The Crown: Coup

November 22, 2019 7:24 AM - Season 3, Episode 5

While the Queen travels abroad to learn about horse training, unhappiness among the British elite with the devaluation of the pound involves Lord Mountbatten in a plan to oust Harold Wilson.
posted by Cash4Lead (13 comments total)

Poor Porchy.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 7:53 PM on November 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

I swear I heard nods to “The Rains of Castamere” in the score here but it might have been my imagination.

What’s the call on the historicity of this episode? Did Elizabeth actually meaningfully intervene?
posted by supercres at 9:16 AM on November 24, 2019 [2 favorites]

I believe the general idea that Lord Mountbatten did allow talk of a coup to get too far is true. Whether Elizabeth did actually make the intervention is more debatable but there is at least one historical source that suggests she did.

The writers did of course take some liberties to increase the dramatic tension - for example, Elizabeth's visits to Kentucky stud farms apparently didn't start until the 80s. Also Mountbatten retired two years before this episode takes place, so that timeline was also condensed.
posted by peacheater at 6:56 AM on November 25, 2019 [3 favorites]

I swear I heard nods to “The Rains of Castamere” in the score here but it might have been my imagination.

I 100% heard it too before I came and read your comment. It's either intentional or a remarkable coincidence.
posted by Special Agent Dale Cooper at 8:34 PM on November 25, 2019 [3 favorites]

So, just to clarify, these Terrible, Humiliating Times of Catastrophe for Britain And Her Economy....are the setting for the Austin Powers opening dance scene.
posted by Huffy Puffy at 5:16 PM on November 28, 2019

As much as Porchy represents what might have been- a nice couple of horsey aristocracy, I love the ending where Phillip decides to kiss Elizabeth and the scene ends with them both grinning to themselves. It's a nice moment.
posted by freethefeet at 1:47 AM on December 9, 2019 [2 favorites]

I swear I heard nods to “The Rains of Castamere” in the score here but it might have been my imagination.

I'm like five minutes in and already thinking that its a bad idea to fuck over Tywin Lannister. I love Charles Dance in anything - I'd listen to him read the phone book - but this bit of casting seems very inspired.
posted by nubs at 6:42 AM on December 11, 2019 [4 favorites]

Yes, at this point casting Charles Dance in a role has to be seen as a message to the audience that this character is someone not to be fucked with lightly.
posted by Naberius at 7:53 PM on December 11, 2019 [4 favorites]

I love the ending where Phillip decides to kiss Elizabeth and the scene ends with them both grinning to themselves. It's a nice moment.

I believe they had just sheduled a Royal Booty Call.
posted by kirkaracha at 12:30 PM on December 18, 2019 [3 favorites]

Throughout the episode, the music I was hearing was a variation of the theme from Inception.

New actor for the Porchey character, pity because the previous actor resembled him so much and had real chemistry with Foy's character which made the rumors believable.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 11:16 AM on December 22, 2019

I believe they had just sheduled a Royal Booty Call

they definitely had. it was quite adorable!
posted by supermedusa at 9:04 AM on January 7, 2020 [1 favorite]

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that nobody In Present Times has gone and checked out all the coup films from the library to see how hard it is to actually do one. It’s not as easy as you think, it turns out!
posted by Huffy Puffy at 11:30 AM on November 9, 2020 [3 favorites]

I really enjoyed the AV Club review ripping the shit out of Dickie and his life choices. I suspected no coup would go down, duh, and exactly how it didn't go down. But I admit I thought that when Dickie was pointing out all the reasons why their coup would fail, that he was leading towards "This is why you gentlemen should give up the idea," instead of being all "Heeeeeeeeey, I'm related to the Queen" about it. Like that was gonna work.

That said, if there's a biography of Dickie out there somewhere, I'd read it. He's divey interesting.
posted by jenfullmoon at 9:55 PM on June 11, 2021