History Characters / TheCrown2016TheBritishRoyalFamily

* SadClown: He's the family prankster and likes to think of himself as a LovableRogue, though it's clear that all of his bluster and antics mask deeply-held insecurities about his role in the family.

* JadedWashout: Margaret is a rare, privileged, blue-blooded example. She grows bitter and bitter with the years as she fails to accomplish any of her life goals and is only able to elicit happiness by evoking [[HappyTimesFlashback long-time past]] moments of her youth, most of them involving [[TheOneWhoGotAway Peter Townsend]].

* ForegoneConclusion: By Season 5, the first released after the real UsefulNotes/ElizabethII's death, contemporary viewers do know him as King UsefulNotes/CharlesIII, so the plot threads about Elizabeth abdicating and him or his son becoming the monarch ahead of time are mostly alternative history and narrative license sustained by RuleOfDrama.

* ForegoneConclusion: By Season 5, the first released after Elizabeth's demise, contemporary viewers do know him as King Charles III, so the plot threads about him or his son becoming ''the'' monarch ahead of time are mostly alternative history and narrative license sustained by RuleOfDrama.

* ObsoleteOccupation: The show indulges in repeated subtle and not-so-subtle hints that since the late 1940s, most of the senior members of the Royal family have been living in near-constant fear that the Monarchy is about to be abolished. Consequently, many family conversations have the underlying theme of "this is our last chance to survive, but only if we are on our best behaviour." In reality, once the major wave of post-WWII decolonisation was over, the monarchical regime in the UK itself and in most of the other Commonwealth realms note was never seriously questioned, with only a handful of smaller island nations becoming republics in the 1970s and 80s note . Although episodes of anti-monarchical mood came and went in various segments of the society in many of the major Commonwealth realms during Elizabeth II's reign, there was never any serious republican movement in any of them until the late 1990. Similarly, although there certainly have been attempts by the Royal family and many British Prime Ministers to make the Monarchy more approachable and more in tune with the Zeitgeist, no core member of the Royal family is likely to have been seriously concerned that the system itself may come to an end.

* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Philip recollects that Lascelles shared with him the insight that this duality runs in the family. In every generation [[{{Foil}} dazzling and boring Windsors]] coexist. Queen Victoria, George V, Queen Mary, George VI, and Elizabeth II are among the stolid but dutiful and reliable ones, with their counterparts Edward VII, Prince Eddy, Edward VIII and Princess Margaret being brilliant, remarkable individuals, yet dangerous to themselves and to the instituion.

* MyGreatestFailure: After Diana dies, Charles admits to his failures regarding their marriage, which motivates his actions in ensuring Diana's funeral is public, as he felt she would have wanted it to be.
-->'''Charles''': I failed her in life. I will not fail her in death.

->'''Played By''': Creator/ClaireFoy (Seasons 1, 2 & 4-episode 8), Verity Russell (child, Seasons 1&3), Creator/OliviaColman (Seasons 3&4) , Creator/ImeldaStaunton (Seasons 5&6) and Viola Prettejohn (teenage, Season 6)

** Echoed by a hallucination of her younger self in the final episode of the series when she's seriously considering abdication. Her younger self bluntly and tartly points out that even if she abdicated, she wouldn't know what to do with herself, because it's impossible for her to go back to the woman she was before she became Queen.

* HumbleGoal: By the end of Season 5, Charles, increasingly unpopular after divorcing Diana, has lowered his grand ambitions about supplanting the Queen and mostly just wants to be allowed to marry the woman he loves.

* TheAce: In keeping with her real-life reputation, in the series' grand finale, a vision of her younger self reminds her that she's far better at being royal than any other member of her family -- and knows it -- and in a fitting conclusion to her character arc, Prince Philip later asserts that she was "born ready" to be Queen, and as such, is extraordinary.

->'''Played By''': Creator/ClaireFoy (Seasons 1, 2 & 4-episode 8), Verity Russell (child, Seasons 1&3), Creator/OliviaColman (Seasons 3&4) and Creator/ImeldaStaunton (Seasons 5&6)

->'''Played By''': Creator/VanessaKirby (Seasons 1&2), Beau Gadsdon (child, Season 1), Creator/HelenaBonhamCarter (Seasons 3&4), and Creator/LesleyManville (Season 5&6)

** In Series 6, after Margaret's health deteriorates chronically after multiple strokes, Elizabeth supports and comforts her to the very end. In a position as extraordinary as Elizabeth's is, Margaret, she notes, is as as near to a constant equal as anyone.

* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: When Harold Macmilan gave up his position as prime minister, she named all the prime ministers she previously had a bunch of quitters. Later on her longest-running PM would be Margaret Thatcher and Elizabeth absolutely did NOT like her.

* GracefulLadiesLikePurple and TrueBlueFemininity and PinkIsFeminine: Most of her outfits are one of these colors.

** Discussed by Prince Charles in Series 6 episode "Aftermath", which details the events following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. Charles explains to his mother that the nation needs the Queen to act as a maternal rallying point, and it takes much convincing for her to finally travel to London to address her people, as Elizabeth is paralysed, feeling she should stick to the StiffUpperLip modus operandi she feels the public value her for.

* MyGreatestFailure: Season 3 features what the real Elizabeth considers the greatest regret of her reign — delaying a visit to Aberfan for several days after nearly 150 people (mostly young children) were killed in a coal avalanche. Afterwards, she admits she's suspected for years that there's something wrong with her mind, given her inability to cry at such tragedy.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: What her veto of Peter and Margaret's marriage is portrayed as; she vetoes it out of tradition, although Peter would be an eminently more suitable choice for Margaret than her eventual husband, Lord Snowdon, who is portrayed as cruel at best and abusive at worst.

* ParentsAsPeople: While she loves her children without exception, her job does keep her unavailable from them, something that she herself resents. Also, while she, again, no doubt loves Charles, she is somewhat distant from him, as he represents the succession of the Crown, and therefore is a constant reminder, much like how she was for George, of her own mortality.

** Finally tells Philip to do this after losing her patience with his complaints about his position.
** Later does the same to Charles, after his continued complaints about his marriage to Diana.
* RageBreakingPoint: Philip's insulting impression of her father while needling her FreudianExcuse. It's the first time in the series where she really loses her temper.

* RoyalWe: As seen when giving speeches, though used fairly sparingly, lending her an even more distant, rarefied tone on top of her already staid persona. What ''has'' become her trademark is using "one" instead of "I", something that originated from shyness and innate modesty.

** This is later echoed by a hallucination of her younger self in the final episode of the series when she's seriously considering abdication. Her younger self bluntly and tartly points out that even if she abdicated, she wouldn't know what to do with herself, because it's impossible for her to go back to the woman she was before she became Queen.

** She goes into auto-pilot and deploys her famous “have you come far?” chit-chat opener, usually reserved for meeting the public on far more cordial occasions, with Palace-intruder Michael Fagan. Although it’s PlayedForLaughs, there’s also a more serious undertone, as it shows both some sympathy and dignity to Fagan and, TruthInTelevision, reacting automatically is one of the things people do when they're terrified.

* RousingSpeech: Prince Charles describes Diana's death as "the biggest thing that has ever happened. And he's not wrong, as the whole world seemingly unites in unprecedented grief. Charles, sensing the mood of the nation and a creeping sense of the Queen being conspicuous by her absence, convinces his mother to deliver one of the most powerful speeches of her reign, in which she completely uncharacteristically acknowledges the sorrow she personally feels as Monarch and, more importantly, as a grandmother.

* EveryoneIsRelated: It's not touched upon much in the series, but nonetheless Diana is the sister-in-law of Private Secretary Robert Fellowes, married to Diana's sister Lady Jane Spencer, and a distant cousin of Sir Winston Spencer-Churchill.

* AgonyOfTheFeet: A stroke on Mustique leaves her feet horribly scalded and deformed with the soles burned; it causes her visible pain just to try and wear a pair of normal heels after that.

* SickEpisode: "Ritz" portrays her suffering from multiple strokes in minute and sorrowfully sympathetic detail, to the point of cringing.

* TheLastDance: Having enjoyed an extraordinarily glamorous existence, Series 6 episode “Ritz” is dedicated to the end of Margaret’s life. Whilst at a party on Mustique, her health takes a dramatic turn for the worst, with Margaret suffering a stroke mid-speech. Following rehabilitation, the Princess refuses to alter her partying ways and later, back on Mustique, she suffers a second stroke, [[AgonyOfTheFeet scolding her feet with boiling water]] whilst showering, which tragically debilitates her for the rest of her life. Margaret is determined to FaceDeathWithDignity, planning her own funeral arrangements with Elizabeth with touching wry humour.