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The Crown
S4.E7
All episodesAll
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
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IMDbPro

The Hereditary Principle

  • Episode aired Nov 15, 2020
  • TV-MA
  • 50m
IMDb RATING
8.2/10
4.2K
YOUR RATING
Helena Bonham Carter and Josh O'Connor in The Crown (2016)
BiographyDramaHistory

Grappling with mental health issues, Margaret seeks help and discovers an appalling secret about estranged relatives of the royal family.Grappling with mental health issues, Margaret seeks help and discovers an appalling secret about estranged relatives of the royal family.Grappling with mental health issues, Margaret seeks help and discovers an appalling secret about estranged relatives of the royal family.

  • Director
    • Jessica Hobbs
  • Writers
    • Peter Morgan
    • Jonathan Wilson
    • Malcolm McGonigle
  • Stars
    • Olivia Colman
    • Tobias Menzies
    • Helena Bonham Carter
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    8.2/10
    4.2K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Jessica Hobbs
    • Writers
      • Peter Morgan
      • Jonathan Wilson
      • Malcolm McGonigle
    • Stars
      • Olivia Colman
      • Tobias Menzies
      • Helena Bonham Carter
    • 19User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos8

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    Top cast33

    Edit
    Olivia Colman
    Olivia Colman
    • Queen Elizabeth II
    Tobias Menzies
    Tobias Menzies
    • Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
    Helena Bonham Carter
    Helena Bonham Carter
    • Princess Margaret
    Josh O'Connor
    Josh O'Connor
    • Prince Charles
    Emma Corrin
    Emma Corrin
    • Princess Diana
    Marion Bailey
    Marion Bailey
    • Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother
    Erin Doherty
    Erin Doherty
    • Princess Anne
    Tom Burke
    Tom Burke
    • Dazzle Jennings
    Harry Treadaway
    Harry Treadaway
    • Roddy Llewellyn
    Nancy Carroll
    Nancy Carroll
    • Anne Tennant
    Richard Teverson
    Richard Teverson
    • Colin Tennant
    Gemma Jones
    Gemma Jones
    • Penelope Carter
    Charles Edwards
    Charles Edwards
    • Martin Charteris
    Angus Imrie
    Angus Imrie
    • Prince Edward
    Tom Byrne
    Tom Byrne
    • Prince Andrew
    Georgie Glen
    Georgie Glen
    • Ruth Lady Fermoy
    Penny Downie
    Penny Downie
    • Duchess of Gloucester
    Sam Phillips
    Sam Phillips
    • Equerry
    • Director
      • Jessica Hobbs
    • Writers
      • Peter Morgan
      • Jonathan Wilson
      • Malcolm McGonigle
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews19

    8.24.1K
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    Featured reviews

    7dierregi

    Saved by HBC

    As usual the episodes focussing on Margaret make for the best viewing. Maybe because she was so deeply flawed and also because HBC is great in the role, although she looks nothing like Margaret. She plays the inner core of the princess, more than the real person.

    Margaret is worried about her mental sanity and she gets some bad news. On a side note, although I agree about the fact that wealthy families should do better with their unfortunate members, I wonder how many actually feel responsible for their cousins.

    Especially when you come from a huge family (in the past people tended to have several children so one might end up with over 20 cousins and never even know some of them).
    7bobcobb301

    The Hereditary Principle

    A well-done episode that tackled an important topic for the monarchy that is still relevant today.
    10parade1-528-416939

    Helena Bonham Carter

    I would like to crown Helena Bonham Carter the queen of season 4. In the role of the sad, wicked, fun and tragic princess Margaret, always number two and by the years even more irrelevant, HBC manages to make the princess number one, at least in the series. Mesmerising performance. Bravo!
    8Calicodreamin

    Wow

    Helena Bonham Carter slays this episode as Margaret, great acting with heartfelt conveyance. The royal family is certainly no stranger to controversies.
    10neurocore

    HBC is dynamite

    Helena Bonham Carter is a treasure. Such an amazing performance. At this point I was sure that nobody will beat Tobias Menzies after Moondust. I was so wrong! Soundtrack 10/10 too.

    Related interests

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    Biography
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    Drama
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    History

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Derek 'Dazzle' Jennings was a senior civil servant in the British Government's Department of the Environment who decided to become a priest at age 38. Jennings remained Margaret's friend and spiritual advisor until the end of his life in 1995, with Margaret visiting his sickbed in his final days.
    • Goofs
      The institutionalization of the Bowes-Lyon sisters, Katherine (Trudie Emery) and Nerissa (Pauline Hendrickson), had nothing to do with the Crown. John "Jock" Bowes-Lyon, the brother of Elizabeth, future Queen Mother (Marion Bailey), died six years before Edward VIII's abdication, and they were placed in the Royal Earlswood Hospital by their mother Fenella in 1941, five years after King George VI ascended the throne. Princess Margaret (Helena Bonham Carter) played no part in discovering the sisters' existence, nor did she confront her mother on the subject.
    • Quotes

      Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: Then the way things suddenly changed for all of us, none of us could have foreseen it.

      Princess Margaret: It? What's it?

      Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: Well, the abdication...

      Princess Margaret: No! Not everything that is wrong with this family can be explained away by the abdication.

      Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: Well, the abdication *did* change everything. You were too young to understand. Everything. It's complicated.

      Princess Margaret: No, it's not! It's wicked, and it's cold-hearted, and it's cruel. And it's entirely in keeping with the ruthlessness I myself have experienced in this family. If you're not first in line, if you're an individual character with individual needs, and God forbid an irregular temperament... If, if you don't fit the perfect mold of... silent, dutiful supplication, then you'll be spat out, or you'll be hidden away, or, worse, declared dead! Darwin had nothing on you lot. Shame on all of you.

    • Connections
      Featured in The 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards (2021)
    • Soundtracks
      C'est si bon
      Music by Henri Betti

      French lyrics by André Hornez

      English lyrics by Jerry Seelen

      Performed by Dean Martin

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 15, 2020 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Production companies
      • Left Bank Pictures
      • Sony Pictures Television Production UK
      • Sony Pictures Television
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 50m
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.00 : 1

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