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Buckingham Palace wary The Crown will damage King Charles’s image with Diana affair plot

Buckingham Palace wary The Crown will damage King Charles’s image with Diana affair plot

Buckingham Palace is braced to defend King Charles when Netflix airs The Crown this autumn and offers a potentially explosive dramatisation of his relationship with ex wife Diana.

A Firm insider told reporters on Sunday that viewers need to remember the drama series is “not a documentary,” when the 10-part saga, which charts the royal characters, returns from November 9. It is the first series to air since the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

A YouGov survey has found approval ratings for King Charles have soared since he took the crown. When asked ‘Will Charles make a good king?’ in May around 30 per cent said ‘yes’ but the rating has now risen to almost two thirds of respondents.

However, by depicting events from some of the monarch’s darkest years, royal insiders are reportedly worried that his reputation could take a hit only two months into his reign.

HM King Charles III - In pictures

(Getty Images)
(Getty Images)
Prince Charles Prince Of Wales 60th Birthday Portrait (Getty Images)
Prince Charles Prince Of Wales 60th Birthday Portrait (Getty Images)
King Charles III delivers his address to the nation and the Commonwealth from Buckingham Palace (PA)
King Charles III delivers his address to the nation and the Commonwealth from Buckingham Palace (PA)
The fair-haired and blue-eyed infant Prince was 19 weeks old when photographed and weighed 16lb 2oz. (PA )
The fair-haired and blue-eyed infant Prince was 19 weeks old when photographed and weighed 16lb 2oz. (PA )
Princess Diana, her sons Harry and William, and Prince Charles watch the parade march past as part of the commemorations of VJ Day (AFP/Getty Images)
Princess Diana, her sons Harry and William, and Prince Charles watch the parade march past as part of the commemorations of VJ Day (AFP/Getty Images)
1949: Childhood portrait of the baby Prince Charles in his basket, at Buckingham Palace, London (Getty Images)
1949: Childhood portrait of the baby Prince Charles in his basket, at Buckingham Palace, London (Getty Images)
Princess Elizabeth holding Prince Charles in his Christening gown with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh behind. (PA)
Princess Elizabeth holding Prince Charles in his Christening gown with her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh behind. (PA)
Prince Charles, later The Prince of Wales, perched on the lap of his father the Duke of Edinburgh, whilst his mother Queen Elizabeth II looks on in the grounds of Windlesham Moor, country home in Surrey of Princess Elizabeth and the Duke. (PA )
Prince Charles, later The Prince of Wales, perched on the lap of his father the Duke of Edinburgh, whilst his mother Queen Elizabeth II looks on in the grounds of Windlesham Moor, country home in Surrey of Princess Elizabeth and the Duke. (PA )
1951: Portrait of the prince taken before his third birthday (PA )
1951: Portrait of the prince taken before his third birthday (PA )
The first pictures of the King after his severe lung operation. They were accompanied by Prince Charles and his baby sister, Princess Anne on his 3rd birthday visit to Buckingham Palace. (PA )
The first pictures of the King after his severe lung operation. They were accompanied by Prince Charles and his baby sister, Princess Anne on his 3rd birthday visit to Buckingham Palace. (PA )
The Prince of Wales with his father, the Duke of Edinburgh during a motorboat race up the river Medina at Cowes, Isle of Wight. (PA )
The Prince of Wales with his father, the Duke of Edinburgh during a motorboat race up the river Medina at Cowes, Isle of Wight. (PA )

Charles, played by Dominic West and Diana, Elizabeth Debecki, are touted as being at “all out war” at times throughout the 1990s-set fifth series.

A trailer shows the couple preparing to face the media as news of their separation is announced.

Netflix has not delayed releasing its take on the events of 1992, the Queen’s “annus horribilis” when the Princess Royal divorced Mark Phillips, the Duke of York separated from his wife, and Windsor Castle partly burned down. All episodes will be viewable immediately.

“What people forget is that there are real human beings and real lives at the heart of this,” the source said.

They reportedly said Netflix has “no qualms about mangling peoples’ reputations”.