
No. No, no, those plans are
for a royal death abroad.
Diana was no longer royal, no longer HRH.
We must be seen
to be doing this by the book.
Indeed, sir, and I suggested
as such myself to the Prince of Wales.
To which he asked if we would prefer
the mother of the future King of England
to be brought back in a Harrods van.
Hm.
I have also taken the liberty
of drafting a short statement
expressing your and the Prince of Wales'
shock and distress at the news.
Thank you.
And finally, the chaplain called.
Did you have any thoughts
about going to church this morning?
We have to assume
that there will be photographers.
The entire family must come.
Let me see.
But
no mention of the accident.
Eh, ma'am?
Ask the chaplain
to keep to the usual service.
We want everything
to be as normal as possible.
That's fine.
We retrieved
some of the princess' clothes
from Mr. Dodi's apartment,
gifts she apparently bought for her sons,
and a poem, engraved on a silver plaque.
We believe
it was given to her by Mr. Dodi.
It was a love for the ages.
They were engaged to be married, you know.
Dodi proposed to her last night.
Return the possessions to her family.
I will also write to both the royal family
and the Spencer family.
This tragedy will bring us together.
I am their brother in sorrow.
- Thank you.
- Ma'am.
Your Royal Highness.
Mr. President.
Your Royal Highness.
Oh God.
Oh.
Paris.
One of the busiest cities in the world,
and you brought it to a standstill.
Ta-da!
It was ever thus.
You were always
the most beloved of all of us.
Thank you for how you were
in the hospital.
So raw. Broken.
And handsome.
I'll take that with me.
You know, I loved you so much.
So deeply.
But so painfully too.
Well, it's over now.
Be easier for everyone with me gone.
No, it won't.
It will.
Admit it. You've had that thought already.
The only thought I've had
since the moment I heard is
regret.
That will pass.
No, it won't.
Quick march.
And you, sir.
Darling boy.
Where's Granny?
On a call.
The Spencers.
- Thank you.
- You too.
- We'll be in touch.
- All right.
How was it?
Uh
It was extraordinary.
It's another world.
We would have followed your progress
but we've put away all the televisions
and wirelesses for the boys.
Yes, well, I, um
I agree with your instinct,
but I do think it's important
that senior members of the family
keep an eye on the mood out there.
I thought we might
concentrate on the mood here
and taking care of this family.
Diana was part of this family.
Divorced from this family.
A legal severance.
An amputation
that you fought so hard for.
Not us.
We all wanted her
to remain in this family.
But you insisted on divorce.
Which is why this is now
a Spencer family matter.
And why we are keen
to respect their wishes
for a small, private, family service.
I think that would be a mistake.
The prime minister feels
that the right thing is a public funeral.
A state occasion in all but name,
and I agree with him.
But that would mean leaving Scotland
and participating in
some huge spectacle in London.
Do you want to put the boys through that?
They'd have to walk behind the coffin,
in front of all those cameras.
And show their respects
to their late mother,
as people will want them to do.
It's always been hard for us
to understand the connection
that Diana has with people,
but the fact that it's inexplicable
shouldn't lead us to deny it.
I've just been out there.
I've seen it for myself.
People taking to the streets.
Not just here, all over the world,
in their hundreds, thousands.
And they will expect us
to show grief, and compassion,
and for you to be mother to the nation.
If you don't mind, I'm concerned with
being a grandmother to William and Harry.
That's my priority.
And I'd rather not be lectured on how
or when to grieve or show emotion.
Particularly by the person
who caused her the most pain.
All right. All right.
I admit, I
I let her down in life.
But I will not let her down in death.
We can't have it both ways.
Haven't we learnt that yet?
We can't be a private family
when we want to be
and a public one when it suits us.
Time and time again,
we try to have it both ways.
We can't, and it's time
William learnt that.
Yes, he's a shy boy,
but he's also a future king.
And when his mother dies
and people grieve,
he has to behave like one.
Brothers and sisters,
may Allah bless you all.
We are shortly going to commence
the janazah prayer
of Emad El-Din Mohamed
Abdel Mena'em Fayed,
the son of our dear brother
Mohamed Al Fayed.
At these times,
we ask Allah
to grant Mohammed Al Fayed
and his entire family
peace and solace.
Still nothing from the Palace?
No.
But we sent flowers?
Yes.
And letters and gifts. No word at all?
No.
And the poem I sent
to be placed in Diana's coffin?
It was returned.
Without acknowledgement.
Why do they hate me?
Is it the fate of Arabs
to always be hated by the West?
Don't take it personally.
How can I not?
Look.
There's no mention of you anywhere!
It's as if only one person died.
But across the Arab world,
in Cairo, Beirut, Baghdad,
they are calling me a hero.
You shouldn't look up to the West.
Of course I look up to the West.
You shouldn't.
Exalted expectations are not fair.
They can never be fulfilled.
Did I have
unfair expectations of you?
Mmm.
Forgive me.
Forgive me
for failing you.
You were perfect.
No, I wasn't.
Be honest about who I was.
Because wounds will only heal
with the truth.
No, Dodi, no!
Don't leave me!
It's good to see
such a strong collective effort
as we mount a response to this moment of
national sorrow.
I'm delighted that opinion is
coalescing around a public funeral,
and if all parties are happy
with Westminster Abbey
as the venue for the service, my office
will start to draw up a list of attendees.
Um, but we would recommend
that the congregation reflects
the causes closest to the princess.
AIDS patients, landmine victims
Sir, Prince William is not in his room,
and no one can find him.
assortment of establishment figures.
William!
- This is a massive palaver.
- Anne, will you take Harry?
- He might be dying.
- No need to panic.
William!
- William!
- William!
