The Crown has moral responsibility to tell viewers they’re watching drama, says Helena Bonham Carter

The Crown has ‘moral responsibility’ to tell viewers they are watching a drama, says Princess Margaret actress Helena Bonham Carter

Helena Bonham Carter has said The Crown has a ‘moral responsibility’ to remind viewers they are not watching a documentary.

The actress plays Princess Margaret in the Netflix show. She told The Crown: The Official Podcast: ‘It is dramatized. 

‘I do feel very strongly because I think we have a moral responsibility to say hang on guys, it’s not a drama doc, we’re making a drama. They are different entities.’

The 54-year-old’s comments come amid concerns that the show is damaging the reputation of the monarchy.

Helena Bonham Carter, 54, (pictured) has said The Crown has a ‘moral responsibility’ to remind viewers they are not watching a documentary 

In a wide-ranging interview Bonham Carter also spoke about the portrayal of the Queen Mother’s nieces, Katherine and Nerissa Bowes-Lyon, who lived in an asylum and were registered as dead after being born with severe learning difficulties.

She said: ‘The story about Catharine and Nerissa absolutely true.

‘Whether Margaret had that sense of empathy with them and whether she didn’t know, absolutely no idea.’

The interview comes amid mounting concern The Crown is doing significant damage to the reputation of the monarchy and Prince Charles in particular.

Last week the Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden dramatically intervened in the debate, saying viewers should be told at the start of every episode some scenes in the series were fictitious.

He told the Mail on Sunday: ‘It’s a beautifully produced work of fiction, so as with other TV productions, Netflix should be very clear at the beginning it is just that.

She plays Princess Margaret in the Netflix show and told The Crown: The Official Podcast: 'It is dramatized' (Princess Margaret, right, and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, left)

She plays Princess Margaret in the Netflix show and told The Crown: The Official Podcast: ‘It is dramatized’ (Princess Margaret, right, and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, left)

‘Without this, I fear a generation of viewers who did not live through these events may mistake fiction for fact.’

Earl Spencer, the brother of Diana, Princess of Wales, has also called for a ‘health warning’ to remind viewers that the episodes are fictionalised version of events.

He told ITV’s Lorraine last week: ‘I think it would help The Crown an enormous amount if at the beginning of each episode, it stated that “This isn’t true, but it is based around some real events”. Then, everyone would understand it’s drama for drama’s sake.

‘Obviously Netflix wants to make a lot of money and that’s why people are in the business of making these things.

‘I worry people do think that this is gospel, and that’s unfair.’