LONDON: The UK royal family "cannot stomach" watching "The Crown" despite the popularity of the Netflix series which is based on the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, according to a royal commentator.
The claim come amidst that Camilla Parker Bowles, the Duchess of Cornwall and the second wife of Prince Charles, has been receiving online abuse due to her portrayal in the Netflix drama.
Omid Scobie, a London-based writer and the royal contributor for ABC News, said that some family members cannot bear the thought of watching the new episodes. Scoobie said on his Heir podcast that their issue is with the show nearing modern day events.
"I think as the show progresses into the more present-day house of Windsor it becomes harder and harder for members of the Royal Family to even stomach the idea of watching it," he said. "There is already a lot of talk about series five and series six."
The Queen is said to have watched and liked the first season. Sunday Express reported in 2017 that it was Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, who encouraged the Queen to watch the series.
However, in 2018, Sunday Express reported that the Queen was annoyed after watching a scene in which Prince Philip was portrayed as being unsympathetic and insensitive to young Prince Charles' struggles with being bullied at school.
In September 2019, the Queen's communication secretary, Donal McCabe, wrote to The Guardian saying: "Your article (The writer of The Crown reveals he keeps royal household in the picture) may have the unfortunate consequence of leading your readers to believe that the television series The Crown is made with some sort of endorsement by the royal household, or an acceptance by the royal household that the drama is factually accurate. "We appreciate that readers of the Guardian may enjoy this fictionalised interpretation of historical events but they should do so knowing that the royal household is not complicit in interpretations made by the programme.
"The royal household has never agreed to vet or approve content, has not asked to know what topics will be included, and would never express a view as to the programme's accuracy."
"The Crown" presents a fictional version of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II. The events are expected to go up until the 1997 death of Princess Diana. (IANS)