- William!
- William!
- William!
- William!
William!
- Any sign?
- No.
- How could this have happened?
- We'll do whatever we can.
- With all our staff
- Mm.
- He's coming back.
- Oh, thank heavens.
Oh, what a relief.
- All right?
- Fine.
Thank heavens.
Are you all right?
Fourteen hours that poor boy was gone.
He's never done anything like that before.
And if he is behaving so out of character,
perhaps Charles is right.
About what?
That the rest of the country is
starting to behave out of character too.
He's been urging me
to help calm things down.
By doing what?
Going down to London before the funeral.
Making some kind of statement
that acknowledges
the pain being felt by everyone.
Bereavement helplines are overwhelmed.
Sensible adults are
weeping openly in the streets.
Don't you dare.
Sanity will soon prevail.
Hold firm.
Diana's body will begin
its final journey on Saturday.
There continues to be criticism
that the Queen has misjudged
the mood of the country.
Set against a background of raw emotion,
there is some feeling
that the royal family
should be in London sooner,
the focus of the nation's mourning.
It's hard not to look at this
like a psychologist might.
There's the country,
like a sick, uncomforted child,
and then there's the Queen,
hiding away, cold and aloof.
Unable to mother the nation
in precisely the same way
as she was unable to mother us.
That is just not helpful now.
Whether it's her children or the nation,
a reluctance or inability to mother
might have consequences.
This is just dreadful.
They should be here.
There's "a growing
anti-royal mood," says The Independent,
while the Express asks the Queen
to "show us you care."
I rest my case.
which reflects
the public's growing frustration
at the silence from Balmoral.
Numbers pouring into the capital
to mourn have grown with each hour,
so has the nation's frustration.
Whilst the people laid flowers
and signed the books of condolence,
the royal family remains silent,
hundreds of miles away at Balmoral.
Christopher Peacock is
at St. James's Palace now.
Everyone knows the background
to this sad, unhappy story.
- Everybody knows
- Mummy.
I was, uh
I was wondering if you'd had a chance
to reconsider your position.
You've seen the images on the television.
It would be very easy to
dismiss the whole thing as mass hysteria,
but the more I look at it,
and the bigger the crowds get, the more
I'm persuaded that there's something
much deeper at work here.
People are in shock.
A beautiful young woman
was cut off in her prime.
It's natural for people to come together
and express their grief.
But the Crown
rises above impulse.
At its peril.
Mummy, I wouldn't be suggesting this
if I didn't think it was essential,
and that there was a real chance
that things might turn ugly.
What do people want from me?
Attention. And love.
Love?
And understanding.
And and support.
And care.
And empathy.
And theater.
And spectacle.
And exhibitionism.
Yes. All the things that Diana stood for.
All the things
that Diana challenged us with.
But all the things that people out there
were very grateful for.
They didn't see it as
spectacle or exhibitionism.
Diana gave people what they needed.
Even if it was just confirmation that
great pain and sadness
doesn't discriminate.
It comes to those
with beauty and privilege too.
And they adored her for it.
I think the Queen
has got to come to terms
with the humanity everyone else feels.
I think she's got to take that on board
and really show that humanity somehow
through this rather icy façade
that the royals have.
I hope you're happy now.
You've finally succeeded in turning me
and this house upside down.
That was never my intention.
Oh, please.
Look at what you've started.
It's nothing less than revolution.
It didn't need to be.
But by making an enemy of me,
not of me personally,
but of what I stand for
Irreplaceable.
then it starts to look like one.
Overnight, the number
of condolence books was increased
from five to fifteen,
an indication, perhaps,
that the royal establishment
may have initially underestimated
They're trying to show you who they are.
What they feel.
What they need.
And I know that must be terrifying,
but it needn't be.
For as long as anyone can remember,
you've taught us
what it means to be British.
Maybe it's time to show
you're ready to learn too.
Here.
We're going to London tomorrow.
What?
You heard me.
God bless you, Your Majesty.
Thank you, ma'am. When you're ready.
I'm ready.
In five, four, three
Since last Sunday's dreadful news,
we have seen,
throughout Britain and around the world,
an overwhelming expression
of sadness at Diana's death.
We have all been trying,
in our different ways, to cope.
It is not easy to express a sense of loss,
since the initial shock is often
succeeded by a mixture of other feelings.
Disbelief,
incomprehension,
anger,
and concern for those who remain.
We have all felt those emotions
in these last few days.
So, what I say to you now,
as your queen and as a grandmother,
I say from my heart.
First, I want to pay tribute
to Diana myself.
She was an exceptional
and gifted human being.
In good times and bad,
she never lost her capacity
to smile and laugh,
nor to inspire others
with her warmth and kindness.
This week at Balmoral, we have all been
trying to help William and Harry
come to terms with the devastating loss
that they, and the rest of us,
have suffered.
No one who knew Diana
will ever forget her.
Millions of others who never met her,
but feel they knew her, will remember her.
I, for one, believe there are lessons
to be drawn from her life
and the extraordinary
and moving reaction to her death.
I share in your determination
to cherish her memory.
Our thoughts are also with Diana's family
and the families
of those who died with her,
as they seek to heal their sorrow
and then to face the future
without a loved one.
God bless you, boys.
Don't react.
Keep your eyes forward or on the ground.
Concentrate on the act of walking.
Step by step.
Why are they crying
for someone they never knew?
They're not crying for her.
They're crying for you.
I hope that tomorrow
we can all, wherever we are,
join in expressing our grief
at Diana's loss
and gratitude for her all too short life.
It is a chance to show the whole world
the British nation
united in grief and respect.
May those who died rest in peace,
and may we, each and every one of us,
thank God for someone
who made many, many people happy.