Production on the final season of The Crown is well underway, and recently, actresses Viola Prettejohn and Beau Gadsdon were spotted filming a scene as young Princess Elizabeth (the future Queen Elizabeth) and Princess Margaret in 1945.
Viola Prettejohn joins Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, and Imelda Staunton in portraying Queen Elizabeth. It's unclear how many flashbacks will be included in the sixth and final season.
The scene being filmed is based on a true story of the royal sisters leaving Buckingham Palace on V-E Day, Victory in Europe Day, to mark the end of World War II. They went to celebrate with the public, with the permission of their father the King.
On the day, Princess Elizabeth wore her Auxiliary Transport Service uniform. (During the war, she served as a driver and mechanic with the ATS.) "We cheered the King and Queen on the balcony and then walked miles through the street. I remember lines of unknown people linking arms and walking down Whitehall, all of us just swept along on a tide of happiness and relief," Queen Elizabeth would later recall.
The Queen said that she and Princess Margaret were "terrified" of being recognized, but that the evening was "one of the most memorable nights of my life." There are no photos of their journey outside of the Palace, but as evidenced by the filming photos, The Crown will recreate the scene.
There's no premiere date yet for season six, and the show's timeline will reportedly end at some point in the 2000s.
Emily Burack (she/her) is the Senior News Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma, a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Twitter and Instagram.
