Wolferton Splash
- Episode aired Nov 4, 2016
- TV-MA
- 56m
A young Princess Elizabeth marries Prince Philip. As King George VI's health worsens, Winston Churchill becomes Prime Minister for the second time.A young Princess Elizabeth marries Prince Philip. As King George VI's health worsens, Winston Churchill becomes Prime Minister for the second time.A young Princess Elizabeth marries Prince Philip. As King George VI's health worsens, Winston Churchill becomes Prime Minister for the second time.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIt is explained that the woman dressed as a nun, Princess Alice of Battenberg, is the mother of the Duke of Edinburgh. What is not explained is why she dressed that way: during the early 1930s, after going into exile and poverty with her family, she converted to Greek Orthodoxy, suffered a breakdown, was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and was institutionalized in a sanatorium. After her release she was separated or estranged from most of her family for many years. During World War II she hid a Jewish family from the Nazis (and was eventually posthumously named one of the 'Righteous Among the Nations' for her actions), and after the war she founded and joined an order of Greek Orthodox nuns, the Christian Sisterhood of Martha and Mary.
- GoofsElizabeth asks Philip to stop smoking, as she hated it. The real Elizabeth was not averse to smoking. She used to smoke herself, but only in private.
- Quotes
Peter Townsend: It was a young lady named Sally / Who enjoyed the occasional dally / She sat on the lap / Of a well-endowed chap, / And cried: "Sir, you're right up my alley!"
King George VI: There was an old countess of Bray, / - And you may think it odd when I say - / That despite her high station, / Rank, and education, / She always spelled "cunt" with a K.
"Wolferton Splash" did not disappoint. It was a great start to a series that continued to go from strength to strength (the latest season not so much), set things up beautifully for what was to come and lived up beautifully to what was expected. When "Wolferton Splash" first aired/was first released it was in a different league to much of what was being shown on Netflix and television, so much so it had been checked to see whether 'The Crown' really was from Netflix. Some didn't like that some of the series' characterisations were biased and inaccurate, to me that wasn't too big a problem in this episode.
Some may find "Wolferton Splash" too slow, it is a deliberately paced episode and is mainly set up. Set up that is still done incredibly well and is investable emotionally.
Visually however, "Wolferton Splash" couldn't be any more classy and sumptuous. The photography and production and costume design are evocative and a sight to behold. The music for me wasn't too intrusive or low-key and was beautiful scoring on its own. The main theme is not easy to forget.
Moreover the writing probes a lot of thought and intrigue, it is much more than just soap-opera, has some understated humour and doesn't seem too modern. Loved the intimacy and subtle tension of the storytelling in the episode, the deliberate pace in no way a hindrance, and the character chemistry scintillates. The characters are very compellingly written, with enough balance in characterisation to overshadow the instances of one-sidedness and most of them have more than one layer. To me Churchill was one of the more interesting characters (entertaining too) and King George connected with me most emotionally, seeing him so gravely ill brought a lump to my throat.
Almost all the acting is great, did have reservations about Vanessa Kirby in general throughout the series as Margaret but the rest were fine. John Lithgow's wonderfully crusty Churchill and Jared Harris' authoritative and moving King George were standouts. Claire Foy is dignity and class personified already, and those qualities would get stronger with each episode, and Matt Smith has authority and doesn't look uncomfortable with playing Phillip.
Overall, great and a fine example of why the acclaim for 'The Crown' was richly deserved. 9/10
- TheLittleSongbird
- Aug 18, 2020
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Filming locations
- Belvoir Castle, Leicestershire, UK(Windsor Castle interior and exterior)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime56 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.00 : 1