One of the most central figures in the fifth season of The Crown is, of course, the iconic Diana, Princess of Wales.
Australian actress Elizabeth Debicki takes on the role of the iconic princess, with the part previously being played in the fourth season by Emma Corrin.
The new episodes tackle Diana’s acrimonious divorce from Charles, Prince of Wales, played by Dominic West.
However, as the show moves through the tumultuous events of the 1990s, does the fifth season include Diana’s tragic death in 1997?
**Spoilers for The Crown season 5**
Does The Crown season 5 portray Princess Diana’s death?
No, The Crown season 5 does not examine the death of Diana, Princess of Wales.
The fifth season of the Netflix drama concludes in 1997 – the year of Diana’s death – but ends earlier in the year prior to her death.
The final episode, Decommissioned, sees Diana accept an invite to join Egyptian businessman Mohamed Al-Fayed (Salim Daw) and his family on a holiday in St. Tropez, bringing along her sons Prince William and Prince Harry too.
This holiday will prove significant as it will see Diana brought together with Al-Fayed’s son Dodi Fayed (Khalid Abdalla), who she previously met alongside his father earlier in the season.
![""]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2022/11/TheCrownS05Image108-95a2a0d.png?quality=90&crop=485px%2C0px%2C2882px%2C1920px&resize=620%2C413" "\"\"")
In real-life, Diana and Dodi go on to have a romantic relationship following this holiday and even have additional trips together.
It is during a stay in Paris, France that the pair is killed as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash on 30th August 1997.
The sixth and final season will likely tackle the events surrounding their tragic deaths early in its run when it is released in 2023.
However, Netflix has confirmed that the series will not explicitly show the crash and Diana’s death.
Netflix has, however, been filming scenes depicting Diana’s final days in Paris, with paparazzi pictures even showing scenes depicted of photographers pursuing the Mercedes that Diana and Dodi were being driven in before it crashed, as shown by Metro.
Writer Peter Morgan previously tackled the tragic event in a similar fashion in his film The Queen, which starred Helen Mirren.
![""]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/3/2022/11/TheCrownS05Unit-140-bbdbf7d.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"\"")
Some have already expressed concerns about how the series will tackle Diana’s death and final days.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly in October 2022, Debicki responded to such concerns: “Well, I don’t really know about those concerns.”
However, she added: “I’ll say that Peter and the entire crew of this job do their utmost to really handle everything with such sensitivity and truth and complexity, as do actors.
“The amount of research and care and conversations and dialogue that happen over, from a viewer’s perspective, something probably that you would never ever notice is just immense.
“From that very first meeting [with] Peter, I knew that I’d entered into this space where this was taken seriously [in] a deeply caring way. So that’s my experience of the show.”
- Read More: The Crown season 5 cast: Full list of actors and characters
- Read More: The Crown season 5 timeline – what events does it cover?
- Read More: The Crown season 5 brings back Claire Foy for flashback cameo
- Read More: Who plays John Major in The Crown?
- Read More: Who is James Colthurst and who plays him in The Crown?
- Read More: Who plays Princess Anne in The Crown season 5?
The Crown seasons 1 to 5 are available now on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £6.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
Looking for something else to watch? Visit our TV Guide or Streaming Guide.
The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale now – subscribe now and get the next 12 issues for only £1. or more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to the Radio Times View From My Sofa podcast.