Kate Middleton star Meg Bellamy and Prince William actor Ed McVey spoke exclusively with RadioTimes.com about the new season.

By James Hibbs

Published: Friday, 15 December 2023 at 12:47 PM


The final six episodes of The Crown, which are now available to stream on Netflix, introduce us to Kate Middleton, as played by Meg Bellamy, who is seen meeting Prince William at St Andrews University.

However, there is a suggestion made that this hasn’t been pure coincidence, with the series showing Kate meeting William with her mother Carole when she was younger, with her mother later pushing her to pursue William romantically.

Bellamy spoke with RadioTimes.com exclusively about the dynamic between Kate and Carole in the series, and explained how it shows “friction” between them.

Bellamy explained: “It’s a really interesting dynamic to play, because Kate knows Carole has such an ambition for both of her daughters, and that is in every area of life, in education and upbringing and the people around her, which also means William.

“But it’s nice to simplify it in a sense of that coming of age feeling, where there’s friction with your parents, and your parents might want one thing for you and you want something else.

“That’s something lots of us can connect to. And that friction point in life was very fun and real to explore.”

Eve Best as Carole Middleton in The Crown wearing a cream jumper and brown gilet
Eve Best as Carole Middleton in The Crown.
Netflix

Asked how she thinks the real-life Carole might respond to her characterisation in the series, Bellamy said: “I don’t want to speak for everyone, but I think we try not to think about what the real-life people will think about it, especially while you’re filming, because [that’s] not helpful.

Read more:

“You’re dealing with characters that Peter Morgan has written, so it’s nice to cancel out all of the noise and just work with what you have.”

Meanwhile, her co-star Ed McVey, who plays Prince William, added: “And also, everyone will have their interpretation of it. And it is art, it’s supposed to be talked about and cross-examined. It isn’t a documentary, it’s a take.”

Luther Ford, who plays Prince Harry in the series, also spoke with RadioTimes.com about the presentation of William and Harry’s relationship, saying: “I think the main thing that Peter [Morgan] was interested in exploring was brotherhood, and what comes with that is quite a complicated relationship between siblings.

“And what’s hopefully nice and good about it is that their relationship isn’t black and white. There is love between them, but also there’s jealousy and competition and tension because they’re within this institution.”