Prince Philip Was "Upset" Over Inaccuracy in The Crown

Matt Smith as Prince Philip, sitting at a desk in a white shirt; Prince Philip in a suit and tie — (Image credit: Alex Bailey/Netflix; Getty Images)

Royal experts have been clearing up fact versus fiction in The Crown ever since the hit Netflix drama debuted in 2016. Various members of the Royal Family have weighed in on the show, with a senior royal source telling the Daily Express in 2017 that Prince Edward and Duchess Sophie “love” the program and “urged” Queen Elizabeth to watch with them. Although she “really liked it,” according to the palace source, the late Queen also thought certain events were “too heavily dramatized.” It seems Prince Philip agreed about The Crown twisting the facts, going as far as contacting his lawyers over one scene.

Speaking on the Daily Mail’s “Palace Authorised” YouTube show, royal biographer Hugo Vickers revealed what Prince Philip really thought about The Crown. The death of the late Duke of Edinburgh’s sister, Princess Cecilie of Greece and Denmark, is dramatized on the show, and Vickers claimed that the way The Crown changed the narrative greatly upset Philip.

“They tried to blame Prince Philip for the death of his own sister,” Vickers said. “They cooked up a scene at Gordonstoun [School], where a young Philip punches another boy. As a result, his half-term gets cancelled and his sister flies to Darmstadt, Germany.”

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Matt Smith as Prince Philip in the Crown, wearing a fur cape — Matt Smith plays Prince Philip in season one of *The Crown*.

Prince Philip in a toga putting his foot on a chair as a teenager — Prince Philip is pictured preparing for a role in *Macbeth* at Gordonstoun School in 1935.

Pregnant Princess Cecilie was killed in a tragic plane crash along with her children and husband in 1936, and in the funeral scene on The Crown, Prince Philip’s father says, “I am burying my favorite child because of you.”

However, this isn’t what happened in real life. Prince Philip’s sister was on the way to a wedding and he had nothing to do with her reasons for boarding the plane. As Vickers noted, “In reality, there was no punch-up at Gordonstoun. He would never have gone to Darmstadt. Philip's father actually came to Britain to take him home after the crash.”

The royal author took it into his own hands to clear up the scene at the time, revealing, “I knew Prince Philip was extremely upset by it. Luckily, I went on the Today Show, Radio 4, and told the true story. He was listening, and felt to some extent that it had been put right.”

“But he did go to his lawyers about it,” Vickers added.

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Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.