Prince Charles Accused of "Damage" to the Royal Family, as Younger Generation Revolts
A younger generation does not view Prince Charles favorably, say experts.
The past few years the Royal Family has been engulfed in scandal. From Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's departure as working royals and then their seriously damaging Oprah Winfrey interview to accusation of sexual assault and rape against Prince Andrew, leading to the Queen's son being forced to step down from royal duty, it is safe to say that the 2020s haven't started off as the best decade for The Firm.
As Queen Elizabeth continues to get older and many insiders are expecting Prince Charles to take the throne sooner rather than later, there is some growing concern that the heir to the throne has also experienced some damage to his reputation as well, and it could have repercussions on the Royal Family as a whole.
According to some experts, two Netflix shows have damaged the future King's reputation. The Crown and Diana: In Her Own Words have not portrayed Prince Charles in the best light and damaged his reputation in the eyes of the general public.
The 2017 documentary focused on Prince Charles' late wife, Princess Diana, his affair with now-wife Camilla Bowles, and Diana's struggle dealing with it. It also covers their divorce, how she was treated by the Royal Family, and her tragic death.
The Crown, which first aired in 2016 on the streaming service, focuses on Queen Elizabeth and her reign. While Prince Charles was not part of the storyline of the first few seasons of the show, the past and upcoming season delve deep into the Prince Charles and Princess Diana scandal as well. To underline the importance of the character, Netflix hired Dominic West, star of The Wire and The Affair, to portray the Prince of Wales in the upcoming season.
Daily Mail's Diary Editor, Richard Eden maintains that both shows are damaging to the future King of England. "They broadcast The Crown at the same time as Diana: In Her Own Words, which was a really powerful programme. They used this version of her marriage breakdown as a basis for The Crown script. People watched it, like my daughter's generation, [and] were just horrified. They were like, 'oh Prince Charles is [a] dreadful man isn't he' and it really did damage [his reputation]," he said.
He also explained that Diana, In Her Own Words features bits of her private videos. "It was recordings that Diana had made, never dreaming they'd ever be made public but they were," he said. "You know, courtiers and friends of Prince Charles talked about how much damage it was doing to the monarchy."
Experts also fear that Prince Harry's soon-to-be-published biography could be damaging to Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla. "If I was Prince Charles, I'd be looking for a pile of coats to hide under," royal expert Andrew Morton told Us Weekly. "I think we're going to see Charles once more in the firing line."
