Elizabeth Debicki stuns in a black Dior gown for ‘The Crown’ London premiere

Here are some photos from the premiere event for The Crown Season 5 last night in London. I’m including photos of Elizabeth Debicki – wearing an elegant, Diana-esque Dior gown – plus Imelda Staunton, Lesley Manville, Olivia Williams, Jonny Lee Miller, and of course, Dominic West. West was there with his wife and children. A couple of years ago, Dominic very publicly cheated on his lovely wife with his costar Lily James. While his wife, Caitlyn FitzGerald, was not happy about it, she didn’t leave him or anything, and clearly they’re still playing happy family for the cameras. Peter Morgan cast West as Prince Charles shortly after West’s cheating scandal too. It was a little too “on the nose.” Also: I could eat Jonny Lee Miller with a spoon. I love him.

Anyway, there are tons of panicked, last-minute articles this week around The Crown’s premiere. I enjoyed this one from the Daily Mail, all about how Generation Z is going to believe everything they see on The Crown.

The Crown will ‘heavily influence’ young people’s view of King Charles in a negative light but Princess Diana will ’emerge as a cultural icon’, a royal expert has predicted. Professor Pauline Maclaren of the Centre for the Study of the Modern Monarchy at Royal Holloway, University of London says younger audiences who were born after the 1990s are likely to interpret the upcoming series as a ‘quasi-documentary’ on the Royal Family.

A recent YouGov poll found that just 30 percent of 18-24 year-olds believed that the monarchy is a good thing for Britain – as opposed to 73 per cent of people over the age of 65 who argued that it was.

Speaking to the BBC, the expert said the new series will only damage Generation Z’s view of the monarchy further as it is already well known that they are ‘less popular’ among younger people.

Professor Maclaren said: ‘They are likely to understand Diana as the victim of Charles’s treatment of her.’

The new series will feature a recreation of Princess Diana’s revenge dress – which she wore the same night that Prince Charles confessed to cheating on her in a 1992 television documentary. Commenting on these scenes, the royal expert said it is likely that Princess Diana will emerge as a ‘cultural icon’ among young viewers who will identify with her personal struggles.

[From The Daily Mail]

I too could be a professor of royal history with this kind of groundbreaking insight. Who would have thought that showing a historical dramatization of not-so-distant royal history would cause Gen Z to have an emotional connection to a sympathetic Princess Diana? It’s almost as if Diana was the tragic heroine of the Windsor story for two decades. It’s almost as if simply reciting historical facts about Diana’s life is enough to turn most people republican. Incidentally, this sh-t isn’t even generational. Xennials and Generation X saw how Diana was treated in real time and we were appalled.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Julie Edwards / Avalon and Cover Images.

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49 Responses to “Elizabeth Debicki stuns in a black Dior gown for ‘The Crown’ London premiere”

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  1. Danbury says:

    I just watched episode 1 – JLM is excellent as John Major

    • Noki says:

      It’s out?

    • Bettyrose says:

      Same just watched the first episode and Charles was right to worry. My gawd they came out swinging. That brief interaction between him and John Major was savage. And yes JLM is brilliant. His facial expression while they’re treating him like a priest at confession. 😳

    • Geegee says:

      I don’t get the outrage. From the episodes I have seen they went pretty easy on the royals…….also that woman has the longest neck. She is like a human giraffe

  2. Becks1 says:

    LOLOLOL. Of course its going to influence how people view the monarchy, sorry not sorry. their treatment of Diana was appalling and its not a crime to remind people of that.

    Love Elizabeth Debicki’s look here.

    Happy Crown Day celebitches!!

    • Anastasia says:

      I’m so confused by this, because most people, say, 30 or older know how terrible the BRF is and how egregiously they treated Diana, so why are the BRF so worried about the Crown? It’s not like it’s breaking news.

      I just, I don’t understand. Who do they think is *just learning* about this?!

      • seaflower says:

        Given Diana died 25 years ago, and BRF have played the media game of softening Chuck and Cam’s image over that time, they’ve been hoping that people have forgotten or at least their memories have faded.

        Not any more, lol.

  3. SarahCS says:

    My main issue with this season is that I’m going to find John Major attractive. As someone who voted for the first time in 1997 I NEVER thought that could be a possibility but I have loved JLM for many many years and I don’t see that ending any time soon. Sigh.

    As for this Professor, tell us something that we don’t know. At least its a reassurance that the kids are alright.

  4. Lourdes says:

    Elizabeth is gorgeous.

    Those pics of Dominic West and Lily James in Italy and then his note for the press the next day “my wife and I are very much together” never cease to appall me.

  5. Emmi says:

    JLM! It’s a good day when he appears on a red carpet. God, I love him. I can’t wait to watch this but a Wednesday isn’t the time.

    • Becks1 says:

      I’m annoyed at the Wednesday release, I feel like the last release in 2020 came out on a Friday or Saturday, I remember watching it in my basement that Saturday and Sunday, lol. And I feel like it was the same thing in 2019, it came out on a weekend, which happened to be the same weekend as the Prince Andrew interview lol.

      I know Disney Plus is all about the Wednesday releases but I’m not a fan.

    • Pumpkin (Was Sofia) says:

      Yeah I’m not happy about the Wed release either. It’s no big deal in the grand scheme of things but it just means I have to wait a few more days before watching! But will try and catch 20 mins or so tonight.

    • Emmi says:

      I may have caved and bought a bottle of red on my lunch break for tonight. LOL Maybe just one episode.

      • Becks1 says:

        That’s my plan for tonight. a glass or two of wine and the first episode LOL.

      • Bettyrose says:

        Cannot wait for the upcoming threads to discuss. I’m down two episodes, I’m already itching to go back and parse each scene but must start my work day now. Till this evening CBS!

  6. Roo says:

    Dominic’s wife and son are so good looking. I love that she’s dressed for a nice dinner out to their local fancy pub, and not in a formal gown. LOL. Dominic remains an idiot in my book.

  7. ML says:

    The whole cast looks wonderful and proud. I love ED’s Diana vibe, JLM definitely brings sex appeal to JM, IS looks great in a suit, and even DW is selling the happy family. I wish the cast and crew all the success in the world in the face of all the unjustified criticism and pressure the British establishment has been hurling at them.

  8. duchess of hazard says:

    Wait, it’s already on? I don’t know why I expected it to be on 12:00 am tonight instead of last night/this morning.

  9. Lightpurple says:

    Can’t watch until this weekend but I’m so excited for the casting of Elizabeth, Leslie, Imelda, and JLM!

    Elizabeth looks positively regal in that dress and Imelda looks adorable in her tuxedo.

  10. hangonamin says:

    Elizabeth is stunning. The dress is boring.
    Lololol cry me a river RF. At least for the older generations the queen was a symbol through some of the roughest times in UK history (WW2, rebuilding the nation after the war), current RF has nothing to show for their use. Hmm it’s as if the younger gen is realizing none of these people should have any titles or be rich based on their “blood”. And Harry is showing them you don’t have to be attached to a royal title to literally be normal and work. Grind the guillotine please

    • Brassy Rebel says:

      Disagree about the dress. But she could wear a potato sack and look amazing. 😍🤩

      • seaflower says:

        I just want her whole wardrobe from The Man from U.N.C.L.E., especially that black and white pantsuit.

        I don’t have the figure for it, but I still want it.

  11. Lux says:

    I will MAKE time out of my schedule to squeeze at least one episode in. The cast looks amazing and the black, white and red colors look cohesive. ED has such a luminous presence…can’t wait to see her portrayal of Diana.

  12. AnneL says:

    Elizabeth Debicki looks stunning. I love the back of that dress, wow.

    I actually don’t like the way Imelda looks in that suit. A nice suit or tuxedo on a woman can be stunning but hers is kind of dowdy? But she does looks comfortable and I’m all for that. I think my benchmark was Ashley Biden’s look at her father’s Inaugural Ball. She pulled it off beautifully. Of course she’s younger, but one can style a look well at any age.

    I think that is West’s son who plays William in this season. Good looking kid.

    I can’t wait to watch!

  13. Steph says:

    I didn’t realize Professor Umbridge was so tiny!

  14. Chantal says:

    +1 Kaiser! The younger generations aren’t blindly accepting the “superior” status of the RF. The new King breaking his marriage vows and treating his much younger wife like sh*t is definitely not going to go over well! I’m bingeing this show tonight!

  15. NeedCoffee says:

    Pauline McLaren knows her stuff when it comes to the RF; she’s been writing about them in academic circles for a long time, and did a book about consumer culture (her main area of research) and the RF.

    Full disclosure: she taught on my MA course at Royal Holloway.

  16. Brassy Rebel says:

    My God, she is gorgeous!

    I sure hope the professor is right about how young people react to the new season. It’s probably why the royals are so freaked out by it, at least in part.

  17. Nancy says:

    I read an article about a docu-drama about the granddaughters of Queen Victoria that’s coming out on ITV I believe. Can’t wait for Judi Dench and the royal crazies to give their opinions on how awful this all is <- sarcasm. 🤣🤣

    • sparrow says:

      I hope it covers the queen’s cousins, who were banished to an asylum for being “”mentally deficient” when young and never visited or acknowledged by the RF again. Buried in pauper graves in the hospital grounds.

  18. Barbara says:

    I haven’t started watching yet so she may surprise me, but I can’t picture Staunton as Elizabeth.

    • Margaret says:

      I was dubious about her as the Queen, I think it works on screen. So does the chap who plays Philip, and Dominic West as Charles, because they are all good actors and those skills can overcome the lack of physical similarity. I’m still not convinced about the actress who is playing Anne; I think she looks a lot like Margaret and I find that confusing. The standouts for me are Elizabeth Debicki and Jonny Lee Miller.

      Now to get my morning cup of tea and watch the rest of the second episode…

  19. Chlo says:

    Seeing Dominic West and his smug smiles and thinking about how he is playing Charles just makes me giggle every time I read about the Crown.

  20. D says:

    I’ve loved Elizabeth Debiki in everything I’ve seen her in but I hate how she poses on a red carpet. It’s very Gwyneth circa 1997 with the hunched shoulders and pouty face. She’s soooo gorgeous but she always looks soooo miserable.

  21. schmootc says:

    I’ve been kind of planning to stay away from this one because Dominic West just bugs me horribly now. But JLM might get me on board, damn it.

  22. Curmudgeon says:

    Elizabeth looks gorgeous. Her dress immediately reminded me of Diana’s blue one from Cannes 1987.

  23. Riley says:

    Dominic’s wife is named Catherine FitzGerald, not Caitlyn. Caitlyn FitzGerald is an actress.

  24. MY3CENTS says:

    Ok so we need a post in a couple of days to unpack this season right?
    Or maybe a post per episode?

  25. Feebee says:

    I find all this hand wringing on behalf of the Royals so basic. For all Elizabeth’s faults, publicly she was never this basic. Not while she was fully in charge anyway.

    But now it’s like the basic bitch is in charge and that’s why things are going downhill at any increasingly rapid rate of knots.

    The weird way they said the PPoW will be so upset. Well are they or are they are not? About what exactly and why do we need to know about it in these vague sort of terms?

    Love Staunton’s suit. So unqueeny.

  26. Cerys says:

    I’ve watched the first 2 episodes but I’m not sure about the new series. I’m not keen on the new cast. Elizabeth Debecki has none of Diana’s poise. She looks very gawky in the role and I’ve never been a fan of Imelda Staunton so I’m not liking her as the queen. The others are not a patch on the previous cast either especially the new Princess Anne.